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Top Downloads
(as of 2021-01-21)
NOTE: RIV 1062 - Silent Night does not appear in its proper location in this listing because it had to be split up into several smaller downloads. It is currently by far the top download for the year 2019!


Now Available
Lois Elling's book, Teaching Clogging is now in its second edition. Buy a downloadable PDF copy here for $25Breaking News!
Merry Christmas! December Releases
Posted on Thursday December 24, 2020
This is a bit late coming out, but we finally have our December releases up on the Riverboat website on Christmas Eve itself!
- RIV 1114 - Living With The Shades Pulled Down (Vocal by Ted Kennedy, formerly RB 199)
- RIV 1113 - You Are The One (Vocals by Nelda Eaton and Silver Sounds' Jack O'Leary, with a harmony track by Jack; formerly JBK 132)
- RIV 1112 - On The Other Hand (Vocals by Ted Kennedy and Nelda Eaton, with a harmony track by Sam Dunn; formerly RB 3011)
- RIV 1111 - Never Ending Song Of Love (Vocal by Sam Dunn)
- RIV 1110 - Sweetheart (Patter)
- RIV 1109 - Happy Times (Patter) (Vocals by Dave Eno with SSD and 2-couple A2, C1 and C2 choreo, and by Sam Dunn with Plus choreo)
- RIV 1108 - Beethoven's 9th (Patter) (Vocal with SSD choreo by Dave Eno)
- RIV 1107 - Square Dance Town (Vocal by Kumi Takahashi and Mitchell Osawa)
- RIV 1106 - Eighteen Wheels And A Dozen Roses (Vocal by Tac Ozaki, Ko Iwata and Elite Records' Mitchell Osawa)
Here's wishing all of you a wonderful holiday season! Hope to see you in the coming year!
November Releases
Posted on Friday November 20, 2020
The month of November here in California has brought a tightening of restrictions on our activities, and news of the cancellation of next year's CALLERLAB convention. But we're remaining optimistic, and introducing two new singing calls and three patters:
- RIV 1105 - Dandelion (Patter)
- RIV 1104 - High Winds (Patter)
- RIV 1103 - Quicksand (Patter)
- RIV 1102 - Kick Up Your Heels (Vocal by Duke Okada, Mitchell Osawa and Kumi Takahashi, with harmony by Duke and Kumi)
- RIV 1101 - Under The Moon Of Love (Vocal and harmony by Duke Okada)
In addition, Krista Baird has contributed a female vocal for RIV 635 - Downtown. While Krista used the same key (Eb) as the original, we're also including a new track of lower-key (C) music. As always, if you already purchased the title and want the new tracks, contact Bob.
You may also notice a few more new releases since last month. We've introduced our 2020 Autumn Gold package with 15 titles, but also the 7 titles in our 2018 Christmas package have become available as regular-priced singles, including O Holy Night, Country Christmas, At Christmas, Silver Bells, and three patters.
Have a great Thanksgiving — and please remember, only wild turkeys can fly!
Boo! Trick Or Treat! 2020 Autumn Gold Is Here!
Posted on Friday October 30, 2020
It's almost time for the ghosts and goblins to be coming out. The one time of year when wearing a mask and using music in a minor key is expected! Happy Halloween!
Our 2020 Autumn Gold package is making its debut on October 30, just before the big day. We have 15 new titles for $75, fourteen of them singing calls. As usual, you can buy individual titles from the package for $10 each.
- RIV 1085 - The Farmer (Vocals by Brent Mawdsley (key D) and Heather Reynolds (key C))
- RIV 1086 - Who Let The Dogs Out (Vocal by Steve Turner)
- RIV 1087 - Two Ol' Country Boys/Girls Like Us (Vocals by Jack O'Leary & Kip Garvey, and by Krista Baird & Heather Reynolds)
- RIV 1088 - I Heard The Bluebird Sing (Vocal and harmony by Brent Mawdsley)
- RIV 1089 - Enjoy Yourself (Vocal by Heather Reynolds)
- RIV 1090 - Good Friends (Vocal by Brent Mawdsley, Heather Reynolds, Krista Baird, Steve Edlund)
- RIV 1091 - Chirpa Chirpa Cheep (Vocal by Lawrence Johnstone)
- RIV 1092 - Summertime Blues (Vocal by Steve Edlund)
- RIV 1093 - Pretty Little Girl From Omagh (Vocal by Jack O'Leary)
- RIV 1095 - The Cat Came Back (Vocal by Lawrence Johnstone)
- RIV 1096 - On A Wonderful Day Like Today (Vocal by Lawrence Johnstone)
- RIV 1097 - E Mau Ke Aloha (Vocal by Mike Pogue, Kuniko Kawashima, Hiromi Kaneko)
- RIV 1098 - Sing Me An Old Fashioned Song (Vocal by Jack O'Leary)
- RIV 1099 - That's What Christmas Means To Me (Vocal by Jack O'Leary)
- RIV 1100 - Music Box Dancer Piano (Patter) (SSD and Advanced vocals by Ted Kennedy)
Both Good Friends and E Mau Ke Aloha have a number of harmony options, including split tracks that let you fade the background vocals in and out with your balance control. Who Let The Dogs Out has tracks with and without the barking dogs, and Two Ol' Country Girls Like Us includes tracks with either Krista or Heather singing just their parts so you can do it as a duet. (Sorry guys, Jack and Kip didn't do that!)
Check all of these out on our Packages page, www.riverboat.com/records/packages.php
October Releases
Posted on Wednesday October 14, 2020
Our October releases are out, featuring three new singing calls, two new patters, and two songs from the classic Red Boot library:
- RIV 999 - Is We Going Somewhere Or Is We Ain't (Vocal by Ted Kennedy; formerly RB 3004)
- RIV 998 - Kitty Kat (Patter) (SSD and Plus vocals and choreo by Ted Kennedy)
- RIV 997 - Honey Love (Patter) (SSD and Plus vocals and choreo by Ted Kennedy)
- RIV 996 - Anything (Vocal by Brent Mawdsley and Steve Edlund, with harmony by Brent; formerly RB 3012)
- RIV 994 - Old Plank Road (Vocal by Mitchell Osawa and Kumi Takahashi, with harmony by Kumi)
- RIV 993 - Mele Kalikimaka (Vocal by Max Masao Ringe and Noriko Shinogaya, with harmony by Max)
- RIV 992 - Beauty And The Beast (Vocal by Gaku Nakagawa and Kumi Takahashi, with harmony by Kumi)
Beauty And The Beast is, of course, the love theme from the Disney movies of the same name, sung by Angela Lansbury in the original and by Emma Thompson in the live-action remake.
Just in time to start practicing for Christmas, we have a new version of the Bing Crosby / Andrews Sisters hit Mele Kalikimaka, with Hawaiian steel guitar and sleigh bell sounds, and Max contributed a backing harmony track for it as well. And last month, we mentioned Nelda Eaton's newly contributed female version of Beethoven's Ode To Joy (RIV347) — but did we mention that both the male and female versions make a great Christmas selection as well?
And with Halloween coming up, take a gander at Bubba Mingus' Devil Woman (RIV 974) — it's a very different song from the Marty Robbins song you're probably thinking of, and a good seasonal choice!
In addition, Krista Baird has contributed a female version (key E) to the Bugs Bunny / Road Runner theme, On With The Show (RIV 329)
September Releases
Posted on Thursday September 17, 2020
Our September releases come to you just a little smoke-tinged from all the fires in Northern California. No, we're all fine here, but it's been smoky enough some days to turn mid-afternoon into twilight, with an orange coloring more suited for Halloween than September.
We have six new releases this month, including three new patters (each with vocals from multiple dance programs by Dave Eno) and two songs from the classic Red Boot library
- RIV 994 - Grass Is Blue, The (Patter with SSD and Advanced vocals by Dave Eno)
- RIV 991 - Lucky Son Of A Gun (Vocals by Ted Kennedy and Nelda Eaton; formerly JBK 111)
- RIV 990 - Daisy A Day (Vocal by Kuniko Kawashima and Hiromi Kaneko, with harmony by Kuniko)
- RIV 989 - Little Less Talk (Vocal by Ted Kennedy; formerly RB 3039)
- RIV 988 - On The Horizon (Patter with SSD and Advanced vocals by Ted Kennedy)
- RIV 987 - Trucker's Holiday (Patter with SSD, Plus and Advanced vocals by Ted Kennedy)
We also have female versions for two of our previous releases:
- RIV 347 - Ode To Joy (Female version in key G by Nelda Eaton)
- RIV 1077 - Kiss Me (Female version in key B by Krista Baird, still part of our 2020 Winter Gold package)
To top it off, Aussie Tempos Recordings' Steve Turner has provided an alternate vocal for RIV 564 - Jingle Bells that has a unique Australian flavor!
As always, if you've already purchased one of the previous releases and would like the new tracks, contact Bob Elling directly.
You'll see more new releases than the six listed above if you go to our catalog page, www.riverboat.com/records/allmp3.php That's because our 2018 Autumn Gold package was just released as regular single titles. If you haven't already checked them out, this is a good time to do it!
Looking forward to the time that we can get back to dancing. Until then, stay safe and enjoy our new music!
About Riverboat Records
Riverboat Records was purchased in the 1980s by Bob Elling in the San Francisco Bay Area. His love of both square dancing and good music has driven his dedication to create the finest square dance music available. The early years produced several square dance records using top-notch musicians, including Phil Aaberg and Norton Buffalo.
Due to the priorities of raising a family, there was no new music produced for almost 20 years. Around 2005 Bob began to teach and call square dancing to local 3rd and 4th graders once a week. He loves teaching the kids and has a desire to use music that they could relate to.
A good friend and caller, Ken Bower, encouraged Bob to start recording square dance music again, and so he did. Ken then recorded the vocal for the first "new" recording on Riverboat, Misty.
Bob enjoys producing many types of songs and especially ones appropriate for grade schoolers. Some of his more popular songs for all ages include: Mickey Mouse, Oh Johnny Oh, Y.M.C.A., Heigh Ho, Funky Town, Best Years of Our Lives, Big Pig Jig, American Land, and On With the Show. Most of these recordings include alternate choreography that can be taught in just a few minutes to kids or adults. The kids have responded with amazing enthusiasm.
In addition, there has been a great deal of support from some of the best talent in the country to bring variety and more life to the music. These fun square dance tunes are fun for both kids and adults. Bob's dream is to have this music used in the classroom by school teachers all over the world.
Riverboat Records also has modern patter music with a great dance beat. The variety of music ranges from bluegrass to funky, so there's something for everyone.
In 2010, Riverboat introduced its Gold subscription series. For just $100, a package of 20 new hoedowns and singing calls is made available exclusively to subscribers. At the end of the year those titles enter the regular Riverboat catalog and a new package is made available to Gold subscribers.
Bob would like to acknowledge the help and support that he has received from Elmer Sheffield (ESP Records), Jack O'Leary (Silver Sounds), Michael Salacuse (Circle Left Recording), Bobby Kennedy, Carl Kaye, Tracy Brown, Rich Reel, and Lawrence Johnstone. He also wants to thank his wife, Lois, for her support in this endeavour that he loves so much.
Contact Us
Riverboat Recordsc/o Bob Elling
16000 Marcella St.
San Leandro, CA 94578
510-278-8621
bob.elling@gmail.com
