SONGSTER
2003 by Songandaprayer–Peppy Lapeau, by French Deputy
A very quick colt whose graded wins were at six and seven furlongs, Songster has a pedigree strongly tilted towards speed and will need substantial bottom in his mares to get runners capable of going more than a mile.
Mares by sons or grandsons of Caro (Ire) definitely seem worthy of consideration here. Although out of a Caro mare himself, Unbridled’s Song has sired multiple grade I winner Octave from a mare by Caro’s son Dr, Carter, and Songandaprayer has sired the talented but ill-fated He’s Got Grit from a mare by another Caro son, With Approval. Other possible sources of Caro include Cozzene, his son Alphabet Soup, and In Excess (Ire) and his sons.
Another line that has historically done well with the male line of Unbridled is that of In Reality. Oddly, the more classically-oriented Relaunch branch of In Reality has yet to produce a major runner in combination with the Unbridled male line, but other strains (through both male and female sources) have done well. Judge T C (by Judge Smells, by In Reality) may offer a particularly intriguing cross as he is from the same female family as Unbridled.
Seattle Slew has not worked well with Unbridled’s Song and his sons so far, but mares with returns of Slewpy (a Seattle Slew half-brother to Songster’s third dam) may be worth considering. Another Seattle Slew strain to look at may be A. P. Indy, who comes from the same female family as does Songster’s second damsire, Raja Baba.
As Mr. Prospector is five generations back in Songster’s pedigree, the floor seems open to mares returning Mr. Prospector blood, particularly through Gone West, Forty Niner, Woodman, and Seeking the Gold. Mares returning Buckpasser, Blushing Groom (Fr), Secretariat, Dixieland Band, Damascus, Prince John, and other male-line strains of Raise a Native also look like possibilities. — by Avalyn Hunter