Florida Cracker Cowboy DVDs and Music

Florida Cracker Cowboy DVDs and Music You Will Enjoy Owning and Sharing
These audio CDs are written and/or produced by Florida friends and artists, and represent a growing collection of items we think you will enjoy. The DVDs are an outstanding example
of the life and times of a vanishing Florida.

Occasionally, someone comes along to keep the torch of our pioneering ancestors burning. My father did it when he wrote A Land Remembered.

Some friends of mine have accomplished a similar feat with their skills in filmmaking. I’m happy to announce the release of a new movie made with an equal amount of love and respect for a vanishing lifestyle. I'm talking about Florida Crackers: the Cattlemen and Cowboys of Florida.

This story starts back to 1521, when Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon landed in what is now Florida and introduced the first cattle and horses into North America. Some descendants of these early pioneering families still play a major role in Florida's cattle industry to this day, working the land and raising the cattle that their families have owned for generations.

The film is about real-life, working cowboys in Florida: their history, their culture, and the uncertain future they face as they strive to preserve their way of life in a fast-paced modern world.

This is a movie depicting the life of the ranchers and cattlemen and women in the state of Florida - the second largest cattle ranching state in the USA.

Covering every aspect of their lives - from the prairies to the corrals to the rodeos and the small town parades, this movie explores a way of life that is rapidly disappearing, after 250 years of existance.

But more importantly, it reveals the danger in the loss of the Florida prairie to urban sprawl - the wholesale destruction of the wilderness and conversion to unfettered construction. Technology has allowed the rapid conversion of forest and ranchland to "martini ranches"; tiny one acre houses with no plan for sustenance and no regard for the future.

This movie, hopefully will help the public, the government and the developers themselves to see a better way - a sustainable future that we can leave to our children and posterity forever.

Takin' Another Crack At It
Music CD

Benjamin Dehart's music made a great contribution to "Florida Cracker Storyteller." The theme song is Ben’s version of Frank Thomas’ “Cracker Cowman” from Ben's CD, “Takin’ Another Crack At It!” This outstanding CD contains eleven songs, eight of which Ben authored. In addition, he did the arrangements, sang lead vocals and perfect harmonies, played flute, harmonica, guitar and, at appropriate moments, cracked the Florida cow whip in this wonderful collection of Florida music. His brother Jason played banjo, Gilbert Dhennin and Leo Vieira, symphonic keyboard, and Tony Macaluso upright bass.

The music flows seamlessly—instrumentation enhancing a clear, soaring tenor that defies description. The most apt title I can lay on Ben Dehart is “Pavarotti of Florida Folk.”

The CD opens with “Grey Cow Cavalry,” a song describing the Florida cowboys who rode with Jake Summerlin rounding up scrub cattle and driving them to Baldwin as food for rebel soldiers. “All I Ever Wanted To Do Was Be A Cowboy” describes graphically the plight of so many who trade their dreams for security. “Open Country” expresses the yearning of lovers of nature frustrated by unrestrained development. With “Papa, Can You Hear?”, “1993-2003, Our First Ten Years,” and “Granny, I Miss You,” Ben shares his deep love for his wife and family. “Drunk Traps” is clever and lighthearted.

Takin' Another Crack At It CD - $18.00

Welcome Home
Fourth generation Floridian, Doug Spears, knows the traditions and customs of Florida as well as anyone and he shows it on his new CD, Welcome Home. From the swamps of North Florida to the beaches of Key West, Spears brings the sights, sounds, and even smells of Florida alive in these well written and performed songs. Doug is joined by a variety of musicians on Welcome Home which was exquisitely produced by Jason Thomas.

Moonshiners found the swampland to be a good place to hide their stills and the first cut, Yellow Butter Moon, celebrates their product. "Yellow butter moon shine down through me with a light so true. There's love and life in the burn and bite of that yellow butter moon." Lis Williamson plays a nifty clawhammer banjo along with Doug's guitar and Jason Thomas' fiddle. Rob Ickes' smooth slide kicks off Teppentine, a story about the men who distilled turpentine from the sap of pine trees. It was hot unpleasant work and much like the coal mines, the workers paid all their wages back to the company store. Spears is a storyteller of the first order. His descriptions are vivid and true.

You don't have to be from Florida to enjoy and appreciate the excellent performances and unique Florida music in Welcome Home. Stellar songwriting, perfect vocals, superb musicians and masterful production combine to create a rare album. This is not Margaritaville, it's a whole lot better.

We feel this CD is a perfect fit with the A Land Remembered mind set, and are proud to offer it to you here.

This is such a unique CD, I'm going to let some of Erich's fans tell you about it.

Charlie Fye says,"If you wanna go back in time and hear some history of central florida and the Okeechobee area, this is the album you need to get. Not only does the story (Pogy Bill) take you back, but the music does the same. Steller piano playing by Erich and very authentic styles of that era, plus some bonus songs that are excellent also. It is well worth the money. If you don't know what music was like at that time, you can find out by listening to this album. I like it very much. If you are tired of the same ole same ole, this album is not more of the same. It is unique in its format and musical style. You gotta get it."

Kenneth Katz says, "This is one musical journey you don't want to miss!!! This entertaining CD will have you foot tappin' & knee slappin' in no time flat with such great tunes like "We're in the Money" & the title cut "Okeechobee Moon." In fact, you might just find yourself singin' along as this listener did. Every now & then a musical CD comes along that gets it right. Hats off to Erich Overhultz & Friends on a job well done as "Okeechobee Moon" is one such CD of Florida music. Oh, and let's not forget about ol' "Pogy Bill." His story is a wonderful journey into Florida's past & the narrator does an excellent job of sharing this fascinating story with the listener. Like I said earlier, this is one musical journey you don't want to miss!!!"

Jerry started playing in a rock band at the age of 14. Through years of being a campfire guitar player, basically playing for the fun of it, he discovered he actually was a folk singer! Now he travels throughout Florida and the Southeast, performing at colleges, festivals and beer joints.

Here's what one listener had to say about this CD..."If you want an introduction to what native Floridians hold dear -- and don't -- listen to this CD as you drive to or through the Sunshine State. Mincey is a craftsman of song in the great tradition of Will McLean, Frank Thomas, Jim Ballew and the many others who have gone before. This is an education, but be prepared to laugh out loud."

Tony Macaluso of Orlando, Florida adds, "These songs are the kind of songs that stick with you like a happy memory. You'll be haulin' oranges up and down sand hills, sailing a skipjack boat loaded with moonshine, driving cattle across a swollen creek during a hurricane, and wishing Mr. Cole lived in your neighborhood. The only thing I dont like about this cd, is that I didn't get to play on it. You'll love it."

Another delightful collection of songs from Florida itinerant folk singer, Jerry Mincey.

With original titles such as Cuttin' Fences, Sweet Florida Sunshine, Kissimmee River Blues and the title cut, Narcoossee Lucie, this CD is bound to please traditional Florida music lovers.

Narcoossee Lucie - $15.99

Butch Harrison
Florida Cracker Storyteller

This DVD contains 58-minutes of stories in three chapters. The first section, filmed at a Florida pioneer homestead at Florida Capital State Park in Perry, Florida, provides a rich introduction to early settler life. An authentic settler house and outbuildings provide the perfect background as Butch demonstrates how and why settlers built the typical "Cracker House," what they ate and how they lived.

Much of the music is by Butch's friend, fellow Floridian Benjamin DeHart.

In the second section, Butch entertains us with true tales of his life as a guide and gladesman in the Florida Everglades. These are colorful stories of frogs, fish and alligators in the world that was Butch's playground, a world that is increasingly threatened today.

We've taken the entire contents of the Butch Harrison DVD and created an audio book (audio CD) that you can listen to in your car while driving or relaxing in your favorite place.