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Dave is shown here at the Clear Creek logging camp around 1920 with his father Jesse and sister Irene. Dave learned Irish fiddle tunes from hearing his father whistle. The family moved to Emmett after a logging accident disabled Jesse for life.
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This photo of Dave Frisbee around age 18 (ca. 1935) was taken while he was travelling around southwest Idaho playing rhythm guitar and fiddle. As was the case for Otis, old time music helped Dave break out of the cycle of poverty. |
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Dave became a fighter and bomber pilot in World War II, despite his limited education. He played fiddle on the radio when not flying, which he said helped him avoid many inspections and demerits! He and his wife Norma are shown here around 1945 with their son Rue |
Like Otis Howard, Dave Frisbee came to Idaho in a very poor family. He was eight years old before he owned a pair of shoes. Dave (at left) is shown below at the fruit orchard he developed in Emmett.
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Dave Frisbee is shown here competing in the early 1970s at the Weiser National Old Time Fiddle contest. The accompanists are Lyle Powell (guitar) and Cheryl Wanzer (piano).
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Dave Frisbee died on January 31, 2006 and was buried in the Emmett cemetery. Dave selected all of the music that was to be played at his funeral and wake: recordings of his fiddling made over the course of his life.
Three of Dave Frisbee’s Favorite Fiddle Tunes
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Kansas City Kitty By Edgar Leslie and Walter Donaldson (1929); Recorded by Jimmy Dorsey and many other |
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Codfish Ball By Lew Pollack and Sydney Mitchell (1936); Recorded by Shirley Temple |
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Is It True What They Say About Dixie By Calser-Lerner-Marks (1936); Recorded by Al Jolson and many others |
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The Otis Howard/Dave Frisbee Recordings
In January, 1963 at his home in Emmett, Dave Frisbee made a reel to reel recording of Otis Howard playing dozens of fiddle tunes. The recording includes a number of original schottisches, waltzes and hoedowns written by Otis. Dave backed up Otis on rhythm guitar. To our knowledge, this is the most comprehensive set of recordings ever made of a true early Idaho Old Time Fiddler. Gary Eller and Rue Frisbee recently digitized this tape and issued a CD containing 29 fiddle tracks.
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This CD contains 29 fiddle tunes played in 1963 by Otis Howard with guitar backup by Dave Frisbee. Includes a booklet with photos and text about the lives of Otis and Dave. This work is part of the Idaho Songs Project described at sites.google.com/view/idaho-songs/early-idaho-songs. |
Slideshow designed by Gary Eller
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Idaho Songs Project
Gary Eller |
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