pernicketylad - Posted - 11/29/2008:  17:27:35

Have Clawhammer Banjo Vol. 1,2 and 3 and I love Glen Smith's playing but I know nothing about him and I'd like to get my hands on more of his music....searched a few websites but I can find nothing....any ideas?
Have to get my Christmas order list in soon.

There are three types of people in the world.....those who can count and those who can''t!

"King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O
Ki-Mo-Ke-Mo-Ki-Mo-Ke, Way down yonder in the hollow tree....."

gailg64 - Posted - 11/29/2008:  20:07:50

Yep, when it comes to old-time clawhammer, he's way up there in my book. There was a Folkways LP, Old Time Music of Grayson & Carroll Counties that had several cuts of his fiddle & banjo playing. I'm pretty sure it's out of print, but you might look on the Smithsonian-Folkways website to see if you can order a digital copy. Some of the finest fiddle-banjo duets you'll ever hear --Wade Ward & Glen Smith!
PS There was a fiddler from the same area with the same name who lived in WV--though he was also from the Galax area we always called him West Virginia Glen Smith.
Gail

quote:

---

Originally posted by pernicketylad

Have Clawhammer Banjo Vol. 1,2 and 3 and I love Glen Smith's playing but I know nothing about him and I'd like to get my hands on more of his music....searched a few websites but I can find nothing....any ideas?
Have to get my Christmas order list in soon.

There are three types of people in the world.....those who can count and those who can''t!

"King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O
Ki-Mo-Ke-Mo-Ki-Mo-Ke, Way down yonder in the hollow tree....."

---

oldwoodchuckb - Posted - 11/30/2008:  00:20:18

Smith is on 2 folkways lps "Traditional Music of Grayson & Carroll Counties Virginia" which is all solo performances. And the afore mentioned "Old Time Music --- etc" which has duets trios and stringbands.

To confuse the issue someone at Folkways (possibly a creditor) had the OTM album retitled to get Bluegrass into the title since the last two cuts are of an early bluegrass band from the area. I think this was supposed to increase sales.

At any rate if you go to Smithsonian's website - search for "Glen Smith" and both albums (whatever the current titles) should show up. I think both are in teh "Custom" CD department despite the presence of Smith and Wade Ward - sometimes playing together.

These are great performances The recorder (It might have been Ralph Rinzler - memory fades late at night) introduced Ward and Smith who had never met. They hit it off immediately and made a number of recordings that day. I consider them to be as amazing as the Tommy and Fred recordings.

Download your free copy of Rocket Science Banjo - the Advanced Method For Beginning to Intermediate Clawhammer Players, at:
http://www.rsb.pricklypearmusic.net

Along with the full text in PDF you will also find the four current RSB videos and the "25 EZ Clawhammer tunes. - which are up to about 40 now.

Banjo Brad is still hosting "How To Mold A Mighty Pinky" and some other material at:
http://www.pricklypearmusic.net
A site full of interesting banjo material

pernicketylad - Posted - 11/30/2008:  05:39:19

Cheers!
Found both albums.They are "Bluegrass from the Blue Ridge: A half Century of Change: Country Band Music of America" and "Traditional Music from Grayson and Carroll Counties, Virginia".
Both are available to buy in CD format Gail.
Never would have found that cleverly disguised OT album OWCb.
Wow! Glen Smith playing Cripple Creek and Soldier's Joy unaccompanied.....can't wait.
Thanks again.

There are three types of people in the world.....those who can count and those who can''t!

"King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O
Ki-Mo-Ke-Mo-Ki-Mo-Ke, Way down yonder in the hollow tree....."

Boyd1 - Posted - 11/30/2008:  06:04:30

Yeah, there is not much info out there that I have found. There is a different picture than the one in the Clawhammer Banjo cds in Miles Krassen's instruction book also called Clawhammer banjo.

There was a thread here recently (it might well have been one of yours) where it was discussed how the Little Birdie on disc 3 of Clawhammer Banjo is mistakenly attributed to Gaither Carlton, when it is actually Glen Smith.

It seems the key is Smithsonian Folkways Records. Here are a couple of links. If you dig around at the Smithsonian, there might well be more that I have overlooked.

Smithsonian Folkways Records-
Traditional Music from Grayson and Caroll Counties:

http://www.folkways.si.edu/albumdet...x?itemid=591

Bluegrass from the Blue Ridge:

http://www.folkways.si.edu/albumdet...x?itemid=605

-Boyd

Edit: whoops! You got there while I was writing! I have to type faster- or move further east!

***************************
Anything you can imagine is real. - Pablo Picasso

Edited by - Boyd1 on 11/30/2008 06:07:54

gailg64 - Posted - 11/30/2008:  16:06:35

There may be more: seems like there was a cut or 2 of Glen Smith on one of the Union Grove LPs. Will dig into the LP boxes & check. He also had a similar fiddle style--brisk, energetic but with well-crafted details.

Richmond fiddler & banjo player Harold Hausenfluck, (who had a stroke a few years back & can no longer play) learned fiddle & banjo directly from Smith. Harold's big banjo contest tune, "Fortune," was based on Glen Smith's version of the tune with a clear-cut melody on top of robust brushing. It had that "untamed sense of control," that someone (Bob Dylan?) used to refer to Roscoe Holcomb.
Gail

quote:

---

Originally posted by pernicketylad

Cheers!
Found both albums.They are "Bluegrass from the Blue Ridge: A half Century of Change: Country Band Music of America" and "Traditional Music from Grayson and Carroll Counties, Virginia".
Both are available to buy in CD format Gail.
Never would have found that cleverly disguised OT album OWCb.
Wow! Glen Smith playing Cripple Creek and Soldier's Joy unaccompanied.....can't wait.
Thanks again.

There are three types of people in the world.....those who can count and those who can''t!

"King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O
Ki-Mo-Ke-Mo-Ki-Mo-Ke, Way down yonder in the hollow tree....."

---

oldwoodchuckb - Posted - 11/30/2008:  16:59:04

I'll check the cuts on my Union Grove albums - I keep saying I'm going to do this and never get around to it - but every UG, FG, Galax, etc album I have is in my database. I've just never really gotten around to checking them out that well.

Download your free copy of Rocket Science Banjo - the Advanced Method For Beginning to Intermediate Clawhammer Players, at:
http://www.rsb.pricklypearmusic.net

Along with the full text in PDF you will also find the four current RSB videos and the "25 EZ Clawhammer tunes. - which are up to about 40 now.

Banjo Brad is still hosting "How To Mold A Mighty Pinky" and some other material at:
http://www.pricklypearmusic.net
A site full of interesting banjo material

J-Walk - Posted - 11/30/2008:  17:39:16

I recently acquired a digitized copy of a cassette tape called "Say Old Man" by Glen Smith and Dwight Diller. Glen Smith plays fiddle on this album -- and it's REALLY good.

gailg64 - Posted - 11/30/2008:  17:45:50

This would be "West Virginia" Glen Smith, though he too was originally from the Galax-Hillsville area. He was a terrific fiddler and quite a bit more modern-sounding (he had a smooth long bow style) than the banjo & fiddle-playing Glen Smith who played with Wade Ward on the Folkways albums.
Gail

.

quote:

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Originally posted by J-Walk

I recently acquired a digitized copy of a cassette tape called "Say Old Man" by Glen Smith and Dwight Diller. Glen Smith plays fiddle on this album -- and it's REALLY good.

---

oldwoodchuckb - Posted - 11/30/2008:  19:07:02

Here is what I pulled from my database:
Smith appears on the 1969 Union Grove lp and the 1963 Galax lp. I don't have ALL the UG or Galax lps so I can't say whether he is on more.

I also find him doing single cuts on "The Vandalia Sampler volume 2" and on a lp called "Old Time Music Festival" for which I have no details in my database - I'm not prepared to search for it at the moment, but the track is "Soldiers Joy, is listed as "Glen Smith's Band" and I did specify Galax Smith. A lot of other area musicians like Harold Hausenfleck are listed on the same lp.

Of course he is also on the other albums previously mentioned: "OT", and "Traditional, Music of G & C Ctys" and County Clawhammer 2 and 3. I thought he might have been on "The Old Originals" but he is not.

Download your free copy of Rocket Science Banjo - the Advanced Method For Beginning to Intermediate Clawhammer Players, at:
http://www.rsb.pricklypearmusic.net

Along with the full text in PDF you will also find the four current RSB videos and the "25 EZ Clawhammer tunes. - which are up to about 40 now.

Banjo Brad is still hosting "How To Mold A Mighty Pinky" and some other material at:
http://www.pricklypearmusic.net
A site full of interesting banjo material

pernicketylad - Posted - 12/01/2008:  02:00:20

Absolutely agree Gail....love that "untamed sense of control" .

There are three types of people in the world.....those who can count and those who can''t!

"King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O
Ki-Mo-Ke-Mo-Ki-Mo-Ke, Way down yonder in the hollow tree....."

cashwo_wv - Posted - 12/03/2008:  12:51:02

quote:

---

Originally posted by J-Walk

I recently acquired a digitized copy of a cassette tape called "Say Old Man" by Glen Smith and Dwight Diller. Glen Smith plays fiddle on this album -- and it's REALLY good.

---

gorf - Posted - 12/04/2008:  17:36:13

Wow I can't believe this topic is here, I was just about to ask, anyone know how I can get that tone / sound like Gen Smith on the Clawhammer Records?
I really like the tone he has. Anyone have any of his stuff tabbed out or roughed out?

banjo_on_the_lump - Posted - 12/16/2008:  17:32:15

I know Glen Smith's grandson (lives in Fries, VA). He too is a very talented musician. If you have specific questions you'd like to know about Glen contact me and I'll see what I can do to get you an answer.

Banjo

"Ya got time to breath, ya got time for music" Brisco Darlin

Edited by - banjo_on_the_lump on 12/16/2008 17:56:17

whyteman - Posted - 12/20/2008:  17:43:27

Some place I read that the two Smiths were referred to as "Old Glen" and "New Glen". I like that-very practicle.

A curse upon the photographer who made the photo of Glen that's in the Clawhammer banjo CD booklet. That modern long neck banjo, complete with capo, was probably the photographer's instrument! Glen is holding his own instrument in the photo in Krassen's book. In addition to Mr. Smith's great talent, that homemade banjo certainly contributed to his wonderful sound! I sort of resent that photo in Clawhammer; it would be like posing Stan Musial with an aluminum softball bat!

Don.

Haul off your overcoat and roll up your sleeve.