carlb - Posted - 10/08/2015:  08:55:16

Black Cat in the Briar Patch comes from the fiddling of Melvin Wine, who is the only older musician I've ever heard play this tune (it's possible that Sarah Jane Blake Singleton also knew this tune as she and Melvin grew up together). He learned it from his father who was the only person he ever heard play it.

This tune has two parts, one in the key of G and the other in the key of C. Back in 1977, before I traveled with Melvin Wine to the Chicago Folk Festival, I had decided that I wanted to learn how to play Black Cat in the Briar Patch before going. I tried a few different tunings including gDGbd and gCGCE, but they didn't work for me. Then I remembered a tuning that Odell McGuire (then of Lexington, VA) had told me about, gEAde. He said that this tuning could be used for Sail Away Ladies and Cumberland Gap. Well, this is the tuning that worked for me, though I play the 2nd part in the higher octave.

From ibiblio.org/fiddlers/BLACK.htm

BLACK CAT IN THE BRIAR PATCH. Old-Time, Breakdown. USA, West Virginia. G Major ('A' part) & C Major ('B' part). Standard tuning. AABB (Krassen): AA'BB (Phillips). Phillips reverses the two parts of the tune from Krassen. The melody is ‘crooked’, or irregular, as it has an extra beat at the end of the ‘A’ part.. Sources for notated versions: Melvin Wine, learned from his father (Braxton County, W.Va.) [Krassen]; Armin Barnett (Seattle) [Phillips]. Krassen (Masters of Old Time Fiddling), 1983; pg. 49 [[and Milliner-Koken (American Fiddle Tunes, 2011; pg. 47); source Melvin Wine]]. Phillips (Traditional American Fiddle Tunes), vol. 1, 1994; pg. 28 [[source: Armin Barnett]].

     Items in double square brackets are information added by me from book hard copies.

     Note - I've pitch corrected Melvin's recording from "Cold Frosty Morning" as he was tuned a bit sharp (The recording at Slippery Hill is not corrected and pitches a half a step or more sharp slippery-hill.com/M-K/GDAE/G/BlackCat.mp3)

Recordings of Melvin Wine

1. From Melvin Wine's first record "Cold Frosty Morning" [pitch corrected]

            This recording is from Melvin Wine's recording "Cold Frosty Morning". The pitch was quite a bit sharp, so I adjusted it to the key of G.

2. 1977 Chicago Folk Festival (Melvin Wine - fiddle, Carl Baron - banjo)

            This is a recording from the Chicago Folk Festival in the winter of 1977 and is from the NPR show "Folk Festival U.S.A.". I was unable to find any other internet sources for this festival save a few YouTube videos of other performers.

3. 1982 Fiddle Tunes acoustic concert, Port Townsend, WA (Melvin Wine - fiddle, Carl Baron - banjo, Bob Carlin - guitar).

            On the Friday of the 1982 Fiddle Tunes, in Port Townsend, WA, there was an acoustic concert; Melvin Wine, myself and Bob Carlin were featured. Pictures are at well.com/user/dmsml/pt/pt82/melvin.htmlwell.com="">. Later, in the concert we were joined by Kenny Hall. Centrum, the organization that runs Fiddle Tunes, has given me permission to distribute recordings of the entire concert which I have been doing for the past few years.

Tablatures

1. My tablature from the Banjo NewsLetter -  I have made a minor change in the way I play the tune, since my 1978 tab was published. I now play the first two notes as a drop thumb, index on open 1st string, to thumb while fingering the 4th fret on the 2nd string. This change is also at the end of the 4th measure where the phrase repeats. I hope you all will not have trouble with the old Banjo Newsletter tab form in which the numbers appear in the spaces. In my tab, I've corrected the incorrect tuning, in that it was printed backwards in the Banjo Newsletter in 6/78. hangoutstorage.com/banjohangou...02015.jpg

2. David Allen Pheiffer hangoutstorage.com/banjohangou...12012.pdf

Videos

Melvin Wine youtube.com/watch?v=TkCRjGDqUoQ

Grafton Wine in jam at Glenville 2014 youtube.com/watch?v=9gdh6b6omV8

There are many videos of various artists on YouTube

Reed Island Rounders youtube.com/watch?v=6JcJ0-WIDOg

Shesham & Lotus youtube.com/watch?v=iNbGgH1b0As

Carolina Still youtube.com/watch?v=i8OSDgbS2eU

Erynn Marshall & Carl Jones youtube.com/watch?v=kTuMxNSqJ4s

Transcriptions

1. Drew Beiswenger - hangoutstorage.com/banjohangou...02015.pdf

2.See David Allen Pheiffer link above

3. Available only until 10-31-2015. drfiddle.com/show_tune.php?id=99

4. mne.psu.edu/lamancusa/tunes/blackcat.pdf

Other recordings (Musician/CD title):

Erynn Marshall - Calico

Harry Bollick - That Banjo from Hell

Carolina Still - Distill

Reed Island Rounders (Betty Vornbrock - fiddle, Carl Baron - banjo, Bill Cornett - guitar) at Henry Reed Festival in 2012 wnrvbluegrassradio.com/mp3/mms...50614.mp3

Added note - I don't want to get into a discussion of a name for this tuning, but back in 1973 when I first learned about gEAde, it didn't have a name. At the same time, gDGde, was called "Sandy River Belle tuning" though, now a days, many people refer to the tuning as "Old G". For information on tuning names, I suggest zeppmusic.com/banjo/aktuning.htm

Edited by - carlb on 10/23/2015 12:57:28

Black Cat in the Briar Patch 3

Black Cat in the Briar Patch 2

Black Cat in the Briar Patch 1

RG - Posted - 10/08/2015:  10:33:08

Awesome tune, great post and superb playing Carl-thanks!

Edited by - RG on 10/08/2015 10:34:03

sugarinthegourd - Posted - 10/08/2015:  11:02:30

Love this tune! Thanks, Carl!

Brooklynbanjoboy - Posted - 10/08/2015:  13:18:19

Carl, Nicely done.  Good to see Odell McGuire's name remembered.  I've only heard one recording of him, playing one tune -sent to me by Al Tharp.  Anyway, thanks. 

Cheers,

Lew

sugarinthegourd - Posted - 10/08/2015:  17:10:12

I played guitar in a band called Sourwood Mountain in Atlanta ca. 2000-2001. Here is a recording we made of this tune at that time. This is Sean Colledge on fiddle, Ted Sims on banjo, and yours truly on guitar. 

Sean taught us the tune; I'm not sure where he learned it.

John

Black Cat in the Briar Patch