TOTW Feb 18 Bury Me Beneath The Willow - Discussion Forums

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Playing the Banjo
Playing Advice: Clawhammer and Old-Time Styles
ARCHIVED TOPIC: TOTW Feb 18 Bury Me Beneath The Willow

Please note this is an archived topic, so it is locked and unable to be replied to. You may, however, start a new topic and refer to this topic with a link: http://www.banjohangout.org/archive/199954

Karen Kruske - Posted - 02/18/2011: 05:15:17

Bury Me Beneath the Willow is one of my favorite tunes, even if it is a bit of a "downer".

The source is unknown but is from the 1800s. The Carter Family popularized it when it was recorded it in 1927, but the first recording was done in 1923 by Henry Whitter, "The Weeping Willow Tree".

Sara and Maybelle had known it since childhood and like many mountain songs was probably based on the 19th century song but no one has given an exact source.

It has been recorded by many early country artists, including the Monroe Brothers in 1937. After that the Kingston Trio and later Skaggs and Rice. More recently Alison Krauss Tony Rice, JD Crowe and David Grisman have turned up on YouTube.

youtube.com/watch?v=jzA68Ohwke4

Sugarloaf Mountain Boys

youtube.com/watch?v=OB4S90foVD...e=related

I found this Backing-Track file in BHO Jukebox and have enjoyed playing along with it. Thanks to Red Dragon for posting it. banjohangout.org/myhangout/mus...agenum=10

Lyrics:

1. Tonight I'm sad my heart is lonely
For the only one I love.
When will I see him, oh no never
Till we meet in Heaven above.

Chorus
So bury me me beneath the willow
Under the weeping willow tree
So she will know where I am sleeping
and perhaps she'll weep for me.

2. She told me that she dearly loved me
How could I believe it untrue
Until the angels softly wihipered
She will prove untrue to you.

3 Tomorrow was our wedding day
Oh God, oh God where can he be
He's out a-courtin' with another and no longer cares for me.

I look forward to reading about others' knowledge of this song and hope some of you post your version of it.

stevel - Posted - 02/18/2011: 05:22:54

i thought I had the TOTW this week?

guess i get the day off.......

Edited by - stevel on 02/18/2011 05:24:21

Karen Kruske - Posted - 02/18/2011: 06:31:46

Sorry about Steve. Judy put me in this slot on January 9th. Maybe we can have two this week! For sure don't let your research go to waste.

vrteach - Posted - 02/18/2011: 08:32:04

Here's the 1927 version by the Carter Family on Honking Duck:

honkingduck.com/mc/listen/cart...ng-willow

irasmith - Posted - 02/18/2011: 08:35:02

Thanks Karen, this is a tune my Slow Jam group is doing now. I really like how the breaks a not that long.
There is one part of the song I don't get:

"Until the angels softly wihipered
She will prove untrue to you."

Julian44_4 - Posted - 02/18/2011: 08:40:24

Also recordings by Bascom Lamar Lunsford, and Almeda Riddle.

Karen Kruske - Posted - 02/18/2011: 12:47:20

Hey Ira, the angels wihipered. Once you are an angel you will know what that means, and you will get to do it too. :-)

The Mighty Ant - Posted - 02/18/2011: 14:58:58

"Bury beneath the weeping willow"

One of my all time favorite songs to play. I love it. Played it for years on guitar, now play it on the banjo as well.

Here are a few others in that same vein that I love playing...

* The Banks of the Ohio
* Lorena
* Flower from the fields of Alabama
* The Maple on the hill
* You are my sunshine

Mike

stevel - Posted - 02/22/2011: 05:27:12

quote:
Originally posted by happyfingers42

Sorry about Steve. Judy put me in this slot on January 9th. Maybe we can have two this week! For sure don't let your research go to waste.

No biggie. I'll just save mine for the next go 'round....

Marc Nerenberg - Posted - 02/24/2011: 08:48:02

I'm glad to see another song with lyrics as Tune of the Week. I didn't realize how rare singing with banjo accompaniment seems to be becoming until I joined the hangout. I've always thought of song accompaniment as a primary use of the instrument, and I support all efforts at encouraging that.

banjoholic - Posted - 02/24/2011: 09:22:43

quote:
Originally posted by Marc Nerenberg

I'm glad to see another song with lyrics as Tune of the Week. I didn't realize how rare singing with banjo accompaniment seems to be becoming until I joined the hangout. I've always thought of song accompaniment as a primary use of the instrument, and I support all efforts at encouraging that.

Me too! In fact I started learning clawhammer primarily as a tool for vocal backup. Somehow now I'm up to my neck in fiddle tunes! But I still love to sing and play.

I do think that the impression you get here at the bho may be a bit skewed. Several years ago when the forum was just "clawhammer banjo" there was a lot more discussion on vocal backup, playing blues, etc. After the addition of "old-time styles" to the title the focus has narrowed considerably, given the tendency I think to equate old time music with fiddle tunes. So I think there are more singing banjoists out there than we might be led to believe, they just don't post much here anymore.

But I too am glad to see songs popping up on the TOTW, and hope it's a trend that will continue!

Josh
oldtimejam.com

stevel - Posted - 02/24/2011: 11:46:55

quote:
Originally posted by Marc Nerenberg

I'm glad to see another song with lyrics as Tune of the Week. I didn't realize how rare singing with banjo accompaniment seems to be becoming until I joined the hangout. I've always thought of song accompaniment as a primary use of the instrument, and I support all efforts at encouraging that.

hi marc- not to get too overly technical, but a song has to have words... a tune doesn't. and since this is a Tune Of The Week format, i'm not surprised we don't see more songs (even though my contribution last year was a song and not a tune).

also- as i've mentioned on here before (and not wanting to stir up a hornets' nest...), you'll notice the dominent theme around here in the CH/Old-time forums on the BHO seems to be fiddle tunes (instrumentals).

Whether its a more modern fad or not, I have no idea (i'm rather new to this old-time world myself). It could also be a regional preference. And I'm also not sure if its because fiddle tunes are often more challenging, or because people can't (me) or won't sing for one reason or another.

But i do remember one snippet from the liner notes of George R. Gibson's "Last Possum Up The Tree". I think the quote from an old-timer was:

"If you can't sing it, don't play it".

stevel - Posted - 02/24/2011: 11:51:10

Josh- thx for the quick BHO chronological history lesson.

Marc Nerenberg - Posted - 02/24/2011: 13:08:35

quote:
Originally posted by stevel

quote:
Originally posted by Marc Nerenberg

I'm glad to see another song with lyrics as Tune of the Week.

hi marc- not to get too overly technical, but a song has to have words.

Well, there are some people that write stuff that has no lyrics that they call songs (whether correctly or not).

But my point was that I was glad to see the lyrics posted, as well as the fact that it was a song.

Of course, all songs have tunes (melodies), so they're still Tunes of the Week.

Anyway, there are guidelines posted in the Tune of the Week index that make it clear that Tune of the Week includes songs.

stevel - Posted - 02/24/2011: 13:13:30

quote:
Originally posted by Marc Nerenberg

quote:
Originally posted by stevel

quote:
Originally posted by Marc Nerenberg

I'm glad to see another song with lyrics as Tune of the Week.

hi marc- not to get too overly technical, but a song has to have words.

Of course, all songs have tunes (melodies), so they're still Tunes of the Week.

good point. i was just trying to get a conversation going.... so i started a thread on it in the "Other Banjo-Related Topics: Clawhammer/Old-Time" forum.

TOTW - Posted - 06/23/2011: 19:43:07

TOTW - Posted - 06/24/2011: 03:46:57

Doc Watson - youtube.com/watch?v=Iv24Sokn9Tc

Ricky Skaggs & Tony Rice - youtube.com/watch?v=QTySQQiGSYg

Kentucky Colonels - youtube.com/watch?v=-PYPmtwajvY

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