KMA Roundup Gang

About The Group Folks living in Shenandoah, Iowa back around 1945 were waking up to the sounds of the KMA Roundup Gang on of course, radio station KMA. Their daily show ran from 6:00am to 6:30am, Monday through Saturday. They sang the variety of cowboy and mountain ballads, hillbilly songs, hoe-down numbers, jokes and gags and were so good, they wrote in the KMA Guide that the group probably earned themselves a permanent place in the KMA Hall of Fame. "Little Joe" handled the mandolin and also sang, played the role of emcee and was a gag-man. They said Ike Everly could sing the rural ballads "...as your mother and dad used to." Bob Stotts, (who we wrote up elsewhere on this site) was known as a mile-high yodeler and guitar playing singer. He had a style, but could sing in the style of Gene Autry and Ted West (formerly of KMA). Curly McDonald was the show's official timekeeper so he could announce the time on the show every five minutes for the folks at home. He would join in as a trio with Joe and Ike in a vocal arrangement that they said "...starts your feet tapping right under the breakfast table." Listeners would write the KMA Roundup Gang and request their favorite tunes. The requests would include tunes such as "Countryman Blues", "Old Shep", "Wait For The Light To Shine", and "Code of the Mountains". And you'd love to have maybe heard Ike Everly for they said, "...can you ever top any of the tales spun by Ike Everly?" Its a shame they didn't include a tale or two for us to remember. Timeline and Trivia Notes Group Members included: Ralph Hunt, banjo "Little Joe" Parish, mandolin Ike Everly, guitar, mandolin Curly McDonald, bass Bob Stotts, guitar Credits & Sources The KMA Guide, Tom Thumb Publishing Co., October 1945; Shenandoah, Iowa. Read More About The Group