Posted by Bufo Bill on Friday, November 11, 2011
My intention with this blog is to show how my tastes in the realm of Banjo music develop. My knowledge of banjo music when I first picked up a banjo extended to the “Waltzing Matilda” of Australian notoriety, and an English folk song called the “Gloucestershire Wassail “, and I decided there and then that my life would be infinitely improved if I could play a half-decent version of either tune. That was two years ago.
I bought a book on bluegrass banjo playing, and within a few months I was familiar with songs like “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” and a few other bluegrass favourites. I enjoyed banjo playing very much.
I am not sure where I heard about Clawhammer first. I knew Iwanted to play it as soon as I saw players on Youtube. The first Clawhammer album I bought was Ralph Stanley’s “Old Time Pickin’” and unsurprisingly, as I was still working on the basic Bum-did-dy stroke I was stunned and lost by the playing- and I loved it!
Last year I got bitten by the Fretless banjo bug, and being a member of the BHO by this point it wasn’t long before I discovered the album “Cotton Blossom” by R.D.Lunceford. Through that I discovered low tuned banjo. Bitten by that bug too (the low-tuned banjo, not R.D.! He plays too well to be a bug)!
My latest find is “Clawhammer Banjo Volume one” which are examples of Round Peak style , or so I understand. What a journey!
Thanks for stopping by!
Next: My banjos.
1 comment on “My Banjo Life No.1”
stingo2 Says:
Saturday, November 12, 2011 @10:26:15 AM
Interesting. Sort of parallels my own journey. I await the next chapter.
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