The Mom and Dads were a Western-styled

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

group from

Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the Canada ...

that specialized in

waltzes The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position. History There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the wal ...

polkas Polka is a dance and genre of dance music originating in nineteenth-century Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic. Though associated with Czech culture, polka is popular throughout Europe and the Americas. History Etymology The term ...

, and general

easy listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to 1970s. It is related to middle-of-the-road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit songs, n ...

. The quartet, made up of one woman and three men, featured Doris A. Crow (June 17, 1905 – September 28, 1998) on piano, Quentin Ratliff (August 13, 1933 - January 25, 2013) on saxophone, Leslie Welch (February 2, 1912 – February 1, 1983) on accordion, and Harold Hendren (July 12, 1919 - September 9, 2008) on drums.

Band Biography

The band, which formed in the early 1950s, named itself after its main repertoire; "Music for Mom and Dad"

In the early years of its history, the band was strictly a part-time endeavor with its members holding down more typical jobs during the week. Their LP album entitled ''Presenting... The Mom and Dads'' had a mini biography printed on the back of the album sleeve. The section claimed that the Mom and Dads were able to play nearly any type of then existing dance music, from turn of the century dance music such as the Three Step, to more modern sounds, such as

country and western A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

. Their biography states that all the band members had individually begun to play dance music between the ages of 12 and 14. Doris Crow and Leslie Welch had been playing together for over 22 years when the youngest member of the band, Quentin Ratliff joined them. The group finally became a four-piece 7 years later when Harold Hendren, who had begun his musical career in New Mexico, joined the band on drums. Most of the band's fame was in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. They first gained notoriety when a disc jockey from a high-powered radio station in

Great Falls, Montana Great Falls is the third most populous city in the U.S. state of Montana and the county seat of Cascade County. The population was 60,442 according to the 2020 census. The city covers an area of and is the principal city of the Great Falls, M ...

played their early recording, "''The Rangers Waltz''", a song composed by Quentin Ratliff, the group's

saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...

, also carrying into the

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

. "''The Rangers Waltz''" was also released as a single in Australia, where it reached #2 on the national charts, and in New Zealand, where it reached #1 for one week in March '72. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_number-one_singles_in_1972_(New_Zealand) "The Ranger's Waltz" marked their peak in 1971, when the title cut off the same-named album climbed into the American Top 10 country music charts, topping out at Number Four and eventually achieving double-platinum sales figures. The band had first started to appear on music charts earlier that year with the album "In the Blue Canadian Rockies". The Mom and Dads also began their first international tour, albeit reluctantly, when they went to Australia in the fall of 1974, after another act had cancelled. They spent four weeks promoting their albums overseas before returning home and resuming performance dates in their native Pacific Northwest. The Mom and Dads were seen in a string of late-night television commercials in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

during the mid-1980s. The group continued to tour and record regularly until Welch's death in 1983.

Discography

Albums

Singles

Releases

Singles

*"The Ranger's Waltz" GNP *"Amazing Grace" GNP-Crescendo *"Anniversary Waltz" GNP-Crescendo *"Auld Lang Syne" GNP *"Baby Blue" GNP-Crescendo *"Blue Canadian Rockies" Golden West Melodies *"Blue Skirt Waltz" MCA *"Cab Driver Foxtrot" *"Jingle Bell Rock" (1972) MCA *"Kentucky Waltz" GNP Crescendo *"Love Is a Beautiful Song" MCA *"Mom&Dad's Schottische" *"Moonlight On The Manitoulin" MCA *"My Blue Heaven" GNP-Crescendo *"My Happiness" (1973) GNP-Crescendo *"Quentin's E Flat Boogie" GNP Crescendo *"Ragtime Annie P" *"Rippling River Waltz" (1971) MCA *"Silver Moon" *"Skirts" *"Somewhere My Love" *"St Paul Waltz" *"Wabash Cannonball" *"Waltz Across Texas" *"Waltz you Saved For Me"/"When The Saints Go Marching In" *"Whispering" *"White Silver Sands" *"Your Cheatin' Heart"

Albums

*''Presenting The Mom and Dads'' (1971) Apex *''Blue Canadian Rockies'' (1971) MCA *''Souvenirs'' (1972) MCA *''The Mom and Dads Again'' (1972) MCA *''Merry Christmas'' (1973) MCA *''Reminiscing with The Mom and Dads'' (1973) MCA *''Love Is a Beautiful Song'' (1974) MCA *''Dance with The Mom and Dads'' (1974) MCA *(The Mom and Dads) ''Play Your Favorite Hymns'' (1974) GRT *''In The Good Old Summertime'' (1976) *''Down The River Of Golden Dreams'' (1976) *''Meet The Mom and Dads'' (1977) GRT *''Best Of'' (1977) GRT *''One Dozen Roses'' (1977) GNP-Crescendo *''Whispering Hope'' (1977) GRT *''22 Favorite Country Songs'' (1977) GNP-Crescendo *''Gratefully Yours'' (1978) Interfusion *''20 Favorite Waltzes'' (1978) GRT *''To Mom and Dad With Love'' (1980) MCA *''With Love From The Mom and Dads'' (1980) Crescendo *''Good Night Sweetheart'' (1982) Crescendo *''Thanks For The Memories'' (1986) Quality *''Dream With The Mom and Dads'' GRT *''Love Letters In The Sand'' Crescendo *''Memories'' (1976) Crescendo *''Blue Hawaii'' MCA *''The Very Best Of'' MCA *''18 Cand W Favorites'' *''Collection'' (5 LP set) *''Rangers Waltz'' The Mom & Dads , Albums , MTV
/ref>

References

Spokane M&D Unit Heads for Aussieland September 28th - Billboard magazine - August 24, 1974

The Mom & Dads - The Spokesman Review - Sunday, February 18, 1979

Doris Crow obituary - The Spokesman Review - October 2, 1998

Quentin Ratliff obituary - Legacy.com

Social Security Death Index
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mom and Dads American folk musical groups Musical groups from Washington (state) Musical groups disestablished in 1983