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blugrssmom - Posted - 07/31/2009: 21:44:19
Aereoplane hands down all the way for me! I love that tune.
Raynae Redman.
A banjo can get you through times with no money, but money can''t get you through times with no banjo. John Hartford
Ray Soulard - Posted - 08/01/2009: 14:02:20
First, that's not a fair question. John will always securely hold the position of my personal favorite musician ever. His lyrics, his music, his multi-instrumentalist skills, his humility, his humor.
However; if I must, this is my order today:
Steamboat Whistle Blues
Lorena
Annual Waltz
Where Does an Old Time Riverman Go
Tall buildings
They're Gonna Tear Down The Grand Ol Opry
Take Another Little Piece o' My Heart
and on , and on, and on,...
...and they light their pipes, and go off in the night - or was that fire flies instead?
8thpol - Posted - 08/01/2009: 19:19:46
Aereoplane, Delta Queen Waltz.....but all his stuff is special. Enjoyed your work with him on the Banjo According Too tapes always looked like you guys where having fun
Odds are good.......but the goods are odd
Gomer - Posted - 08/01/2009: 21:29:09
"Up on the Hill where they fo the boogie" althought it was not played on the 'jo
"ever searching for that special post-war / pre-submerged sound"
( )=====’==::
The Old Timer - Posted - 08/02/2009: 08:25:27
Personally I always liked the elegant simplicity of the writing of Gum Tree Canoe. On the other hand I like the word play and tongue twisting exercise of Owl Feather too, I sing that for a warm up song before going on stage.
My wife likes the real early Hartford material especially Presbyterian Guitar and the Something O'Clock Train & the Girl with Green Eyes.
I met my wife at a John Hartford concert at Boodles Opera House in Chester NY, many a year ago.
The Old Timer, still learning!
buckbybanjoboy - Posted - 08/02/2009: 11:23:57
Its Lorena for me......simply beautiful
I`d rather be playing`grass than cutting grass.
5stringypsy - Posted - 08/03/2009: 05:30:35
I've only evr had one of his albums (and it got ganked about a year a go) and I had it for a few years and I bout near wore it out.. that may be where it went, it just desintigrated lol..
But it was the one that had steam powered aereoplane, back in the good ol' days, etc on it.. vamp in the middle... I loved that whole album. Some folks I was playin with did that cross eyed boy and It was pretty good. Be hard to narrow it to one song for me :p
HIKE FASTER I hear a banjo...
AKUSfan2 - Posted - 08/03/2009: 06:08:40
My favorite--
"All In My Love For You" - track #1 on the Annual Waltz CD.
Please listen to it... it will become one of your favorites as well!
Gary Phelps
St. Louis, MO. 63129
2007 Stelling Sunflower Serial # 6393
Gibson Masterclone RB-250 with Sullivan Rim and Sullivan archtop.
AKUSfan2 - Posted - 08/03/2009: 06:09:11
My favorite--
"All In My Love For You" - track #1 on the Annual Waltz CD.
Please listen to it... it will become one of your favorites as well!
Gary Phelps
St. Louis, MO. 63129
2007 Stelling Sunflower Serial # 6393
Gibson Masterclone RB-250 with Sullivan Rim and Sullivan archtop.
wolfSV - Posted - 08/03/2009: 20:01:34
Long hot summer days ( I've even got my little girl listening to it)
Gum tree canoe
and really anything that he recorded with just himself and no band
.............................................................................................................................................................
I didn''t choose to play the Banjo..........it chose me
uncledaveh - Posted - 08/04/2009: 12:29:20
It would be hard to pick one favorite. If I had to, it would probably be "Let Him Go On Mama".
But then what about "In Tall Buildings" (this one made my eyes mist the first time I heard it - it's too true),
"Annual Waltz", "Lorena", "Steam Powered Aereoplane", "I Wish We Had Our Time Again", etc
Even though our paths crossed, I didn't really know John; but I miss him anyway.
Hot dog!!
David "Uncle Dave" Holbrook
The Rockdale Ridgerunners
"Now good people, we''re going to play this next tune with more heterogeneous constipolicy, double flavor and unknown quality than usual! Make it light on yourself."
Edited by - uncledaveh on 08/04/2009 12:34:41
stringbeaner - Posted - 08/09/2009: 00:31:27
Hey, Babe, Y'wanna Boogie? and Gum Tree Canoe.
Stringbeaner
4strings1 - Posted - 08/26/2009: 01:12:21
Boogie ,Slumberin' on the Cumberland,and Natchez Whistle
vincentbanjogh - Posted - 08/26/2009: 04:03:40
Love them all, but "Gentle On My Mind" has to be his masterpiece. The Glen Campbell version was the first 45 record I ever bought. I had the good fortune to sit for a few hours in a hotel room with him while he played the fiddle. His fiddle had "Ever smiling, ever gentle on my mind" carved on the side.
keithkline.com
WildBillNECPS - Posted - 08/26/2009: 06:46:17
I love all his music. When I was a kid, my mom took us to see him a few times and once when he played with The Dillards.
I met him at Winterhawk one year. Great fellow.
from RCA Victor LSP-4156 1969 ( I still have this on my mom's very old cassette tape!):
Dusty Miller Hornpipe And Fugue In A Major For Strings Brass And 5-string Banjo
Mr. Jackson's Got Nothing To Do
Little Old Lonesome Little Circle Song
The Wart
Also,
Where Does an Old Time Riverman Go
I Wish We Had Out Time Again
Hey Babe, Ya Wanna Boogie
Gentle on My Mind
Here's a link I came across:
johnhartford.org/ZHome%20Page/...raphy.htm
"As in life or evolution, rarely is there a quick solution. Anything worthwhile takes a little time" Pete Seeger, ''Maple Syrup Time''
Ronnie - Posted - 08/27/2009: 09:54:48
"Gentle on my mind" is one of my favorites as well!
Sara Watkins and brother Sean, formerly of Nickel Creek have a very nice and lively version of "Long Hot Summer Day" There are several takes on youtube. My daughter and I seldom miss one of their performances when they play within a reasonable driving distance from home.
bobbythompsonbanjo.com
Edited by - Ronnie on 08/27/2009 10:14:44
Nosferatu - Posted - 08/27/2009: 10:14:39
I always liked "My Rag." I told John once that I like it but I couln't work out the chords.
Thank you,
"Count" Hugh
"A flute without holes, is not a flute. A donut without a hole, is a danish." -- Zen philosopher Basho
Ronnie - Posted - 08/27/2009: 10:31:47
Hugh, Judy told me that when John lived over by the river, he threw some hellacious parties. Wouldn't it have been cool to have attended some of them.
bobbythompsonbanjo.com
creekwater - Posted - 09/05/2009: 19:45:33
Steam Powered Areoplane, and Gentle On My Mind. Back in about '75-'76 I saw him at the Rhode Island Bluegrass Festival, best one man show I've ever seen or heard. He was an amazing musician. Sadly missed. And he surely did love hard-core Bluegrass, I heard him say this at that very venue. Our band played before him , he said that to us as we were walking off stage.
'" too much to pick, too short of time"
[URL=http://entertainment.webshots.com/photo/2749996820105254586HemFRI] [/URL]
dmiller - Posted - 09/05/2009: 20:24:38
He did SO many good tunes. If I had to pick one or two as favorites, they would be Lorena and Gum Tree Canoe.
I only saw him perform live once, and that was towards the end of his life. He took the time after the concert,
to show me how he did his "low tuning" that he's so famous for.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
pick1936 - Posted - 09/06/2009: 05:26:34
lorena. (Cobow In Town, Trouble Epexcted)..
nechville. In Higginsville.
Lee Kelso
ewertj - Posted - 09/06/2009: 20:25:29
There is a reason why Gentle On My Mind has been recorded so many times. He was a great songwriter and has many songs that I love, but that one song transcends all genres and exists in the most exclusive category in my mind of "Great American Song".
hartfordman - Posted - 09/15/2009: 13:53:09
FOGGY MOUNTIAN LANDSCAPE!! love that tune, and I can play it too!
Cuckoo's Nest
I would not be here
and my newest favorite...
All colision all explosion song
lazlototh - Posted - 09/15/2009: 16:32:28
Almost all of Aeroplain, but also, I'm Still Here, Railroad Street, The Collector,
Didn't want to be forgotten, Bring your clothes back home, Category Stomp,False Hearted
Tenor, Front Porch, Untangle Your Mind, John's version of Hey Jude,I Just Wanna Look in there,
Jack's in the Sack, Kentucky Pool, My Face,
Nobody knows What you Do, Open Road Ode, Skippin' in the Mississippi Dew, Whose That,
all the versions of Gentle on My Mind
There are more, but I should stop.
It is hard to think that we live in a world without John Hartford!
Thank God we have all these great recordings, but I would gladly trade all my banjos to have him back with us.
Tom in Maine
JSCB - Posted - 09/16/2009: 14:37:09
Well, I have been a Hartford fan from way back. Yet I particularly like the album Speed of the Old Long Bow.
randal morton - Posted - 12/30/2009: 15:31:12
John was a dear friend of mine for years. I love all of his songs. He was such a Treasure & we are so fortunate to have his recordings. One of the song's not mentioned as of yet, "Natural To Be Gone" was a favorite.
Randal
MickG - Posted - 12/30/2009: 16:12:18
Lorena, and Gentle on My Mind.
His arrangement for Lorena (as played on his instruction DVD) is a masterpiece. I really enjoy that DVD watching John play with you playing guitar accompaniment.
Mick
Ukeridge - Posted - 12/30/2009: 17:46:07
I'm floored that no one else has mentioned Bear Creek Hop.
black flag - Posted - 12/30/2009: 18:09:30
"Way Up On the Hill Where They Do the Boogie"
EJCB - Posted - 03/09/2010: 05:05:36
Favorite is a very narrow thing. Many favorites. Love the Mark Twang, love the later records. Bob Carlin's banjo playing was great on the later albums
robbif - Posted - 03/09/2010: 06:05:25
Please be sure to check out johnhartford.org from webmaster and longtime friend of Hartford (and mine), John Hotze.
You'll also find tons of all kinds of bluegrass audio, video, etc., etc.
1935tb-11 - Posted - 03/09/2010: 15:46:40
lorena and gentle on my mind..............
love both of those songs
terry m
n.c.
Banjo40 - Posted - 03/10/2010: 06:05:49
They are all great, but Lorena is a beautiful song.
Mike
Chris Sharp - Posted - 03/10/2010: 08:12:13
Some great songs mentioned here for sure. Some of John's standard tunes, that appear on the new CD, were chosen from among these postings. I am grateful for everyone's input.
The song list is as follows:
01. Three Forks Of Sandy
02. MISIP
03. Love Grown Cold
04. Madison Tennessee
05. Delta Queen Waltz
06. For John (poem by Mark Schatz)
07. Homer The Roamer
08. Bring Your Clothes Back Home
09. Half Past Four
10. Lorena
11. You Don't Notice Me Ignoring You (performed by John)
12. The Girl I Left Behind Me
13. She's Gone (And Bob's Gone With Her)
14. Royal Box Waltz
15. Fade Out (performed by John)
More on the new CD, to be released in the next few weeks, to come.
Bisbonian - Posted - 03/11/2010: 10:20:35
I read this post a couple of days ago...and had to think about it. That's a hard choice, because many of his songs are so beautifully done, so heartfelt, so perfect, that it just seems like a shame to leave them out. Lorena. The Girl I left Behind Me. Gentle on My Mind...in all it's wonderful permutations. And then there is the Washing Machine Song... ;)
But it has become obvious with a little reflection. John loved his music with a passion that most of us will probably never approach, but he loved the river, and the riverboats, and steam engines with about the same intensity. And though he chose to pursue the music first, later in life he got to live his dream and earn his license to pilot a sternwheeler on the Mississippi. Wow.
I took the opposite tack. I became enthralled with the banjo around the age of six, and it was never far out of my peripheral vision from then on. But my first passion was flying, and my second was trains...steam engines. I took after the flying, first, starting in High School, bumming rides, washing planes for a ride, pumping gas, whatever. Eventually I made it into the Air Force and flew KC-135s. Water injected turbojets...we called it the steam jet. So I wore a railroad engineer's cap. When I got out of the Air Force, I needed a job, and I worked for a guy building small trains for parks, for mom's and kids to ride on. We had a steam engine, and I had to get a license, from the Arizona State Boiler Inspector, to run it. I already had the hat.
Later, I got hired by Southwest, and fly the 737 for them. Once I got settled in, I realized I wasn't getting any younger, and it was finally time to pursue that banjo. I figured I didn't have any time to lose, and I am pursuing this with more intensity than probably anything I have ever done...and I've been pretty intense in the past.
So, to make that long story short, the song that sums up a lifetime for me, and quite possibly for John, is Steam Powered Aereoplane:
"Well I'd like to be a pilot, of that steam powered aereoplane
Well, I'd pull that pilot wheel around, and then back again.
And I'd wear a blue hat, yeah, that says 'steam powered aereoplane'
In letters that go 'round the brim and then back again.
Sittin' on a 737 just a watchin' them clouds roll by, can't tell if it's sunshine or if it's rain...
Rather be a sittin' in a deck chair high up over Kansas City, on a genuine ol' fashioned authentic steam powered aereoplane."
quote:
Thank God we have all these great recordings, but I would gladly trade all my banjos to have him back with us.
Tom in Maine
Yeah.
Edited by - Bisbonian on 03/11/2010 10:28:06
lazlototh - Posted - 03/11/2010: 12:12:53
Gosh Chris,
There are too many to choose from.
Today it is Corn Cob Blues.
Anyone out there who does not have access to the entire library is missing a lot,
Tom in Maine
oldplayer - Posted - 03/11/2010: 12:17:42
Big Rock Candy Mountain from the "Down From The Mountain" DVD in which Emmylou said:
"That's one of the best things I've ever heard."
"Piece Of My Heart" is great also
5strbanjo - Posted - 03/11/2010: 12:31:52
I enjoy so many of John's songs. . .but I gotta say that in the banjo department my favorite is an instrumental he recorded called "Foggy Mountain Landscape." The only place I know of that it's available is on the CD that came with a Mel Bay anthology titled "Banjo 2000," which I'm pretty sure is out of print. Goes on, and on, and on. . . 
Mitch Finley
Chris Sharp - Posted - 03/11/2010: 12:48:57
quote:
Originally posted by 5strbanjo
I enjoy so many of John's songs. . .but I gotta say that in the banjo department my favorite is an instrumental he recorded called "Foggy Mountain Landscape." The only place I know of that it's available is on the CD that came with a Mel Bay anthology titled "Banjo 2000," which I'm pretty sure is out of print. Goes on, and on, and on. . .
Mitch Finley
John recorded that song on my first project Chris Sharp - "Good "Fa-Air" Side". It's the last track and it's over 4 minutes long. 100% live cut. He first played it for me and then several years later I reminded him of the song. He took a few minutes to get back into it and then I asked him to record it, on what was then an upcoming CD. At the moment there are no copies for sale but it will be back on my website as a digital download before long. In the meantime, I would be happy to post the song somewhere if someone wants to host it for mutual downloads. Thanks, Chris
Chris Sharp - Posted - 03/11/2010: 15:47:48
I figured out that Banjo Hangout hosts songs  Hope you all enjoy this cut of Foggy Mountain Landscape!
I have uploaded the only known studio recording to the forum. Hope you enjoy it!
Chris Sharp
banjohangout.org/topic/173177
Ukeridge - Posted - 04/04/2010: 18:55:34
quote:
Originally posted by hartfordman
I would not be here
But seriously, isn't a "Jewish Bar Mitzvah" somewhat redundant? Page: 1 2
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