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Posted by JanetB
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- Play count: 60
Size: 2,888kb, uploaded 12/13/2024 11:33:40 AM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
This clawhammer arrangement is from Charlie Walden's fiddle recording, linked on Tune of the Week for Decatur Reel. It's following him pretty closely, though in a string band you wouldn't need all these notes. Charlie connects the tune to Missouri's fiddler Dwight Lamb.
Add CommentPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 103
Size: 1,739kb, uploaded 11/25/2023 12:30:38 PM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
A song we used to play with the Rough & Ready Fruit Jar Pickers. Here's the 3-finger solo I worked out at the time.
Add CommentPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 1124
Size: 2,616kb, uploaded 12/16/2016 6:33:15 PM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
This tune comes from the repertoire of Bluegrass boy Kenny Baker. He learned it from his father, Thaddeus, and said he only heard it played by his family. I used Garage Band to combine my Mac Traynham Whyte Laydie openback with my Gold Tone cello banjo.
3 commentsPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 1167
Size: 1,304kb, uploaded 5/25/2013 2:00:32 PM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
For the Tune of the Week, 5/24/13, from the fiddling of Pappy Taylor of Illinois.
3 commentsPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 921
Size: 820kb, uploaded 5/4/2014 4:05:15 PM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
Samuel Bayard collected this tune from fiddler and fifer Isaac Newton Morris. It's tune #45 in his book Dance to the Fiddle and March to the Fife. I learned it from the excellent recording by Mark Tamsula and Richard Withers in their CD Up in the Batten House. It's one of these tunes where the melody is embedded within some wandering passages. I'm playing in SRB tuning with tab in the BHO archive.
4 commentsPosted by JanetB, written by Jim and Jesse McReynolds
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- Play count: 740
Size: 781kb, uploaded 10/2/2011 5:37:38 PM
Genre: Bluegrass / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
Listening to a David Grisman collection called Mandolin Extravaganza, this one caught my attention.
2 commentsPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 229
Size: 1,017kb, uploaded 1/29/2017 7:31:10 PM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
For the old-time Tune of the Week, 1-28-17, I listened to an Illinois fiddler John Ray "Doc" Corn recording, made on his birthday in 1976. The tune was also recorded by Lynn Chirps Smith, a fiddler whose work I respect and enjoy. There's not much other information yet on this tune other than it had another title that isn't so nice.
4 commentsPosted by JanetB, written by Graham Townsend
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- Play count: 105
Size: 1,528kb, uploaded 9/6/2021 9:02:33 AM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
Graham Townsend, Canadian winning dance fiddler and prolific tunester till his death in 1998, wrote this reel and played it rapidly and notes. I simplified the A part, but not as much the B part, and slowed it down here.
Add CommentPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 225
Size: 968kb, uploaded 12/2/2016 10:52:20 AM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
For the old-time Tune of the Week, 12/2/16, from the playing of Virginia fiddler Taylor Kimble (1892 - 1979). I wouldn't know much at all about this kind of corn, so I'm sure this version won't "set your head on fire," as the lyrics said.
Add CommentPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 715
Size: 1,640kb, uploaded 11/14/2017 10:17:22 AM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
For the old-time Tune of the Week, 11/12/17, Double File was recorded by Gaither Carlton. Anything that brings me closer to Doc Watson's family makes me hapy. I added a bit of cello banjo accompaniment.
1 commentPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 825
Size: 877kb, uploaded 12/27/2013 10:56:25 AM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
From the fiddling of WV fiddler French Carpenter. I also heard Gerry Milnes play this, learned from Wilson Douglas' fiddling. It was a Tune of the Week a while back. I like the slide in the B part--it gives it a swing feel.
Add CommentPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 74
Size: 2,290kb, uploaded 3/8/2025 11:27:18 AM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
In topics:
TOTW 03/07/2025: Down In Little Egypt (C)
From the playing of Illinois fiddler Lynn "Chirps" Smith who learned it from coal miner Noah Beaver of Elkville, IL. I like its ragtime feeling and syncopation in the B part.
Add CommentPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 951
Size: 875kb, uploaded 1/23/2013 6:36:37 AM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
Comparing this song to another I came to record it with the tuning f#DADE. I remember Doc Watson's singing of it best.
5 commentsPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 143
Size: 1,204kb, uploaded 3/6/2021 3:56:04 PM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
Also known as Rose Conley and Rosin the Bow, the melody is so nice, but the lyrics aren't, so I'd rather just play the instrumental. It's a song we all seem to learn, but why a murder ballad -- ugh!
Add CommentPosted by JanetB, written by Sarah Armstrong
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- Play count: 844
Size: 1,651kb, uploaded 10/24/2017 4:44:25 PM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
Sarah Armstrong came from a large family in southwestern Pennsylvania and learned fiddling at the age of 5. Her favorite mentor was her Uncle Laney and her Dream Song came to her in a dream about him. She woke up and learned it. Samuel Bayard listened and transcribed many of her tunes in 1943 and 1944. You can see these transcriptions in an 80-page book called Hill Country Tunes. I'll post the pdf file in the discussion thread with another one of her tunes.
2 commentsPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 1069
Size: 1,040kb, uploaded 10/28/2012 8:14:09 PM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
I really liked how Don Courchie fiddled this with Don Borchelt's banjo at their Clifftop jams, so I've learned it listening to their playing. Don's fiddle certainly had embellishments to challenge me.
1 commentPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 258
Size: 1,267kb, uploaded 10/30/2012 6:11:19 AM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Classical
After posting a fast version of Dry and Dusty, here's a slowed up one on the little gourd banjo. The title insinuates struggles, perhaps relating to the Dust Bowl era, since the Morrison brothers most credited with this tune came from Arkansas.
1 commentPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 144
Size: 857kb, uploaded 1/7/2022 3:17:47 PM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
The modern recordings of Ducks on the Millpond are great listening, and my first round through comes from them, in particular Rayna Gellert. Going back to the older for this week's Tune of the Week was also interesting. Virginia fiddler Emmett Lundy always portrayed tunes uniquely in both his rhythmic nuances and note choices. You'll hear the next three parts as he played them, arranged here for clawhammer banjo.
Add CommentPosted by JanetB
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- Play count: 1094
Size: 1,436kb, uploaded 7/24/2015 11:59:20 AM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
This nice modal tune is usually attributed to West Virginian fiddler Henry Reed, but I learned it from the fiddling of West Virginian Dwight Diller. It was a BHO old-time Tune of the Week in 2010 with lots of information in this TOTW link: http://www.banjohangout.org/archive/187542.
2 commentsPosted by JanetB, written by Garry Harrison
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- Play count: 753
Size: 1,388kb, uploaded 8/14/2015 12:00:06 PM
Genre: Old Time / Playing Style: Clawhammer and Old-Time
For the old-time Tune of the Week, 8/14/15, this one was actually written by the great collector of the Dear Old Illinois compilation (soon to be released again), Garry Harrison. The fine part expresses a bit of the over-exertion needed if your chisel needs sharpening.
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