Florida Folk Show: Recent Episodes
Pete Gallagher
The Florida Folk Show Podcast is hosted by Peter B. Gallagher. The podcast dives into Pete's vast archives of music, photos, videos and artifacts that he has created and collected over the last several decades as a journalist, photographer, songwriter and producer. Explore the people, places and culture that define his Florida. Borrowing the signature line from the great Florida Folk artist Bobby Hicks, The Florida Folk Show Podcast: “It's Florida, need I say more.” Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/floridafolkshow/support
The West Klosterman Preservation Group recently signed an agreement with the Pinellas County School Board to purchase the 14-acre West Klosterman Preserve for $3,000,000. They have until July 2022 to raise the funds in order to protect this rare parcel of undisturbed land in Pinellas County. Tim spoke with Tex Carter and Kay Carter from the West Klosterman Preservation Group about their effort to purchase and preserve this pristine piece of Pinellas County. #SaveTheWKP
If you want to support the group or find out more you can visit
https://wkpreserve.com/
or go to their Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/SaveTheWestKlostermanPreserve/
or make a donation through the Pinellas Community Foundation:
https://pinellascf.org/giving/wkpreserve-fund/
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Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/floridafolkshow/support
In this episode Pete talks about Betty Mae Jumper and the making of the second edition of Legends of the Seminoles:
"Late at night around the campfires, Seminole children safely tucked into mosquito nets used to listen to the elders retelling the old stories and legends. The priceless tales of mischievous Rabbit, the Corn Lady, the Deer Girl, and the creatures of the Everglades are all written down and collected here for readers of all ages. This is a portrait of the beliefs and lifeways of the Seminoles of Florida as well as a delightful read for anyone interested in the first peoples of Florida."
The book, published by Rowman & Littlefield, features fascinating legends from the Seminole Tribe, as well as an introduction by Pete, a foreword by James Billie, and beautiful illustrations by the legendary Florida painter Guy LaBree.
Legends of the Seminoles is available directly from Pineapple Press here: https://bit.ly/39utGjt
Barnes & Noble here: https://bit.ly/3cIplet
Amazon here: https://amzn.to/31FIVSq
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/floridafolkshow/support
It is my pleasure to welcome one of the nation’s top folklorists and folklore administrators Peggy Bulger to the Florida Folk Show Podcast. Peggy’s career began in Florida when she was named Florida’s State Folk Arts Coordinator in 1975, a year later she became the administrator of the Florida Folklife Program for 13 years. Bulger left in 1989 to work 10 years as the Folk Arts Director and Senior Program Officer for the Southern Arts Federation in Atlanta. In 1999, she was named director of Library of Congress’ American Folklife Center – only the second person to hold that post since the Center’s creation in 1976 (Florida folklorist Alan Jabbour was the founding director). Bulger retired from her position as Director of the American Folklife Center (AFC) at the Library of Congress on December 31, 2011. I met Peggy when she first came to Florida and traveled with her to visit a few folklore legends. As she put together the state’s first Folklore directory and have followed her career ever since. In fact, she was the one who first told me about Mary Smith McClain – the legendary Diamond Teeth Mary. Since Mary was in Bradenton and I was in St. Pete, Peggy asked me if I would give Mary a ride to White Springs to perform in the Florida Folk Festival.
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Welcome to the Florida Folk Show Podcast. This conversation between myself and composer extraordinaire, David Amram, who lives in upstate New York, touches on all aspects of his life and almost a century worth of American music, literature, arts and culture. He shares memories of his time with everyone from Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker and Thelonious Monk to Langston Hughes and Jack Kerouac; from Ramblin’ Jack Elliott to Willie Nelson. I could have done a whole year of shows with this Renaissance man. He served as an advisor to the Friends of Jack Kerouac’s House in St. Petersburg and I called him up to give him the bad news about the Kerouac house, namely the owner had sold it to a flipper. That’s when we cooked up the idea for a zoom interview. Approaching his 90th birthday in November, you’ll see he is full of life, animated, sharp and has more stories than even Ramblin Jack! Let us know how you like these episodes. Please subscribe to our YouTube channel and leave us a message at Pete@Floridafolkshow.com
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Welcome to The Florida Folk Show podcast. In this episode, through the words and recollections of Arcadia realtor and land manager Gordon “Mac” Martin, we celebrate the life and times of a man known far and wide as The Citrus King. We are talking about none other than the legendary Ben Hill Griffin III of Frostproof, who died July 25, 2020 at the age of 78. Early in his own career, Mac worked very closely with The Citrus King, and shares with us some precious memories of one of Florida’s greatest citizens. In addition to his own career in Florida land, Mac is also one of Florida Folk Music’s best singer-songwriters. He has promised to write a song about Ben Hill Griffin III and when it is ready, we’ll add it to this podcast.
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Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/floridafolkshow/support
This episode features interviews, live performances and other highlights from the first annual Fire on the Swamp music festival which was held at the Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation on Dec. 4-5, 1993. Pete Gallagher and Elan Chalford organized the festival along with Chief Jim Billie and the Seminole Tribe of Florida. The festival featured American fiddle legend Chubby Wise and the traditional Irish fiddler James Kelly. There were three fiddle contests held that weekend with over $5,000 in prizes. We hope you enjoy this look back at a piece of Florida Folk history!
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Whitey Markle was a proud and defiant defender of Florida’s environment, animals, lands and especially water. Like the late songwriting legend Bobby Hicks, the famous Game Commission biologist songwriter Dale Crider and the 400-song Patriarch of Florida Folk Music, Frank Thomas, Whitey was unforgiving to those who dared despoil Florida, throw a cigarette out a car window, leave litter on a beach, dig holes to drain wetlands, clear cut miles of forest and throw up trailer parks in natural prairies. I can see him right now, face red as fire, his vitriol boiling over with anger towards cowardly politicians and Councilman and the faceless corporations that dare to cross his path. Yet he had a soft touch that could silence an angry room with songs that made you feel the old Ocklawaha flow through your veins as the room grows quiet and shy like the squirrel who perches like a statue until we all safely walk by. Whitey, I knew and respected you every day since we first met at the 1971 Florida Folk Festival and we offer this podcast in your honor, to the bears and panthers and gators and mullet and those vanishing parts of Florida we can still see and feel, which you helped preserve. We present your first appearance at the Florida Folk Festival, including Cousin Thelma’s introduction, as well as your last FFF appearance. And we have your appearances at many environmental meetings, standing like a vicious bantam rooster before governments, the bad guys, the people who want to do things like they did up north where they had to leave because it was so bad. Remember, Whitey and rest in peace knowing you have trained and educated an Army of protectors, a veritable militia who will use their binoculars and notepads and phone cameras to keep watch over Florida and bring to justice the bastards whom I hope your memory will haunt the rest of their days. Richard “Whitey” Markle, a man like no other in Florida history. Courageous, bold, stubborn yet sweet in his own Florida cracker way.
I hope you enjoy this Tribute to Whitey produced by Tim Valle from everything we could quickly get our hands on at the last minute. And thank you for watching the Florida Folk Show podcast.
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Pete interviewed Steve Arvey back on April 2nd, 2019. Steve was playing that night at the Old Key West Bar & Grill. This video features that interview as well as a few of the songs that Steve played that night. Enjoy the International cigar box guitarist and world travelin' singer songwriter, the West Coast of Florida legend and King of the Folk Vampires for the Florida region, the legendary Steve Arvey!
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On September 12, 2019 Pete interviewed Chief Jim Billie on his front porch. Chief Jim Billie talks about his childhood growing up on the Dania Chimp Farm, his time deployed in Vietnam, his experience as Chairman of the Seminole Tribe of Florida, leadership, preserving Seminole culture and much more.
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After the Florida Folk Night @ Old Key West, Pete sits down with Raiford Starke for an intimate interview in Pete's living room. They discuss Raiford's life, family and career. Raiford talks about growing up outside of D.C., how he first got into music, his time spent playing with Chief Jim Billie, spring break in the Florida Keys playing with Big Dick and the Extenders and much more.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/floridafolkshow/support
Buddy Moody was the featured act at Florida Folk Night @ Old Key West on August 13, 2019. Pete had a brief conversation with Buddy before the night began. After the interview we hear performances from the Florida Boys, Scott Howard and Buddy Moody. The episode ends with a great conversation between Pete and Donald Forgione, the former director of Florida Park Services. The Florida Folk Show is partnering with Donald Forgione who will use his extensive experience and unique perspective to produce a regular segment about Florida's parks, its environment and anything else he wants to share with the world.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/floridafolkshow/support
Inside a mobile studio on the banks of the Suwannee River during the 1997 Florida Folk Festival the legendary Diamond Teeth Mary McClain sat down with Liz Pennock to record "Old Folks at Home." This was Mary's last known studio recording, she was 96 at the time. Inside the studio Leslie Gaines interviewed Mary and filmed some of the recording session. Pete has boxes of Leslie's old Betacam tapes from the 1997 Florida Folk Festival that Tim is digitizing. Included among those tapes, and presented here for the first time, is that interview with Diamond Teeth Mary and two alternate takes from the "Old Folks at Home" recording session.
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This is an all music episode featuring live recordings from the 2019 Florida Folk Festival. The Florida Boys play "High Tide", Tom Scudiero (w/Bart Hanchey & J. Robert) play "Red Tide" and Whitey Markle & The Swamprooters play "The Poor Old Ocklawaha". All three songs were performed at the River Gazebo during the 2019 Florida Folk Fest. The audio was recorded by Tim Valle. Enjoy these three songs about Florida's waters.
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Joe Dan Osceola died on June 9, 2019 at the age of 82. He was the youngest president of the Seminole Tribe of Florida, the first president of USET and later in life served as the ambassador for the Seminole Tribe. Pete was working for the Seminoles and became friends with Joe Dan when he was the ambassador for the tribe. This is Pete's tribute to his friend and the great Seminole leader Joe Dan Osceola.
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This episode of the Florida Folk Show podcast is all about storytelling. It features some great segments including Chief Jim Billie telling the Seminole legend of the Kissimmee River, Will McLean telling the story of the massacre that started the First Seminole War, Chubby Wise explaining his role in writing Orange Blossom Special, and much more. We hope you enjoy these uniquely Florida stories and songs.
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This is the first in a series of short episodes from The Florida Folk Show Podcast documenting our time at the 2019 Florida Folk Festival. In this episode we interview Ethel McDonald from Marie's Home Canning. She discusses canning and how her mom, Marie Norris, started the business.
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Episode 2 is all about legendary Florida Folk singer Bobby Hicks. He was Florida.
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This is the first episode of the Florida Folk Show Podcast. In this episode Irene Russell talks about her dad making moonshine, Stetson Kennedy talks about Woody Guthrie, and Pete introduces us to the quintessential Florida Cracker Tom Gaskins. Enjoy and have a great Florida day!
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/floridafolkshow/support