Riverboat Shopping Cart
Items Total
items total
Click on cart to view or check out
Riverboat masthead
Home Packages MP3 list Singing Call List Hoedown (patter) list Round dance list International vocal list Holiday Singing Calls Dance Party CDs School CDs Photos Links Frequently Asked Questions

Top Downloads
(as of 2024-03-19)

All TimeLast 12 MonthsLast 30 Days
  1. RIV 242 - Fur Elise (Patter)
  2. RIV 347 - Ode To Joy
  3. RIV 1015 - Lone Ranger (Patter)
  4. RIV 524 - You Raise Me Up
  5. RIV 615 - Bollywood Patter
  6. RIV 506 - Mariah
  7. RIV 295 - Fuji Mountain Breakdown (Patter)
  8. RIV 1022 - Boogie Sticks (Patter)
  9. RIV 560 - Goodnight Sweetheart
  10. RIV 805 - Queen Of The Dance (Patter)
  1. RIV 1282 - Dragon Fire (Patter)
  2. RIV 1267 - Smooth Santanna Patter
  3. RIV 1273 - Scarborough Fair
  4. RIV 1257 - Barrels Of Fun (Patter)
  5. RIV 1261 - Trombone Song (Patter)
  6. RIV 1214 - Hot and Spicy (Patter)
  7. RIV 1291 - Wellerman Ragtime Patter
  8. RIV 1265 - Ain't No Mountain High Enough
  9. RIV 1311 - Santa's Sleigh Ride Patter
  10. RIV 1269 - New Amsterdam Patter
  1. RIV 1352 - Copperhead Road (Patter)
  2. RIV 1252 - An Irish Lullaby
  3. RIV 1187 - Irish Delight (Patter)
  4. RIV 1333 - Sentimental Irish
  5. RIV 1341 - January 7th Jig (Patter)
  6. RIV 1339 - Irishman Will Steal Your Heart Away, An
  7. RIV 1345 - There's Irish In Our Eyes
  8. RIV 1307 - Call Me Irish (Patter)
  9. RIV 1338 - Drunken Sailor
  10. RIV 1349 - Love Story

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!

book cover Lois Elling

Now Available

Lois Elling's book, Teaching Clogging is now in its second edition. Buy a downloadable PDF copy here for $25

Breaking News!

RSS feed

February Releases

Posted on Wednesday February 07, 2024

Just a few releases for February...three patters and two singing calls.

While Jack lends his usual Irish touch to Galway City, Brent applies a Cajun flavor to his selection...just in time for Mardi Gras next week! And be sure to check out our new patter selections as well!

January Releases

Posted on Monday January 15, 2024

The new year has arrived, and here are our January releases for you! We're bringing you songs originally done by Taylor Swift, Don Williams and Bruce Springsteen, as well as an Irish-themed singing call and patter for the upcoming St. Patrick's Day:

"Love Story" is Larry's first recording on Riverboat, and the song comes from an original by Taylor Swift. "My Oklahoma Home" is a humorous tale done originally by both Bruce Springsteen and Pete Seeger, with Tim giving his recognizable upbeat, up-tempo performance. "Then It's Love" is the Don Williams tune, with a fairly full band sound backing Brent. "Let Your Light From The Lighthouse Shine On Me" is a classic gospel melody from Dean, while "In Our Magic Ship" is presented in two different keys by Jason and Nelda. And we can't forget our friend of Irish heritage, Jack O'Leary, reminding us that "There's Irish In Our Eyes!" (The "January 7th Jig" would make a good patter to accompany it!)

Valentine's Day is coming up, too -- be sure and check out Brent's and Larry's love-themed selections for that!

December Releases

Posted on Saturday December 16, 2023

Just before Christmas, we have seven fresh titles for you — three patters and four singers:

Three of the singers are Irish-themed, so you can start practicing for St. Patrick's Day. Drunken Sailor is a traditional sea chanty which was used for many years by the Irish Rovers as the closing song in their concerts, and Tim performs it with his usual exuberance. An Irishman Will Steal Your Heart Away is a song originally performed by Dennis Day, and the smiling Irishman Jack O'Leary does him proud. McNamara's Band (sometimes spelled MacNamara's Band) was probably most famously done by Bing Crosby, and Lawrence loved it so much that he nearly wore out his recording of it that he received for Christmas in eighth grade!

In addition, Sue Dellere of Rawhide Music has contributed an alternate female vocal for RIV 1066 - You Make It Feel Like Christmas to accompany Dan Nordbyes original rendition from two years ago. Give it a listen...and pick up our version of the Blake Shelton / Gwen Stefani tune if you haven't already.

Also, with New Year's Eve coming up, please don't forget RIV 621 - Auld Lang Syne and  RIV 1217 - Bringing In A Brand New Year for that occasion!

Check all of them out, and have a Merry Christmas, or any other holiday you might celebrate at this time of year!

November Releases

Posted on Monday November 20, 2023

Here come our November selections, right before Thanksgiving. If you're looking forward to St. Patrick's day next year, two of them should be right up your alley:

The two Irish-themed songs are "Sentimental Irish" by our Irish friend Jack O'Leary, and "Clancy Lowered The Boom" (made famous by Dennis Day of The Jack Benny Program). There's also a lively and humorous Pete Seeger tune from Tim Tyl, "My Get Up And Go," and a cute Chet Atkins gem, "Frog Kissin'" from Dean Black. Not to mention three patters!

In addition, Heather Reynolds has contributed a female vocal for RIV 340 - Riverboat Blues, which was originally done by ESP's Elmer Sheffield. This isn't just a female vocal to the same music, but the instrumental has been key-shifted to the female vocal range as well. As always, if you've already purchased the tune (part of the 2013 Gold package), contact Bob Elling directly to receive the new tracks.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

October Releases

Posted on Friday October 27, 2023

Trying to get our October releases up before Halloween, and just barely made it. Not that we have anything particularly Halloween-y this year, but we do have a couple of re-releases, new patters, and several new singing calls:

If you want to hear a younger-sounding Bob Elling, check out Sloop John B — he sounds ready to set sail himself! Dominique is a song originally introduced by a French singer known as The Singing Nun, and Jack includes both English and French versions. Tim provides a nicely energetic version of Lucky Lucky Lucky Me, not to be confused (as Google does) with a similarly-named song by Marvin Gaye. And Ten Guitars is a song originally done by Englebert Humperdinck, and done well by Steve.

In addition, we've had a female vocal by Heather Reynolds added to RIV 426 - The Lion Sleeps Tonight, in a slightly lower key from the original. We've also included the lower music track (with background vocals) that Heather used. As always, if you've already bought the title and would like the new tracks, contact Bob Elling directly.

Have fun on the 31st!

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 Records
c/o Bob Elling
16000 Marcella St.
San Leandro, CA 94578
510-278-8621
bob.elling@gmail.com

Find us on Facebook!