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Pick1949 - Posted - 12/09/2022: 00:56:15
Whoops I accidentally put this up in the wrong section… so I’m reposting it here.
Lowell sure was a gunslinger on the banjo…! Here I’m taking a stab at his “Smoke Signals”.
John Schleich - Posted - 12/09/2022: 04:31:33
I love it! I have never heard the tune before. Thank you
ChunoTheDog - Posted - 12/09/2022: 08:47:07
Heck yea, love me some Lowell Varney banjo tunes. He has so much Stanley influence in his picking.
Thanks for the post, I've always like that one.
The timing of your post is funny to me, I was tabbing out 'On the Banks of the River' couple nights ago.
youtube.com/watch?v=ZYW-OQlyero
Picking along to Varney recordings always messes me up cause I don't think he's ever tuned his banjo to open G at A=440hz. He seems to always be somewhere near open G# but not quite there lol
Pick1949 - Posted - 12/09/2022: 09:01:53
Haha I hear you Antoine! Seems that’s the case for alot of those older recordings sometimes! You ever took a stab at this tune? Huge Lowell fan here too… more should know about him imo! This tune really “struck a chord” with me as soon as I heard it… Like I said… Lowell was sure a gunslinger on the five string!
Pick1949 - Posted - 12/09/2022: 09:02:37
Thank you John! Glad I could help introduce you to the tune!
ChunoTheDog - Posted - 12/09/2022: 09:13:49
Imo Varney is a solid vocalist as well and can make any song into real mountain-sounding bluegrass (kinda like Jimmy Martin could, but way different obviously), he's got some pretty exceptional Kris Kristofferson covers for example.
I also always really liked how Varney sneaks real bluesy tones into that mountain sound. But at the same time he was another picker that always stuck close to the melody, too, like Ralph.
@Pick, nah I've never tried going at Smoke Signals but I think you got it down extremely good!
Pick1949 - Posted - 12/09/2022: 10:08:25
Thanks Antoine! And yeah I think Lowell definitely knew what the real deal Bluegrass was all about!… All around!
Pick1949 - Posted - 12/09/2022: 10:32:27
You know though, other than the albums of his available, I don’t know much else about the man…? Might be worth starting a thread about him…?
ChunoTheDog - Posted - 12/09/2022: 11:19:25
quote:
Originally posted by Pick1949
You know though, other than the albums of his available, I don’t know much else about the man…? Might be worth starting a thread about him…?
My introduction to him was hearing him and Ralph on that Riverside Grass record (Mountain Records 1001 I think).
I've been hunting down any and all Varney material since, but there's not much info on him out there.
He also did a gospel album with Hylo Brown, I think with Newland Records, too which I can't seem to find anywhere online but it was quite good.
Would love to hear more on this fella if anyone knows more.
Edited by - ChunoTheDog on 12/09/2022 11:20:44
Pick1949 - Posted - 12/09/2022: 15:04:41
I second that motion. If anybody knows more I’d like to know more about him as well… I’m not aware if he is possibly even still alive or not.
I think he wrote the song that Ralph did called “Whiskey and Wine”… I bet Ivor Trueman (Bluegrass Buzzbomb) would know more… If he sees this maybe he will chime in.
Edited by - Pick1949 on 12/09/2022 15:08:32
Don Borchelt - Posted - 12/10/2022: 19:40:06
quote:
Originally posted by Pick1949
Lowell sure was a gunslinger on the banjo…! Here I’m taking a stab at his “Smoke Signals”.
That sure is some great picking, very well done! I can hear the Ralph Stanley influence in that, but I think there is some Scruggs D minor tuning Nashville Blues inspired licks in there too, along with that strain with the chokes and the 4th string run that Scruggs used in both Rueben and John Henry.
When it comes to more bluesey, model sounding D tunes, for awhile now I have been favoring another open D tuning based on one that old Dock Boggs used. Instead of tuning the 3rd string down to Bb, I tune it up to G (aDGAD), basically the open D version of sawmill tuning (gDGCD).
Edited by - Don Borchelt on 12/10/2022 19:44:32
Pick1949 - Posted - 12/11/2022: 09:01:47
Thanks! Yes Don, I love that D sawmill tuning you mention.
I did not play this tune exactly like Lowell…. I may have threw in even a little more Ralph influence, but I think I hear a lot of Earl influence in it though, too. Lowell was definitely heavily influenced by Ralph and Earl no doubt too!
