Editor's note: this article originally ran in Banjo Newsletter's November 1974 edition. It is re-published here by permission from the author and the Banjo Newsletter.
The second melody, or B part of "Theme Time" walks through the following progression: C to C; G to G; A to A; D to D and back to the first melody. Here are some exercises that can become part of your basic bag of tricks all using the same left hand fingering pattern.
The possibilities are endless depending upon your rhythmic approach, but here are some to give you the idea. They can be used for up-hill/down-hill runs anywhere on the neck as long as you follow the intervals. Thinking of it in terms of a scale and in graphic form it would look like this:
If we started at the first fret and made a C chord for box #1, then box #2 would be a Bb; and box #4 a C. The same sequence started at fret 8/9 would lead you through a G progression. Starting at 10/11 would provide a trip through A; and at 15/16 you would go from D to D.
Here is the basic "Theme Time" progression in simple tablature: (all quarter notes)
Now try this: (regular tablature/8 counts to a measure)
(Notice that the pattern is the same for each chordal run; following the principle mentioned earlier, with grace notes to embellish and fill in at the end of each 'second' measure.)
Another way it can be done; this time climbing and then returning to the starting point of each chord:
(These two are all the same pattern too. Now try mixing them up; go up-hill with one chord and up-hill/down-hill with the next etc. Not only does it add variety, it should provide a better control of the upper-neck board.)
Here is another example of the endless possibilities this type of picking provides, this time written out only for C. Try it in other chords also, and then mix it up with the ones mentioned earlier.
And another
For the second measure of the above exercises you can get 8 notes to the measure instead of the 4 quarter notes by doing this:
This type of 'two string' chord playing has application for back-up especially in medium tempo/slow tempo songs.
Now to put everything together, here is the A part, or main melody of "Theme Time." It is another fine example of a banjo tune that works out of the G and F chord progression. (I just bought one of those "Drug-Store Special" albums with Bill Emerson & His Country Banjo playing this song. However, on the record (Hilltop PTP 2069-1B Bluegrass/Pickwick Records/2 Records for $3.47) the song is called Lonesome Road Blues.)
Top B part.
Here's another way to pick the A part
Try this way to get into the F after 2 measures of 'Foggy Mt' lick in G:
Then on to the D pattern.
(I realize the use of the same string to get two or three notes in a row is against the cardinal principles of three-finger picking, but I think it gives a nice choppy effect to the song. Give it a try, and throw it out if you don't agree.)
An upper neck break for the A melody can be done within the existing chord pattern. Try this for the first two G measures and the F part. Use a choke on the 10th fret second string/a sound that is used so effectively by Scruggs in many of his banjo solos. Make the choke really talk, and then attack the roll when barring the 10th fret for the F chord.
And so on to D.
The B melody can be played in chromatic (melodic) style if you desire, working through scales that cover each chord, for the two measures. Also can be used as a melodic back-up when another instrument is taking the break. Or treat this as just an exercise to limber those fingers up and gain knowledge of scales.
And back to A part.
(Dragging the thumb means that it is possible to make two notes in a row using the same finger since the thumb is traveling in the same direction as the next note. For those that can get the middle finger down to the second string, use that technique.)
Ending Lick
Consider this a "weird" ending figure. It could be used as an ending for "Theme Time" or any song in G that you wish to polish off with a flourish. The third measure is inspired by G°7 chord learned from Harold Streeter's version of "The World Is Waiting For The Sunrise!" (Actually the key chord to that song.) The brush chord at the end is a G6 which may sound strange for bluegrass, but my ear has detected it at times in songs done by The Stanley Brothers, and if they can do it I guess anyone can!
Tips
Certain picks feel just right on our fingers. We get used to them after getting them angled and adjusted properly. To keep them from getting mixed up with the others we carry around in our case keep them isolated and separate inside a plastic container. Something like a drug-store pill box, or a plastic container used package a phonograph cartridge, or any other small plastic container. I prefer a clear plastic so I can readily see what is inside. They also make a good case to carry spare bridges, to keep them from getting damaged inside the accessory pocket of a case.
In 1971, while working as a high school librarian, Hubbard Nitchie began compiling information on the 5-string banjo. He called it "The Banjo Clearinghouse," and that, along with a banjo tablature service he also offered called "Tab of the Month," eventually became The Banjo Newsletter.
Hub played 3-finger style, and was especially partial to the melodic style; his own columns in "BNL", Exploring the Fingerboard, concentrated on that style. In September ,1992, Hub received the Personality of the Year in Print Media award from the IBMA. In October 1992 he passed away in Greensboro, Maryland.
In 1988, Hub wrote: "Whatever objective you have with your interest in the banjo—to play for yourself or for others, or whatever musical style you prefer—our goal at Banjo Newsletter is to celebrate the banjo."
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