Alaskan Earworm

Damn You, Johnny Horton!!

It's stuck in my head! It's stuck in my head! It's stuck in my head!

Won't come out! Won't come out! Won't come out! Won't come out!

Damn earworms...

I'm checking out the latest offerings from Collector's Firearms, and one odd looking revolver caught my eye:




It's the Colt 1902, based on the old Colt 1878 Frontier Double Action. It's usually referred to as the Colt Alaskan, but also referred to as the Philippine Model, since that's where most of the production run ended up.

The usual story behind the revolver is that it was made for use by half-frozen Army grunts wearing big ol' gloves, but the large loop trigger guard and long trigger actually had another purpose.

The military .45 Long Colt ammo at that time apparently had extremely hard primers, and the standard hammer spring in the 1878 Frontier DA wouldn't reliably make 'em go bang. A heavier spring which would fire off the rounds made the trigger seriously hard to operate, though.

The solution? Longer trigger for more leverage. It's said that the typical Filipino constable used two fingers on the trigger to fire the gun.

OK, what does this have to do with earworms? Well, as soon as I read "Alaskan", that Johnny Horton song 'North To Alaska' started rolling in my brain, and won't go away!!

Way up north, (North To Alaska.)
Way up north, (North To Alaska.)
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.

Big Sam left Seattle in the year of '92,
With George Pratt, his partner, and brother, Billy, too.
They crossed the Yukon River and found the bonanza gold.
Below that old white mountain just a little south-east of Nome.

Sam crossed the majestic mountains to the valleys far below. (MUSH!)
He talked to his team of huskies as he mushed on through the snow. (MUSH!)
With the northern lights a-running wild in the land of the midnight sun, (MUSH!)
Yes, Sam McCord was a mighty man in the year of nineteen-one. (MUSH!)

Where the river is winding,
Big nuggets they're finding.
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.

Way up north, (North To Alaska.)
Way up north, (North To Alaska.)
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.

George turned to Sam with his gold in his hand,
Said: "Sam you're a-lookin'at a lonely, lonely man.
"I'd trade all the gold that's buried in this land,
"For one small band of gold to place on sweet little Ginnie's hand.

"'Cos a man needs a woman to love him all the time.
"Remember, Sam, a true love is so hard to find.
"I'd build for my Ginnie, a honeymoon home.
"Below that old white mountain just a little south-east of Nome."

Where the river is winding,
Big nuggets they're finding.
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.

Way up north, (North To Alaska.)
Way up north, (North To Alaska.)
Way up north, (North To Alaska.)