# Anyone familiar with a DVD box set of early "Beverly Hillbillies" episodes? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [February 24, 2024, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009 "2024-02-24T00:49:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2024, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009/1 "2024-02-24T00:49:27Z")
It was released in 2005. I don’t remember where I bought it. Maybe Wal-Mart, or some bin at a grocery store. The video quality is pretty poor, which may have been one reason it was for sale cheap. But another thing: the original opening theme music by Flatt and Scruggs (Jerry Scoggins on vocals, written by Paul Henning) is replaced by a bluegrass banjo and guitar instrumental. I don’t have a problem with that, because I can hear that original theme anywhere I want (and the _closing_ theme is intact on every episode). But the replacement song is REALLY GOOD! I’d like to find who played/wrote it, but my googling turned up nil. ? ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2024, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009/2 "2024-02-24T01:08:33Z")
Also: it was released by a Candian company, Madacy Productions. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2024, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009/3 "2024-02-24T01:30:37Z")
Here’s the Wikipedia entry on [Madacy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madacy_Lifestyle_Marketing) and here’s the relevant point. > Many of their releases are taken from [public domain](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_domain) sources. Some of the songs on their albums are [cover versions](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cover_versions), either recorded by the original singers themselves, [The Wonder Kids Choir](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Wonder_Kids_Choir&action=edit&redlink=1), or by Madacy’s in-house performers, [the Countdown Singers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Countdown_Singers). The Countdown Singers are more than just singers, they also have instrumentalists. Unfortunately for your search, they’ve released more than 80 albums under more than a dozen different names. [Here’s the information.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Countdown_Singers) Good luck! ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2024, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009/4 "2024-02-24T01:31:47Z")
Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2024, 7:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009/5 "2024-02-24T07:09:49Z")
Is it [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOI1F9m751s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOI1F9m751s) or is this something else? ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2024, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009/6 "2024-02-24T09:24:29Z")
Yes! It’s not the same recorded version, but the first 16 seconds are definitely the same music. I’m surprised I’ve never heard of [Don Reno](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Reno). He sounds amazing. Among other things, he played on the original recording of “Dueling Banjos” (originally called “Feudin’ Banjos”). Thank you! ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2024, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009/7 "2024-02-24T13:11:53Z")
How about [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqIEYv\_vng4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqIEYv_vng4) which is labeled as Jed Clampett and Don Reno? ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2024, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009/8 "2024-02-24T21:07:17Z")
The song is labeled “The Ballad of Jed Clampett”, and is played by Don Reno and Bobby Thompson (who appeared regularly on _Hee Haw_ in the All-Star Banjo Quartet along with Roy Clark, Grampa Jones, and David “Stringbean” Akeman). Wiki lists “The Ballad of Jed Clampett” as being written by Paul Henning, creator and producer of the Beverly Hillbillies. I’m skeptical. I know that Sherwood Schwartz did in fact write the Gilligan’s Island theme song, but that song consists pretty much completely of the melody and the chords (and of course the lyrics), which Schwartz sounded out on the piano. Flatt’s and Scruggs’ playing on “The Ballad of Jed Clampett” is a much bigger part of the sound. I suspect Henning wrote only the words. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2024, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009/9 "2024-02-25T02:52:02Z")
I have both the _ **Beverly Hillbillies** _ and the _ **Gilligan’s Island** _ boxed sets. I remember listening to the former for the first time and being disappointed that it didn’t have the original theme music. I reacted too soon, of course, because it was included after the first couple of episodes. The _ **Gilligan’s Island** _ set has the familiar ballad from the first season and the Calypso-style theme from the unaired pilot. Schwartz wrote the lyrics for both to convince the network executives that all necessary back story could be given in a song. (He may have been hoping to have the Calypso theme recorded by Harry Belafonte, since he was a hot item at the time.) ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2024, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009/10 "2024-02-25T03:12:15Z")
> [@F.U.Shakespeare](#): > > Wiki lists “The Ballad of Jed Clampett” as being written by Paul Henning, creator and producer of the Beverly Hillbillies. I’m skeptical. I know that Sherwood Schwartz did in fact write the Gilligan’s Island theme song, but that song consists pretty much completely of the melody and the chords (and of course the lyrics), which Schwartz sounded out on the piano. Flatt’s and Scruggs’ playing on “The Ballad of Jed Clampett” is a much bigger part of the sound. I suspect Henning wrote only the words. Flatt and/or Scruggs may have helped with the arrangement but the original 1962 Columbia single lists only “P. Henning” as the composer. [![](https://i.discogs.com/jmgCWF-tWN6k5-0Qan4VpD-0gRVssg2P3vCF6Mn4618/rs:fit/g:sm/q:90/h:600/w:600/czM6Ly9kaXNjb2dz/LWRhdGFiYXNlLWlt/YWdlcy9SLTI0NjUy/NTEtMTI4NTU2MTc2/NC5qcGVn.jpeg) ](https://i.discogs.com/jmgCWF-tWN6k5-0Qan4VpD-0gRVssg2P3vCF6Mn4618/rs:fit/g:sm/q:90/h:600/w:600/czM6Ly9kaXNjb2dz/LWRhdGFiYXNlLWlt/YWdlcy9SLTI0NjUy/NTEtMTI4NTU2MTc2/NC5qcGVn.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2024, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009/11 "2024-02-25T03:26:58Z")
Here’s Mr. Henning saying that he created the words and music but dictated the music to someone who knew how to write music: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/3LbeFRZbO88/hqdefault.jpg "Paul Henning on "The Beverly Hillbillies" theme song- EMMYTVLEGENDS.ORG") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LbeFRZbO88&t=0) ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2024, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009/12 "2024-02-25T22:13:57Z")
Paul Henning may have written the melody for the verses (it’s a pretty simple tune, and he had been around long enough to hear a lot of countryfied theme songs) but the instrumental bridge was pure Flatt & Scruggs. ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2024, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-familiar-with-a-dvd-box-set-of-early-beverly-hillbillies-episodes/998009/13 "2024-02-28T02:09:33Z")
Agreed. I had a hard time wrapping my head around that because Flatt and Scruggs’ version seemed so much a part of the BH theme. Here is the closest version I’ve found of the song I was looking for in the OP. [Don Wayne Reno and Dale Reno Play “Banjo Signal” From Homespun’s Bluegrass Banjo Reno Style (youtube.com)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6oW9ZAtOUE) Makes sense–looks like it’s Don Reno’s family.