Mondays with Hawgdaddy: Fishing Music
Am I the only one that associates fishing and music? I don’t think so. I see lots of fishing blogs out there that mention music on a regular basis. I’ve always closely associated the two, perhaps because fishing trips typically involve lots of time in the car and music is a good space filler.
I hold that there are two types of fishing music. The first is the lucky fishing song. This is the song that possesses some mystical power over the fish causing them to bite with irrational fervor any time you, the fisherman, happen to hear it on the way to the fishing. You don’t even have to like the song, but for whatever reason the fish bite like crazy if you hear it. These are pretty rare if my experience is any indication. I’ve only had two, and both were a part of my former life as a hardcore bass fisherman. Luckily for me, I happen to like them both. One was “Neon Moon” by Brooks & Dunn. During the summers of my youth, it was my custom to fish Thursday evening bass tournaments with my father at the Jackson County Park boat ramp. We went on a tear in which we won five or six in a row. Many of the best bass fishermen on Lake Guntersville competed in those little tournaments back then, so it was quite an accomplishment. We realized that “Neon Moon” just happened to be playing before each one. We started paying attention and whenever we heard that song, we caught lots of bass, and they were big ones, too. We usually won Big Fish and First Prize overall. The other lucky song was “Bubba Hyde” by Diamond Rio. This one only worked for my best friend Jeremy, my brother, and I. We got in a pattern one summer where we heard this song fairly often when pulling our trusty 14′ aluminum v-bottom boat (lovingly christened the “Hawgdaddy” in black spray paint along the sides – Hawgdaddy subsequently becoming my nickname). Whenever we heard that song, we absolutely wore the fish out. I knew from previous experience with “Neon Moon” that this was magic, so we picked up on it more quickly. It was the closest thing to a sure bet I’ve ever known. We got smart and tried to play these songs by CD when pulling the boat, but it’d only work if we heard it purely by chance on the radio. I tried to turn Robert Earl Keen’s “Five Pound Bass” into a lucky fishing song just because it seemed like it should be, but it never worked. My skeptical side says that we caught all those fish because we fished all the time and knew what we were doing; not because of any song. But then there’s that part of me that wonders…
The second type of fishing music is the music that I just plain like. I don’t know that the music holds any power over the fish, or maybe the trout I’ve been devoted to over the last few years are just less musically-inclined than largemouth bass. Either way, I simply love listening to this stuff while on a fishing trip. My long-time favorites (defined as being favorites for longer than a couple years) are Alabama (obviously, huh?), the Eagles, Chris LeDoux, George Strait, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Johnny Cash, Robert Earl Keen, and Norah Jones. New favorites are Levon Helm, the Wailin’ Jennys, and the Be Good Tanyas. What are your favorites? Though, knowing how fishermen are, don’t feel obligated to give away your lucky fishing songs. Stick to this second category of stuff.
I’ve got a John Gierach book on CD that I also like to listen to on fishing trips: At the Grave of the Unknown Fisherman. I’ve probably heard it a half dozen times, and I came to associate the narrator’s voice with Gierach so much that I was puzzled the first time I heard the man himself speak in a video. I had trouble reconciling the various bits of the known universe for awhile, but I eventually recovered.
Take care,
Nathan
Tags: Be Good Tanyas, Brooks & Dunn, Diamond Rio, fishing, Levon Helm, music, Wailin' Jennys