Hi everyone,
The song of the week is 'In The Pines' in the key of E. 
'In The Pines' is in 3/4 time (a.k.a. 'waltz time': 3 beats per measure: guitar rhythm: boom-chuck-chuck), and is usually played at a slow tempo. 


Recordings
Bill Monroe - key of F
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_UkluxB7gc

Boone Creek (Ricky Skaggs on lead vocal) - key of B. Notice that the chorus is shorter than on the previous version: this is the way (i.e., with the 'woo-woo-woos' mimicking the sound of the wind omitted) that  I sing the song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0kjiRfqFhUM

Peter Rowan - key of E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKh8XjgoQfc

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys - key of E
In the Pines - Jason Homey and the Snake River Boys - YouTube


Jam Videos
Here are four youtube jam videos I have made for In The Pines. In the one listed first, I am on guitar, playing the song in the key of E.
Jason’s YouTube Links – Alphabetical Listing – Parisology (cyberplasm.com)


Progression
The chord progression for In The Pines is:

1141
1511
In the key of E: 1=E, 4=A, 5=B


Melody & Breaks
The melody of In The Pines uses only the first 5 notes of the major scale. In the key of E, these notes are, from lowest to highest: E, F#, G#, A, B. However, In The Pines lends itself well to being played with more of a lonesome or bluesy feel to it than what would seem to be implied by the notes that the melody consists of. So, in both my backup playing and in my breaks, I tend to make a lot of use of b3 and b7 notes. In the key of E, those notes are G and D respectively. 

For instance, when playing a melody-based break for the song, I will tend to substitute G notes in place of some of the G# notes, and in my fillin licks - both in my breaks and in my backup playing - I will tend to use D notes in spots where I would much more often use C# notes instead. Many of my fillin licks, and other licks that I might use in a break when I am not attempting to stick close to the melody, will consist solely of the notes that make up the minor pentatonic scale. The E minor pentatonic scale consists of the notes: E, G, A, B, and D 

To get a feel for how one might get started in doing this for a melody-based break for 'In The Pines', I have included in the files at the bottom of this write-up, in addition to the melody as I tend to sing it (which consists of just E, F#, G#, A, and B notes), a modified 'melody' that adds 3 additional notes into the mix: G, A#, and D. When I am really going for a 'bluesy' feel in a break or in a fillin lick for 'In The Pines', I will make frequent use of the A#/Bb note as a passing note between A and B notes, whether ascending: A, A#, B, or descending: B, Bb, A. If you choose to make use of this note, be careful about how long you linger on it, for it clashes severely with all three of the chords in the song.

The 'modified melody' in the files is only a basic example of how one might go about making use of the three extra notes to give a lonesome or bluesy sound to one's breaks. There are many more ways in which one might make use of these notes in one's breaks (and also in one's backup playing), so I suggest experimenting with these notes a bit. You might, for instance, take some licks you already know, and try modifying them in various ways to include one or more of these notes in them. In doing this, you might find it helpful to listen closely to the Boone Creek and Snake River Boys versions of 'In The Pines' to use as a point of reference for the kind of 'sound' or 'feel' to aim for.

Due to its slow tempo, you might find that playing 'In The Pines' at the jam affords you with a good opportunity to try to get more 8th notes - and even 8th note triplets (see the explanation below if you are not sure what 8th note triplets are) - into your breaks than what you otherwise tend to play. You might also like to use the song as an opportunity to work on improvising (i.e., making up a break on the fly), since the slow tempo allows one a bit more time to think about which note or combination of notes one might like to play next.


Swung 8ths and 8th Note Triplets
There are a couple of symbols on the melody sheets in the files here that you will not see often on the melody sheets I provide for the songs of the week.

The first one, at the top of the pages, consists of a pair of 8th notes followed by an equals sign followed by three 8th notes of which the first two are tied together and the numeral '3' occurs above the three 8th notes. This means that whenever you see a pair of 8th notes in the written music, the first of the two notes is held twice as long as the second one, but together, they take up the same amount of time in the measure as what two 'ordinary' (evenly spaced) 8th notes take up. To get the feel for this, sing (or play) the melody along with the sung choruses on one of the recordings given here, making sure that your 8th notes line up with the vocal phrasing. 

The numeral '3' which is placed below the staff under the group of three 8th notes in the second to last measure of the 'modified melody' indicates a triplet. Each note of an 8th note triplet lasts one-third the length of a quarter note; so, together, these three notes last the same amount of time as a single quarter note.


Guitar Tab Melody Sheets
For playing in the key of E, Bluegrass guitar players most often capo either to the 2nd fret and then play as if in D or capo to the 4th fret and then play as if in C. But, for In The Pines, as well as for many other songs in which it is desirable to make use of a lot of 'blue notes' (i.e., b3 and b7 notes) in one's playing, the 'capo 4  play as if in C' option can make doing this more awkward than what it needs to be, so I have not included a key of C melody sheet in the guitar tab files. (In the key of D, the b3 and b7 notes are F and C, whereas in the key of C, the b3 and b7 notes are Eb and Bb.)

However, in addition to the key of D guitar tab melody sheet, I have included a key of E melody sheet in the guitar tab files, since playing in the key of E without a capo lends itself at least just as well to the use of blue notes as what the 'capo 2 play as if in D' option does. If you have never tried playing a guitar break in the key of E without a capo, but would like to, I suggest that In the Pines is a good song to start with.

Note: When playing in the key of E without a capo, Bluegrass guitar players tend to play a B7 rather than a B for the '5' chord.


Banjo Tab Melody Sheet
Both the range of the melody for In The Pines and the desirability of using many 'blue notes' in one's breaks and backup playing for the song make the 'capo 2, play as if in D' option more practical than the 'capo 4, play as if in C' option. Therefore, I have included a key of D banjo tab melody sheet in the files, but not a key of C tab. 

For banjo players using the melody sheet as a guide for creating a break: for successive 8th notes in the melody, or in fill-in licks, there is no need to avoid picking the same string two or more times in a row with the same finger: the song is played slowly enough to allow one to be able to play smoothly even while temporarily breaking away from typical banjo picking patterns in cases where doing so ends up being a more straightforward and simpler option.


Song List
20 songs were played at last night's jam: 12 from the main list, 2 from the additional songs list, and 6 that are on neither list:
Before I Met You - C
Blue Ridge Cabin Home - A
Buffalo Gals - A
Cluck Old Hen - A
Columbus Stockade Blues - G
In The Pines - D
Liberty - D
Lonesome Road Blues - G
Mama Don't Allow - A
Old Joe Clark - A
Will You Be Loving Another Man - A
Wreck Of The Old '97 - D
Sitting On Top Of The World - G
Wildwood Flower - C
Angeline The Baker - D
The Crawdad Song - D
Handsome Molly - G
In The Sweet By And By - G
Long Black Veil - D
Midnight On The Water - D

Happy Pickin',
Jason


In The Pines - melody in E
Download File

In The Pines - banjo tab
Download File

In The Pines - mandolin tab
Download File

In The Pines - guitar tab (D)
Download File

In The Pines - guitar tab (E)
Download File

Hi everyone,
The song of the week is 'Will You Be Loving Another Man' in the key of A.
This classic bluegrass song was written by Bill Monroe and Lester Flatt during WWII, and then recorded after the war in 1946 by the original bluegrass band, Bill Monroe and his Bluegrass Boys, which consisted at the time of Bill Monroe on mandolin, Lester Flatt on guitar, Earl Scruggs on banjo, Chubby Wise on fiddle, and Howard Watts on bass.


Recordings
Here is the original 1946 recording of Will You Be Loving Another Man, with Lester Flatt on lead vocal and Bill Monroe on harmony vocal during the choruses: key of A: 
Will You Be Loving Another Man? - YouTube

Billy Strings - key of B
Billy Strings - String The Halls: "Will You Be Loving Another Man?" - YouTube

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys - key of A
WIll you be loving another men - Jason Homey and the Snake River Boys - YouTube


Jam Videos
Here are three youtube jam videos I have made for Will You Be Loving Another Man:
Jason’s YouTube Links – Alphabetical Listing – Parisology (cyberplasm.com)


Progression 
The chord progression for Will You Be Loving Another Man is:
1111
1155
1144
1511
(Prog. V2 on the Basic Chord Progressions handout.)
This is the same progression that is used to play Mama Don't Allow, She'll Be Coming Round The Mountain, The Crawdad Song, and When The Saints Go Marching In. 


Harmony
Notice the use of the b7 (flat-seven) note in the tenor harmony in the second measure of the third line of the choruses on the recordings. (That is, the measure that consists of the syllables '-turn will you be'). In the key of A this is G note. In the key of G, it would be an F note. The singing of the b7 note in the harmony part here turns the A chord being played at the time into an A7 chord, which leads the ear to want to hear a D chord next (transposed to the key of G, it would be a G chord being turned into a G7 chord leading to a C chord), and adds interest to the harmony part.


Breaks 
Notice on the Bill Monroe recording how each of the breaks differ from each other. The short mandolin intro break (half the length of a full intro break: it uses the last half of the progression) states the melody of the song in a simple manner, making use of drony-sounding double stops in connection with the main melody notes. 

In the first fiddle break, there is a lot more going on than what there was in the mandolin intro break, yet the melody is never lost sight of at any point in the break: its influence on the break is there from beginning to end. 

The banjo break zeros in on only the most essential notes of the melody and fills up the space between them with 8th notes that, for the most part, are notes that are part of the chord being played at the time. 

Finally, the second fiddle break, after its first four measures, contains almost no trace of the melody at all. The last 3/4 of this break is made up entirely of non-melody-based licks (which have gone on to become standard - one might say 'cliche' - bluegrass fiddle licks), fitted to the chord progression of the song. 

On the Snake River Boys recording, I start the song off with a full-length intro break on banjo that follows the melody of the song closely, but not slavishly. But, in my banjo break near the end of the song, I deviate more and more from the melody as the break goes along, taking a similar approach to my break as what Chubby Wise did in his second fiddle break on the Bill Monroe recording. The fiddle break on the Snake River Boys recording that follows that banjo breaks carries on where I left off, being very lick-oriented, rather than melody-oriented, and then the mandolin break that follows that fiddle break reels the song back in with a melody-oriented approach to break playing, which ended up making for a good segway into the final sung chorus of the song. (This specific arrangement for the song was not rehearsed in advance: we all just did our part in making it up as we went along, playing off of each other.)

The first fiddle break follows a more melody-oriented approach than the second fiddle break, and the first mandolin break follows a more lick-oriented approach than the second mandolin break. But, notice that in all of this, just like in the banjo breaks I played, the melody is never entirely absent in the lick-oriented fiddle and mandolin breaks, nor is the sung melody copied slavishly in any of the melody-oriented breaks. 


Song List
21 songs were played at last night's jam: 13 from the main list, 6 from the additional songs list, and 2 that are on neither list:

Before I Met You - A
Blue Ridge Cabin Home - A
Buffalo Gals - A
Cluck Old Hen - A
Down The Road - C
Forked Deer - D
Liberty - D
Mama Don't Allow - A
Mountain Dew - A
Old Joe Clark - A
Will You Be Loving Another Man - A
Worried Man Blues - Bb
Wreck Of The Old '97 - D
Cripple Creek - A
Cryin' Holy - G
Faded Love - D
Soldier's Joy - D
Why Don't You Tell Me So - B
Will The Circle Be Unbroken - G
Angeline The Baker - D
Banks Of The Ohio - D

Happy Pickin',
Jason



Will You Be Loving Another Man Melody in A.pdf
Download File

Will You Be Loving Another Man Banjo tab.pdf
Download File

Will You Be Loving Another Man Guitar tab.pdf
Download File

Will You Be Loving Another Man Mandolin tab.pdf
Download File

Hi everyone,
The song of the week is 'Cluck Old Hen' in the key of A. 
Cluck Old Hen is an old-time tune that has made its way into Bluegrass circles. Although there are lyrics for Cluck Old Hen, it will be played as an instrumental when I call it at the jam as the song of the week.


Recordings
Ricky Skaggs & Bruce Hornsby - key of A
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxGjLIPBOLs

Fletcher Bright & Bill Evans - key of A
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fE2zPlDtKyg

Ralph Stanley - key of A 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEqpuvBwLIk

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys - key of A
Cluck Old Hen - Jason Homey and the Snake River Boys - YouTube


Jam Videos
Here are three youtube jam videos I have made for Cluck Old Hen. In the one list listed first, I am on guitar:
Jason’s YouTube Links – Alphabetical Listing – Parisology (cyberplasm.com)


Form & Progression 
Like Shortnin' Bread and Cripple Creek, Cluck Old Hen follows the form AABB (i.e., there are two parts, each of which is repeated before the next part is played), with each A Part and each B Part being 4 measures long.

The progression we use at the jam for playing Cluck Old Hen is:
A-Part:
1  1/4  1  5/1 

B-Part:
1  1/b7 1  5/1
In the key of A: 1 = A; 4 = D; 5 = E; b7 = G. In the key of G: 1 = G; 4 = C; 5 = D; b7 = F


Melody & Breaks
While the chord progression for Cluck Old Hen uses only major chords, the melody is not major, but minor. 
 
There are 7 melody notes in the version of the melody given in the attachments for Cluck Old Hen.  In ascending order of pitch, these are: G, A, C, D, E, G, A.  

A,C,D,E,G are the notes that make up the A Minor Pentatonic Scale. (By contrast, the A Major Pentatonic Scale consists of the notes: A,B,C#,E,F#). Even if one is not playing the melody per se in one's break, sticking to the notes of the A Minor Pentatonic Scale, and playing no other notes in one's break will make the break sound like it 'belongs' in the tune. 

For those with instruments usually capoed to the second fret for playing in the key of A (guitar, banjo, dobro), you will need to lower each note in the preceding explanation by a whole step in order for the information to correspond with what you see on the melody sheets in the attachments written in guitar and banjo tab.

So, for instance, in place of "A,C,D,E,G are the notes that make up the A Minor Pentatonic Scale. (By contrast. the A Major Pentatonic Scale consists of the notes: A,B,C#,E,F#)", think: "G,Bb,C,D,F are the notes that make up the G Minor Pentatonic Scale. (By contrast, the G Major Pentatonic Scale consists of the notes: G,A,B,D,E).

This does not mean that one should never include notes from the A Major Scale that are not in the A Minor Pentatonic in one's breaks for Cluck Old Hen (Ralph Stanley, for instance, includes several C# notes and a few F# notes in his breaks on the recording given here), but only that one needs to be careful about using those notes.

It is common in Bluegrass for breaks to contain notes from both the Major Scale and the Minor Pentatonic Scale, even when the melody of the song is either entirely major or entirely minor, so long as the chord progression is major (i.e., the progression uses 1 chords rather than 1m chords). 

On the other hand, if you are playing 'Cluck Old Hen' in the context of an Old-time jam you may find that you have less leeway to make use of notes outside the Minor Pentatonic Scale than what you do when playing the tune in the context of a Bluegrass jam. 

In connection with this, one may observe that, for playing Cluck Old Hen, most Old-time (clawhammer) banjo players tune their 2nd string up a half step from where it would normally be tuned when in G tuning (capo 2 for A) precisely to avoid the resonance of the distinctively major scale note that is on the open 2nd string when in G tuning, whereas Bluegrass banjo players (at least when playing in a Bluegrass context) tend not to do this. If tuned this way (G modal tuning: GDGCD capo 2 for A = AEADE), then, in reading the banjo tab melody sheet in the attachments, just simply substitute 0's in place of the 1's that are written on the line representing the 2nd string. 


Key
Although the melody of Cluck Old Hen consists only of the notes of the Am pentatonic scale, it is called at jams in A (Major) rather than A Minor because the '1' chord that is used in the chord progression for the song is an A Major Chord rather than an Am Chord ('1m'). To call Cluck Old Hen in A Minor instead of in A (Major) at a jam would imply that 1m Chords are to be played in place of 1 Chords.

In the attached standard notation melody sheet for Cluck Old Hen, I have used the key signature for Am (no sharps or flats, same as the key signature for C Major, the Relative Major of Am) instead of the key signature for A Major (3 sharps) to avoid the need to write natural signs in nearly every measure. I hope that my doing this makes the sheet music easier to read than if I had used the key signature for A Major.  


Song List
20 songs were played at last night's jam: 13 from the main list, 6 from the additional songs list, and 1 that is on neither list:

Before I Met You - A
Buffalo Gals - A
Cluck Old Hen - A
Columbus Stockade Blues - A
Down The Road - A
Liberty - D
Lonesome Road Blues - G
Long Journey Home - A
Mama Don't Allow - A
Mountain Dew - A
Old Joe Clark - A
Worried Man Blues (played twice) - A & Bb
Wreck Of The Old '97 - D
Boil The Cabbage Down - A
Cryin' Holy - G
I'm Waiting To Hear You Call Me Darling - D
Little Cabin Home On The Hill - A
Red Wing - G
Will The Circle Be Unbroken - G
Handsome Molly - A

Happy Pickin',
Jason


Cluck Old Hen - banjo tab
Download File

Cluck Old Hen - guitar tab
Download File

Cluck Old Hen - mandolin tab
Download File

Cluck Old Hen - melody in A
Download File

Hi everyone, 
The song of the week will be 'Worried Man Blues' in the key of Bb.


Recordings
The Carter Family - key of Bb
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcvWrxrNk4k
 
Flatt and Scruggs - key of G
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKTEvgJN2gk

The Stanley Brothers - key of A
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=is4WK99hPcg

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys - key of Bb
Worried Man Blues -Jason Homey and the Snake River Boys - YouTube


Jam Videos
Here are four youtube jam videos I have made for Worried Man Blues. In the one listed second, I am on guitar, playing the song in Bb.
Jason’s YouTube Links – Alphabetical Listing – Parisology (cyberplasm.com)


Progression
On the Carter Family, Flatt and Scruggs, and Snake River Boys recordings, the chord progression is:
1111
4411
5511

On the Stanley Brothers recording, the chord progression is:
1111
4441
1111
5511

If one is paying attention only to the lyrics when comparing the different versions of the song with each other, it would seem that to arrive at the 12 measure version (Carter Family/Flatt & Scruggs/Snake River Boys), you just omit the third line of the 16 measure version (Stanley Brothers). However, if one pays attention to the melody and the chord progression, then it becomes clear that the 12 measure version omits the second half of the second line and the first half of the third line of the 16 measure version rather than the whole third line of the 16 measure version. In this regard, notice the differing number of measures of the '4' chord in the 16 measure and 12 measure versions.

When I lead the song at the jam, I almost always use the 12 measure version, but be prepared for the 16 measure version to show up sometimes when other people lead the song at the jam.  On the melody sheets provided at the bottom of this write-up, I have shown the relation between the longer and shorter versions.


The Key of Bb
In the key of Bb: 1=Bb, 4=Eb, 5=F
The notes that make up the Bb chord are Bb, D, and F.
The notes that make up the Eb chord are Eb, G, and Bb
The notes that make up the F chord are F, A, and C.
Together, these notes form the Bb Major Scale: Bb, C, D, Eb, F, G, and A.

The melody of Worried Man Blues uses only 6 of these notes: Bb, C, D, F, G, and A, which so happen to be the 6 notes that the Bb Major Scale shares in common with the F major scale (F, G, A, Bb, C, D, E).

If you are fiddler or a mandolin player, and you already play songs or licks in F, then, provided that these songs or licks do not require using the 4th string, you can take your same fingerings for F and move them all one string lower in pitch, and you will be thereby be playing in Bb. 

For playing chop chords on the mandolin that use no open strings, if you move the chord shapes you use for playing in the key of A up by one fret, this will put you in the key of Bb.

For playing in the key of Bb, bluegrass banjo and guitar players almost always capo to the 3rd fret, so that they can use the same fingerings that they would use for playing in the key of G. (In the key of G: 1=G; 4= C; 5=D.)

Banjo players will need to raise the pitch of the fifth string to a Bb note (registers as A# on most tuners). This is done by capoing (with a 5th string capo, or 8th fret spike) the 5th string at the 8th fret.  For banjo players who do not have a fifth string capo or an 8th fret spike (that includes myself), spike the 5th string at the 7th fret, and then tune it up a half step to a Bb (A#) note. This is best done by ear by playing the 5th string with the thumb while playing the 3rd string with the index finger, turning the 5th string tuning peg slowly until the 5th string sounds harmonious with the 3rd string. 


Pick-up Notes
Like Bury Me Beneath The Willow, Foggy Mountain Top, Gathering Flowers From The Hillside, Lonesome Feeling, Lonesome Road Blues, When The Saints Go Marching In, etc., the first melody note in the first complete measure of Worried Man Blues is the 5th note of the Major Scale, but unlike in those other songs, the starting melody note of Worried Man Blues is the lowest note in the melody rather than the highest or one of the highest melody notes. When this is the case, I usually prefer to use a descending pickup phrase to lead into a break rather than an ascending pickup phrase. For songs like Bury Me Beneath The Willow, Foggy Mountain Top, Gathering Flowers..., etc., my choice of pickup notes usually is: 3, 4, #4 (e.g., B, C, C# in the key of G, or C#, D, D# in the key of A, or D, Eb, E in the key of Bb, etc.) leading up to the 5 (a D note in the key of G, an E note in the key of A, and F note in the key of Bb, etc.), but for songs like Worried Man Blues, Handsome Molly, I Saw The Light, Long Journey Home, Mountain Dew, This Little Light Of Mine, etc., my choice of pickup notes usually is 6, 6, b6 leading down to the 5 (e.g., E, E, Eb, leading down a D note in the key of G, or F#, F#, F, leading down to an E note in the key of A, or G, G, Gb, leading down to an F note in the key of Bb), for in all those songs the starting melody note in the first complete measure is the lowest note in the melody.
                     6     6    b6
Key of A:      F#  F#    F
Key of Bb:    G    G    Gb
Key of B:      G#  G#  G
Key of C:      A     A     Ab
Key of D:      B     B    Bb
Key of E:      C#   C#  C
Key of F:       D    D    Db
Key of G:      E     E    Eb 


Song List
21 songs were played at last night's jam: 16 from the main list, 4 from the additional songs list, and 1 that is on neither list:

Before I Met You - A
Blue Ridge Cabin Home - A
Buffalo Gals - A
Cluck Old Hen - A
Columbus Stockade Blues - G
Forked Deer - D
Liberty - D
Light At The River - A
Lonesome Road Blues - G
Long Journey Home - A
Mama Don't Allow - G
New River Train - F
Old Joe Clark - A
Will You Be Loving Another Man - A
Worried Man Blues - Bb
Wreck Of The Old '97 - A
Bury Me Beneath The Willow - B
Cripple Creek - A
Why Don't You Tell Me So - B
Will The Circle Be Unbroken - A
Long Black Veil - D

Have a happy Easter,
Jason


Sheet Music:
Worried Man Blues - melody in Bb
Download File

Worried Man Blues - banjo tab
Download File

Worried Man Blues - guitar tab
Download File

Worried Man Blues - mandolin tab
Download File

Hi everyone,
The song of the week is 'Lonesome Road Blues' (a.k.a. 'I'm Goin' Down The Road Feelin' Bad) in the key of G.


Recordings
Here is one of the first sung bluegrass versions of Lonesome Road Blues I remember hearing. It is a live recording of the Stanley Brothers, and it is played at quite a fast tempo:

The Stanley Brothers - key of G
The Stanley Brothers - Lonesome Road Blues (live) (aka Going Down The Road Feeling Bad) - 1957 - YouTube

Here is what is probably the most well-known instrumental bluegrass version of Lonesome Road Blues, played as a banjo-feature tune on the Flatt and Scruggs' album 'Foggy Mountain Banjo', and at a slower tempo than the Stanley Brothers' live version:

Flatt and Scruggs - key of G
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4dgyx9Q850

Here is a sung version by Bill Monroe, the father of bluegrass music
Bill Monroe - key of C
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0_s2hGkBAs

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys - key of G
Lonesome Road Blues -Jason Homey and the Snake River Boys - YouTube


Jam Videos
Here are three youtube jam videos I have made for Lonesome Road Blues. In the one listed first, I am on guitar.
Jason’s YouTube Links – Alphabetical Listing – Parisology (cyberplasm.com)


Progression
The chord progression used in the versions of Lonesome Road Blues on the recordings given here is the same one that I use when leading the song:
1111
4411
4411
5511
(Prog. W4 on the Basic Chord Progressions handout)
...though, I have heard it played at some jams with the last line played as 1511 (Prog. V4 on the Basic Chord Progressions handout), and/or with the third line played as 4416m. 


Blue Notes
Notice the Bb note in measure 2 of lines 2, 3, and 4 on the melody sheets in the files section at the bottom of this write-up. Relative to the key of G, the Bb note is the b3 (flatted third scale degree). Together with the b7 (for the key of G, an F note), making good use of this note will often add a 'bluesy' characteristic to your playing.


Arrangement
Lonesome Road Blues is one of those small handful of songs that at a typical bluegrass jam it would not be out of the ordinary for it to be played either with or without singing.

Lonesome Road Blues is also one of those songs that may be sung either with or without a chorus. Other songs that have been played at the jam that are also like this include: Down The Road, Amazing Grace, This Little Light Of Mine, When The Saints Go Marching In, and Little Birdie. When sung without a chorus, the set of lyrics that make up the chorus in the versions of Lonesome Road Blues that use a chorus will usually be sung as one of the verses in the song - usually as the first or as the last verse, or as both. 

For most of the songs that may be sung either with or without a chorus, I tend to choose to sing them without a chorus when I lead them at a jam, and this is how I sing Lonesome Road Blues. This arrangement allows more time for a greater number of breaks to be played without making the song unusually long. 


Song List
17 songs were played at last night's jam: 12 from the main list, 3 from the additional songs list, and 2 that are on neither list:

Before I Met You - C
Blue Ridge Cabin Home - A
Cluck Old Hen - A
Forked Deer - D
In The Pines - C
Liberty - D
Lonesome Road Blues - G
Long Journey Home - A
Mountain Dew - A
New River Train - F
Old Joe Clark - A
Will You Be Loving Another Man - A
Cryin' Holy - G
I'll Fly Away - D
Soldier's Joy - D
In The Sweet By And By - G
Tear My Stillhouse Down - C

Happy Pickin',
Jason


Sheet Music:
Lonesome Road Blues - melody in G
Download File

Lonesome Road Blues - banjo tab
Download File

Lonesome Road Blues - guitar tab
Download File

Lonesome Road Blues - mandolin tab
Download File

Hi everyone,
The song of the week is 'Long Journey Home' (a.k.a. 'Two Dollar Bill' and 'Lost All My Money') in the key of A.

​
Recordings
Flatt & Scruggs - key of A (song starts at 2:07)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j36uEgzfer4&list=PL75WHOdULzEkvqS1g3YFtHWFP0Av_Fio4

Rhonda Vincent - key of B
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7M8j_Ofnstc

Bill Monroe & Doc Watson - key of G 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIsDyBxPujM

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys - key of A
Jason Homey and The Snake River Boys, IBA Open Mic, 2_24_20 - YouTube

For reasons of historical interest, I include the following version of Long Journey Home by the Monroe Brothers (Bill Monroe and his older brother Charlie). From 1936, this was one of the first songs that Bill Monroe recorded, and it is played wickedly fast:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3mpsorJM2Q  


Jam Videos
Here are three youtube jam videos I have made for Long Journey Home. I recommend starting with the one listed first. In that one, I am on guitar.
Jason’s YouTube Links – Alphabetical Listing – Parisology (cyberplasm.com)


Progression 
The chord progression is:

1111
1141
1111
1511
While this is a fairly basic chord progression, there are very few bluegrass standards that use this progression.  I like to think of this progression as being closely related to the more common progression:

1111
4411
1111
1511
(Prog. V3 on the Basic Chord Progressions chart. It is the progression that is used for playing Will The Circle Be Unbroken, I'll Fly Away, Mountain Dew, Cryin' Holy, etc.)

The first, third, and fourth lines are identical in both progressions.  The second line of both progressions is made up of 1 and 4 chords, but they differ from each other as to where the 4 chord occurs within the line and how long one stays on the 4 chord before changing back to the 1.

The main challenge that the Long Journey Home progression presents is that with so many 1s in the in the progression, it can sometimes be all too easy to lose one's place within the progression.  But, if one thinks/feels the song in terms of distinct lines consisting of 4 measures each, then this is less likely to happen. However, if you do lose track of the progression, then the safest chord to play is the 1.  Just keep on playing the 1 while you are trying to figure out where in the progression the song is at. Use the vocal as a guide to help you to feel where each line of the progression begins.


Melody
In ascending order of pitch, the notes that make up the melody of Long Journey Home are:

                    5    6    1    2   3    5
                   sol  la  do  re  mi  sol
key of A:      E   F#  A   B  C#  E
key of Bb:    F  G   Bb  C   D   F
key of B:      F# G# B  C# D# F#
key of C:     G   A    C   D  E   G
key of D:      A   B   D   E   F#  A
key of E;      B   C# E  F# G#  B
key of F:      C   D   F   G   A   C 
key of G:      D  E   G   A    B   D

These are the same notes that make up the melodies of Will The Circle Be Unbroken, Nine Pound Hammer, My Home's Across The Blue Ridge Mountains, Foggy Mountain Top, Amazing Grace, Mountain Dew, and many other songs.

The first line of the melody of Long Journey Home has much in common with the first line of the melodies for several other songs, including Worried Man Blues, This Little Light Of Mine, Mountain Dew, Sun's Gonna Shine In My Back Door Someday, Paul And Silas, and Gotta Travel On. 


Pick-up Notes
Like Bury Me Beneath The Willow, Foggy Mountain Top, and Gathering Flowers From The Hillside, the first melody note in the first complete measure of Long Journey Home is the 5th note of the Major Scale, but unlike in those other songs, the starting melody note of Long Journey Home is the lowest note in the melody rather than the highest or one of the highest melody notes. When this is the case, I usually prefer to use a descending pickup phrase to lead into a break rather than an ascending pickup phrase. For songs like Bury Me Beneath The Willow, Foggy Mountain Top, and Gathering Flowers, my choice of pickup notes usually is: 3, 4, #4 (e.g., B, C, C# in the key of G, or C#, D, D# in the key of A) leading up to the 5 (a D note in the key of G, an E note in the key of A), but for songs like Long Journey Home, Mountain Dew, Worried Man Blues, This Little Light Of Mine, I Saw The Light, etc., my choice of pickup notes usually is 6, 6, b6 leading down to the 5.

                     6     6    b6
Key of A:      F#  F#    F
Key of Bb:    G    G    Gb
Key of B:      G#  G#  G
Key of C:      A     A     Ab
Key of D:      B     B    Bb
Key of E:      C#   C#  C
Key of F:       D    D    Db
Key of G:      E     E    Eb


Tempo
Long Journey Home is quite often played at a fast tempo.  While this song would not work very well at a slow tempo, it is not necessary to play it as fast as it has often been played on recordings in order for it to sound right.  So, at the beginner jam, I do not intend on playing it as fast as it is played on some of the recordings provided here, but it will still be one of the faster songs, relative to the speeds that we tend to play songs at at the jam.


Lyrics
One of the things that makes Long Journey Home a jam friendly song is the repetitive nature of the lyrics.  There is not much that needs to be memorized in order to be able to sing harmony on the choruses, and the last line of the chorus is identical to the last line of each verse:

Lost all my money but a two dollar bill,
Two dollar bill, boys, two dollar bill.
Lost all my money but a two dollar bill:
I'm on my long journey home.

The three verses I usually sing start as follows:
1. Cloudy in the west and it looks like rain....
2. Black smoke's a rising and it surely is a train....
3. Dark and it's raining and I've got to go home....

Occasionally I add another verse before the last verse: Homesick and lonesome, and I'm feeling kind of blue....

The repetitive nature of the lyrics also makes Long Journey Home a good song choice for those who wish to lead a song at the jam, but do not have much experience yet singing at a jam, or who have difficulty memorizing lyrics. 


Song List
22 songs were played at last night's jam: 14 from the main list, 6 from the additional songs list, and 2 that are on neither list:

Before I Met You - A
Buffalo Gals - A
Cluck Old Hen - A
Columbus Stockade Blues - Bb
Forked Deer - D
In The Pines - C
Liberty - D
Light At The River - A
Lonesome Road Blues - G
Long Journey Home - A
New River Train - F
Old Joe Clark - A
Worried Man Blues - B
Wreck Of The Old '97 - A
Cripple Creek - A
Little Cabin Home On The Hill - A
My Home's Across The Blue Ridge Mountains - G
Red Wing - G
Shortnin' Bread - G
Soldier's Joy - D
Angeline The Baker - D
Turkey In The Straw - G

Happy Pickin,
Jason


Sheet Music:
Long Journey Home - melody in A
Download File

Long Journey Home - banjo tab
Download File

Long Journey Home - guitar tab
Download File

Long Journey Home - mandolin tab
Download File

Hi everyone, 
The song of the week is 'Liberty' in the key of D.

Recordings 
Flatt & Scruggs with Doc Watson 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ugu-QwHWaA

Midwest Banjo Camp 2013: Bill Keith, Tony Trischka, Greg Cahill, Alan Munde, Ken Perlman, Brad Leftwich, Bill Evans, Janet Beasley, etc.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bE-2NO7WbhE

Byron Berline & John Hickman 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsbIoPhwG5U

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys
Liberty - Jason Homey and the Snake River Boys - YouTube


Jam Videos
Here are three youtube jam videos that I have made for Liberty. In the one listed first, I am on guitar.
Jason’s YouTube Links – Alphabetical Listing – Parisology (cyberplasm.com)


Progression
A-Part: 1144
            1151
B-Part: 1115  (Prog. Z1 on the Basic Chord Progressions Chart.)
            1151

Notice the difference between the progression for the B-Part of Liberty (Z1) and the progression for the A-Parts of Soldier's Joy and Old Joe Clark (Y1):
1    1    1    5
1    1    1/5 1


Lilt
Despite how they look when written on paper, and what their name implies, a string of consecutive 8th notes should not all be given equal time value when playing most Bluegrass breaks. Rather, they should usually be swung, so that the first 8th note in each pair of 8th notes lasts a bit longer than one-eighth of a measure, stealing time value from the second 8th note in the pair, which in turn takes up a bit less than one-eighth of the measure. The slower that consecutive 8th notes are played, the easier it is to detect whether they are being played in this manner (long-short-long-short, etc., often called 'lilt' or 'bounce'). To hear more clearly what this sounds like, slow down the youtube links provided here to half speed. To do this, click on settings, then click on speed, then click on 0.5. In the guitar jam video that I made for Liberty, I illustrate the difference between playing with and without lilt before starting into the tune. 


Melody
As is the case with most traditional fiddle tunes, there are many versions and interpretations of the melody of Liberty, but most versions one will come across online (whether written or recorded) are compatible with the interpretation of the melody I have offered in the files at the end of this write-up.


Guitar & Banjo Tabs
With ease of left hand fingering in mind, I have written the guitar and banjo tabs for Liberty in C instead of D. (See the files at the bottom of this song of the week write-up.) So, guitar and banjo players playing breaks based upon these will need to capo the 2nd fret to raise their playing up from the key of C to the key of D, and will need to make it a point to remember that Liberty is a 'D' tune, not a 'C' tune. 


Banjo Melody Tab
The banjo melody tab in the files section at the end of this write-up is not intended to be played as written for a banjo break, but is intended to serve as a guide for creating a Scruggs-style break. For tunes with fast-moving melodies like Liberty, Scruggs-style players tend to incorporate only as much of the melody into their breaks that is needed in order for the tune to be recognizable, and replace the rest of the melody with strategically selected filler-notes.that are compatible with the chord that is called for at the time, and that allow the player to make use of the right hand picking patterns that are typical of the style. In the files, I have provided examples of how a Scruggs-style player, using the melody sheet as a guide and following the basic principles of Scruggs-style, might choose to play the first two measures of the A Part and the first two measures of the B Part.


Note to Clawhammer Banjo Players
Clawhammer banjo players usually tune their banjos to double C tuning (GCGCD) for playing Liberty, and then capo the 2nd fret to raise their playing up to D. When tuned this way, in order to make use of the banjo melody tab provided here, one will need to add 2 to the numbers shown on the tab for the 4th string, and subtract 1 from the numbers shown on the tab for the 2nd string. (In the case of the open 2nd string notes shown on the tab, the 4th fret of the 3rd string will need to be used in their place.)

By transferring some of the melody notes shown on the first string in the tab to the 2nd string (and by transferring also the open 2nd string note to the 4th fret of the 3rd string), it is feasible, with the help of drop-thumb, hammer-ons, and pull-offs, for a clawhammer player to grab almost every melody note. However, most clawhammer players take a similar approach to Scruggs-style players in being selective about which melody notes to include in their playing of the tune, substituting filler notes in place of some of the melody notes in ways that allow them to make more use of the picking patterns typical of clawhammer style than what would be the case if they were to try to grab as much of the melody as possible.


8 Potato Intros 
Since there is nothing more effective for kicking off most fiddle tunes at a bluegrass jam than 8 Potato Intros, I have included examples of these in the files for each of the 4 primary lead instruments played at the beginner jam: fiddle, mandolin, guitar, and 3-finger style banjo. 

Notice that the last (4th) measure of the 8 Potato Intro includes the two pickup notes (or in the case of the banjo tab, just one pickup note) that lead into the first complete measure of the A Part of Liberty. If there were no pickup notes into the A Part of Liberty, then all 4 measures of the 8 Potato Intro would be identical with each other. This is important to keep in mind when kicking off fiddle tunes with an 8 Potato Intro. For, if one does not start into the melody at exactly the right time, then the 8 Potato Intro fails to serve its purpose. 


Double Endings
I have also included in the files examples of double endings suitable for Liberty for the four primary lead instruments played at the jam, since it is customary at bluegrass jams to end fiddle tunes (and certain other types of instrumentals) with these kinds of endings. 

When playing these endings, it is important to make sure that they start at exactly the right time relative to the end of the final B Part. The incomplete last measure on the melody sheets (2nd ending of the B Part) needs to be completed either by a quarter note rest, or by changing the last note from a quarter note to a half note before the first note of the double ending starts. 

Since the last break played for Liberty at the jam will usually be an 'everybody' break, it makes sense for everyone who played that break to also play the double ending together. 

Those not playing the double ending should stop playing after the last note of the final B Part has been played, and then prepare themselves to do one final note, double stop, or strum that will coincide with the last note of the double ending. In order for them to be able to do this, and to do this confidently, it is important that those playing the double ending play it clearly and with the correct timing. 


Song List
19 songs were played at last night's jam: 11 from the main list, 5 from the additional songs list, and 3 that are on neither list:
Before I Met You - A
Liberty - D
Light At The River - B
Little Birdie - Bb
Long Journey Home - A
Mama Don't Allow - A
New River Train - F
Old Joe Clark - A
Soldier's Joy - D
Will The Circle Be Unbroken - C
Wreck Of The Old '97 - D
Angeline The Baker - D
Boil The Cabbage Down - A
Cryin' Holy - G
Forked Deer - D
I'm Waiting To Hear You Call Me Darling - D
Dim Lights, Thick Smoke - A
Faded Love - D
Over The Waterfall - D

Happy St. Patrick's Day
Jason


Liberty - melody in D
Download File

Liberty - banjo tab
Download File

Liberty - Scruggs-Style Banjo ex.
Download File

Liberty - guitar tab
Download File

Liberty - mandolin tab
Download File

8 Potato Intro
Download File

Double Endings in D
Download File

Hi everyone,
The song of the week is 'Wreck Of The Old '97' in the key of D.

Recordings
Flatt & Scruggs: key of Bb
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=732g2a7pmpM

The Osborne Brothers: mandolin intro break and verses in the key of E; fiddle break in the key of A; banjo break in the key of B 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XSTYrVV4Pc

Mac Wiseman: key of D 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_vt-s3aYl8&list=RDD_vt-s3aYl8

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys - key of D 
Wreck Of The Old ’97 - Jason Homey and the Snake River Boys - YouTube


Jam Videos
Here are four youtube jam videos I have made for Wreck Of The Old '97. In the one listed second, I am on guitar, playing the song in the key of D.
Jason’s YouTube Links – Alphabetical Listing – Parisology (cyberplasm.com)


Progression & Melody 
Wreck Of The Old '97 uses the most commonly recurring chord progression in bluegrass, the 'Bury Me Beneath The Willow' progression.

1144
1155
1144
1511
(Prog. V7 on the Basic Chord Progressions chart.)

In the key of D: 1=D, 4=G, 5=A.
The D chord consists of the notes: D, F#, and A
The G chord consists of the notes: G, B, and D
The A chord consists of the notes: A, C#, and E.

Together, these notes make up the D major scale: D, E, F#, G, A, B, C#, and the melody of Wreck Of The Old '97 uses all the notes of the scale, with the lowest note in the melody being a D (the root note of the key), and the highest note in the melody being the E that is one octave plus one whole step higher than the lowest note in the melody.

Wreck Of The Old '97 has no chorus. There are 6 verses for the song, but it is common for only 5 verses to be used for the song.

While Wreck Of The Old '97 uses a very common chord progression - the most common of all progressions in bluegrass, there are some things about its melody that are uncommon in bluegrass. For instance, in the second line, at the point where the change to the '5' chord occurs ('A' in the key of D), the melody hangs on the 7th note of the scale ('C#' in the key of D), whereas it is far more common in songs for the melody to go the 2nd note of the scale ('E' in the key of D) at this point instead when the second line of the progression for a song is 1155.

From lowest to highest, here are the 9 melody notes of Wreck Of The Old '97 in each of the 8 keys that the song may be played in at the jam:

                   1     2    3    4     5    6     7     8(1) 9(2)   
Key of G:    G    A    B    C    D    E    F#    G    A
Key of A:     A    B    C#  D    E    F#  G#    A    B
Key of Bb:   Bb  C    D   Eb   F   G     A     Bb   C
Key of B:     B    C#  D#  E    F# G#   A#   B     C#
Key of C:     C    D    E    F    G    A    B     C     D
Key of D:     D    E    F#  G    A    B    C#    D    E
Key of E:     E    F#   G#  A    B    C#  D#   E     F#
Key of F:      F    G    A    Bb  C    D    E      F    G


Melody Sheets
In the files at the end of this write-up, I have included 2 guitar tabs of the melody: one written in the key of D, and one written in the key of C. The locations of the melody notes on the fretboard in the 'C' tab make the 'C' tab more conducive than the 'D' tab to working out a Carter-style break for the song. If for this reason, or some other reason, you choose to work with the C tab instead of the D tab, you will need to capo the 2nd fret in order to be playing the song in D.  I have also included 2 banjo tabs of the melody, one in D and one in C. Since the lowest note of the melody is the 1st note of the scale (a 'C' note in the key of C, a 'D' note in the key of D), you will need to tune the 4th string of the banjo down to a 'C' note if you choose to work with the key of C banjo tab of the melody given here. Capoing to the 2nd fret will then raise the pitch of the 4th string back up to a D note. (In the banjo youtube jam video, I play in C tuning, capo 2 for D. On the Snake River Boys recording, I play in G tuning, no capo, but still with the 5th string raised up to an A note. In both cases I am playing in the key of D.)


Points of Interest
If you are interested in learning about the history of the song, and the event that the song is about, check this out:
The Wreck of the Old 97 - History and Music Video - YouTube

For those who are interested, here are a few non-bluegrass versions of Wreck Of The Old '97 (all referenced in the youtube video above) that I was familiar with before I got into bluegrass music. The second one is the second-oldest recording of the song, dating from 1924, and was the first million-seller 'Country' record. The B-side of the record is 'The Prisoner's Song', another old 'pre-bluegrass' classic that has been adopted into the standard bluegrass repertoire.

Johnny Cash: key of Bb
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lza4Li_0o78

Vernon Dalhart: key of D 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7T06xJJth0Y

Hank Snow: key of A
THE WRECK OF THE OLD 97 by HANK SNOW - YouTube


Song List
19 songs were played at last night's jam: 12 from the main list, 3 from the additional songs list, and 4 that are on neither list:
All The Good Times Are Past And Gone - A
Blue Ridge Cabin Home - A
Cripple Creek - A
Gathering Flowers From The Hillside - G
Liberty - D
Light At The River - A
Long Journey Home - A
Old Joe Clark - A
Shortnin' Bread - G
Soldier's Joy - D
Way Down Town - E
Wreck Of The Old '97 - D
Angeline The Baker - D
Cluck Old Hen - A
Little Cabin Home On The Hill - A
Over The Waterfall - D
She's Gone, Gone, Gone - G
Lonesome Feeling - G
Sitting On Top Of The World - G

Happy Pickin',
Jason

​
Sheet Music:
Wreck Of The Old '97 - melody in D
Download File

Wreck Of The Old '97 - banjo tab D
Download File

Wreck Of The Old '97 - banjo tab C
Download File

Wreck Of The Old '97 - guitar tab D
Download File

Wreck Of The Old '97 - guitar tab C
Download File

Wreck Of The Old '97 - mandolin tab
Download File

Hi everyone,
The song of the week is 'Light At The River' in the key of A.

Recordings
Carl Story - key of A
Light At the River - YouTube

Mac Wiseman - key of A
Light At The River~Mac Wiseman.wmv - YouTube

The Lonesome River Band - key of Bb
Light At The River - YouTube

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys - key of A
Light of the River - Jason Homey and the Snake River Boys - YouTube


Jam Videos
Here are two youtube jam videos I have made for Light At The River:
Jason’s YouTube Links – Alphabetical Listing – Parisology (cyberplasm.com)


Progression
Light At The River uses the same chord progression as Foggy Mountain Top and All The Good Times Are Past And Gone:

1141
1155
1141
1511
(Prog. V6 on the Basic Chord Progressions chart.)

In the key of A: 1 = A; 4 = D; 5 = E
In the key of G: 1 = G; 4 = C; 5 = D
In the key of Bb: 1 = Bb; 4 = Eb; 5 = F


Melody
If you listen to all four recordings of the song given in the recordings section at the top of this write-up, then you will have heard four different versions of the melody for Light At The River. And, if you go on youtube to find more recordings of the song, it won't take long until you come across even more different versions of the melody. 

Where the various versions of the melody tend to diverge most significantly from each other is in the first half of lines 1 and 3 (both in the verses and in the chorus). 

The version of the melody that I sing for the chorus of the song consists of only 5 notes. These are the same 5 notes that the melody of All The Good Times Are Past And Gone and the melody of Down The Road consists of. 

In the key of A, these 5 notes are in order from lowest to highest: E, F#, A, B, and C#. In the key of G, the 5 notes would be D, E, G, A, and B; in the key of Bb, they would be F, G, Bb, C, and D; etc.

The melody I use for the first two verses of the song is essentially the same as the melody I use for the chorus. (In the third verse, I'll often hit a higher note at the start of the third line than what I sing at any other point in the song - the E above the C# when in the key of A - making a bit of use of one of the alternative versions of the melody.) So, for the purposes of having a starting point for creating a melody-based break for the song, it makes little difference whether one follows the melody I sing for the first verse or the melody I sing for the chorus.


Finding the Melody
In the melody sheets attached here, I have given the chorus instead of the first verse. Notice that the first 3 notes (the 2 pick-up notes, plus the note that starts the first full measure) are the same as those for Will The Circle Be Unbroken and Little Birdie, two songs that have often been played at the jam. They are also the same notes as the first three notes of She'll Be Coming Round The Mountain. After giving the first few notes of the melody, I pass it to you to take over to complete the melody sheet.

In addition to the hint I already offered concerning finding the melody (the 5 notes), here are a few more hints, tips, and suggestions that you may find helpful in trying to figure out the melody in order to complete the melody sheets.

Since it's easier to hear the melody when harmony is not being sung along with it, I recommend using the key of A  youtube jam video, rather than the Snake River Boys recording, when trying to pick up the melody by ear. Remember, on a laptop, if you go to settings, you can slow down youtube videos to half speed or quarter speed. Some may find it helpful to sing along and try to match the notes with their voice first before trying to match the notes on their instruments.

If you are having trouble figuring out what note was sung in a particular spot in the first chorus, you might try going to the second or third chorus to see if I may have sung the note more clearly there. If this doesn't help, then I suggest moving on, and going back to that spot later, filling it in with a note that makes melodic sense to you, regardless of whether it is the note that I actually sang. One does not need to be able to replicate a melody exactly as someone sang it in order to be able to come up with a melody-based break that sounds like it belongs in the song. 

Taking it as a given that the first note of the first complete measure of line 1 is the root note of the key (an A note when in the key of A, a G note when in the key of G, etc.), since I have provided that note on the melody sheets, listen to the whole chorus, and see if you can hear which other lines start with that same note, and see if you can hear if there are any lines that start with a different note. (The second  and fourth lines start with the word 'light', the third line starts with the word 'Lord'.)

After the first notes of the chorus provided on the melody sheets, listen for what comes next, asking yourself: Is the next note the same as the one before it? Or, is it higher than  that note? Or, is it lower than that note? Then do the same for each note in turn, until you have completed the whole line. When you come across the first case of a note that sounds higher than the third note, then there are only 2 notes to try out to see which one is the melody note (B and C# in the key of A; A and B in the key of G, etc.) for the melody doesn't go any higher than those notes. A similar thing applies when you come across the first instance of a note that you can hear is lower than the third note of the melody.

For the second line, notice the progression: 1155. Run through half a dozen or so melodies on your instrument in the key of A that you already know that have 1155 as the second line of their progression, and ask yourself, what is the note that I find myself most often playing at the point that the change to the 5 chord occurs? Does that sound like it might be the same note that the melody goes to on the word 'see' in the second line of Light At The River when the change to the 5 chord happens?

Not all melody notes are equally important to identify accurately in order to have a solid basis for creating a melody-based break. For instance, it makes no real difference whether one writes in an E, an A, a B, or a C# note for the last note of line 2 (on the word 'my': the pickup note leading into the third line). In melody-based breaks, this note would often be glossed over anyways in favor of a stock pickup phrase leading into the beginning of the next line.

More often than not, the main melody notes (the notes that are dwelt on, as opposed to those that are used merely in passing to connect one main melody note to the next) are notes that are part of the chord that is being played at the time. If one keeps this in mind, then even if you do not succeed in accurately identifying all the main melody notes that I sing in the chorus of Light At The River, there is a fairly good chance that in the cases where there is a divergence, you have hit on a note that belongs at that point to one of the alternative versions of the melody. And, on the recordings, not all the melody-based breaks follow strictly the version of the melody being sung on the particular recording; but sometimes incorporate parts of one of the alternative melodies, and it works just fine. And it is common for the last line of melody-based breaks to be more lick-oriented than melody-oriented. 


Lyrics
As far as I can gather, Light At The River originally had four verses, and the three-verse version that I sing results from combining parts of two of those four verses together, reducing the two verses down to one verse. Some sing my third verse as their second verse, and my second verse as their third verse. On many recordings, the song is sung with only two verses: either one of the three verses gets omitted entirely, or parts of two of the three verses are combined with each other, making one verse out of two verses.


Song List
22 songs were played at last night's jam: 12 from the main list, 8 from the additional songs list, and 2 that are on neither list:

Blue Ridge Cabin Home - A
Cripple Creek - A
Down The Road - B
Light At The River - A
Long Journey Home - B
A Memory Of You - A
Nine Pound Hammer - D
Old Joe Clark - A
Shortnin' Bread - G
Soldier's Joy - D
Way Down Town - E
Will The Circle Be Unbroken - G
Angeline The Baker - D
Boil The Cabbage Down - A
Cluck Old Hen - A
Columbus Stockade Blues - Bb
Foggy Mountain Top - G
Lonesome Road Blues - G
Mountain Dew - A
Wildwood Flower - C
Hold Whatcha Got - D
Sitting On Top Of The World - G

Happy Pickin',
Jason

Hi everyone,
The song of the week is 'Old Joe Clark' in the key of A.

Recordings
The Grascals
The Grascals Ol' Joe Clark HD - YouTube

Carolina Bluegrass Express
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYu_FdJWDs0

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys 
Old Joe Clark - Jason Homey and the Snake River Boys - YouTube


Jam Videos
Here are three youtube jam videos I have made for Old Joe Clark. I recommend starting with the one listed first. In that one, I am on guitar.
Jason’s YouTube Links – Alphabetical Listing – Parisology (cyberplasm.com)


Form & Arrangement
'Old Joe Clark' is a two-part fiddle tune traditionally played in the key of A. The form of the tune is AABB.  This means that each part of the tune (called the A-Part and the B-Part respectively) is played through twice before going on to the next part.

Like most of the fiddle tunes played at the beginner jam, Old Joe Clark does have lyrics, but, more often than not, Old Joe Clark is played as an instrumental at Bluegrass jams. It is more common at Old-Time jams for lyrics to be sung for  fiddle tunes.


Progression
The chord progression for the A-Part is:
1     1    1     5
1     1    1/5  1

The chord progression for the B-Part is:
1     1     1     b7
1     1     1/5  1

In the key of A:
1 = A
5 = E
b7 = G

With the capo in the second fret, the chord shapes become:
1 = G
5 = D
b7 = F

Note: the way that many people, myself included, play the F chord on the guitar looks very similar to the fingerings used for the C chord. So, if you are following a guitar player for the chord changes for Old Joe Clark while at the jam, it can be helpful to keep in mind that there is no '4' chord in the progression.


The b7 Chord
A quick way to determine what the b7 (flat-seven) chord is for any given key is to think of it relative to the 1 chord. The b7 will always be one letter lower and one whole-step lower than the 1. Make it a point to remember this.

For each of the 8 Major keys we play in at the jam, the b7 chord is:
Key (1)     b7
G              F
A              G
Bb            Ab
B              A
C              Bb
D              C
E               D
F               Eb

It is called the b7 (flat-seven) chord because the root note of the chord is a half-step lower than the 7th note of the Major scale (flat means a half-step lower).  E.g., The G Major Scale consists, in order, of the notes: G, A, B, C, D, E, F#. The 7th note of the G Major Scale is therefore F#. The note that is a half-step lower than F#, and uses the same letter in its name as F#, is F. Therefore, in the key of G, the b7 chord is F.


Intros & Endings
The most effective way to kick-off most AABB-form fiddle tunes, including Old Joe Clark, at a jam is not by playing a pickup measure consisting of three quarter notes to lead into your intro break, but is by droning in a straight but rhythmic manner the root note of the key that the tune is in (often together with another one of the notes that also belong to the 1 chord) for four measures to lead into your intro break.This is called in bluegrass and old-time circles the '8 Potato Intro'. 

It is also customary in Bluegrass circles to end most AABB-form fiddle tunes (as well as most fast instrumentals) with a tack-on 'double ending' that is played, not in place of the last 4 measures of the tune, but rather immediately after the last measure of the tune has been played. 'Double' refers to the ending being 4 measures long rather than only 2 measures long. Most of these types of endings consist of two 2-measure length ending licks played back to back.
 
See the files at the bottom of this write-up for some beginner-level examples of 8 Potato Intros and Double Endings for the key of A.


Melody
The melody of the tune is based upon the mixolydian scale.  This scale is in all respects like the major scale that we are all familiar with (do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti-do), except that the seventh scale degree ('ti') is lowered by a half step. 

The result is that a mixolydian scale always has one less sharp (or one more flat) in it than the major scale that shares its same letter name.  Since the A major scale has 3 sharps (F#,C#,G#), the notes of the A major scale being, in ascending order of pitch: A B C# D E F# G# A, the A mixolydian scale (like the D major scale) has 2 sharps (F#,C#), the notes of the A mixolydian scale being: A B C# D E F# G A.  Since the G major scale has 1 sharp (F#), the G mixolydian scale (like the C major scale) has no sharps.  The G major scale is: G A B C D E F# G.  The G mixolydian scale is: G A B C D E F G.


Breaks
The four melody sheets provided here at the beginning of the files section at the bottom of this write-up give only a very basic version of the melody. Put some filler notes around the melody (e.g., rolls on banjo, shuffle rhythm on the other instruments, etc.), make use of double stops (especially on fiddle and mandolin), slide into some notes, etc., and this will suffice for a beginner-level break for Old Joe Clark. However, quite a few more notes can be added to the basic melody, many of which may be considered as melody notes instead of as mere filler notes. If you already know how to add these into your breaks for Old Joe Clark, don't hold back in doing this at the beginner jam. If you aren't already doing this, but would like to find extra melody notes to add into your breaks for Old Joe Clark, take a look at the fiddle, mandolin, and guitar break examples I have provided in the files section below the melody sheets to get some ideas. 


Song List
22 songs were played at last night's jam: 12 from the main list, 8 from the additional songs list, and 2 that are on neither list:

Blue Ridge Cabin Home - A
Cripple Creek - A
Down The Road - B
Gathering Flowers From The Hillside - G
Liberty - D
Light At The River - A
Mama Don't Allow - A
New River Train - F
Old Joe Clark - A
Shortnin' Bread - A
Soldier's Joy - D
Way Down Town - G
Boil The Cabbage Down - A
Cluck Old Hen - A
Hand Me Down My Walking Cane - G
I'll Fly Away - C
Little Cabin Home On The Hill - B
Lonesome Road Blues - G
This Little Light Of Mine - A
Wildwood Flower (played twice) - C & G
Lonesome Feeling - G
Why Don't You Tell Me So - B

Happy Pickin',
Jason



Files:
Old Joe Clark - melody - basic in A
Download File

Old Joe Clark - melody - mandolin tab
Download File

Old Joe Clark - melody - banjo tab
Download File

Old Joe Clark - melody - guitar tab
Download File

Old Joe Clark - fiddle break 1
Download File

Old Joe Clark - fiddle break 2
Download File

Old Joe Clark - mandolin break
Download File

Old Joe Clark - mandolin break 2
Download File

Old Joe Clark - guitar break 1
Download File

Old Joe Clark - guitar break 2
Download File

8 Potato Intro in A
Download File

Double Endings in A
Download File

Hi everyone,
The song of the week is 'Down The Road' in the key of B.

​
Recordings
Flatt and Scruggs - key of B (studio recording)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmBOl82qXqs

The Bluegrass Album Band - key of B
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UKiNl3e97E

Flatt and Scruggs - key of A (live recording)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uc0iFZSeY6A

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys - key of B (starts at 0:34)
Jason Homey and the Snake River Boys, IBA Open Mic, 6_25_19 - YouTube


Jam Videos
Here are four youtube jam videos I have made for Down The Road.
Jason’s YouTube Links – Alphabetical Listing – Parisology (cyberplasm.com)


Form
The form of this song is unusual. Except for the last verse of the song (which has a common 8-measure form: 2 lines consisting of 4 measures each: this does not include the two-measure tack-on 'shave-and-a-haircut' ending that follows the last verse), the form for Down The Road consists of 2 lines of unequal length. The first line is the standard four measures that lines in most bluegrass songs consist of, but the second line is five-and-a-half measures long. This brings us to a total of nine-and-a-half measures. 

Add to this the bluegrass tendency to allow one or more extra measures of the 1 chord to go by at the end of a break that occurs right before a verse is sung, and you can end up with ten-and-a-half, or eleven-and-a-half measures, or more, for the length of a break that occurs before a verse.

Notice that on the first Flatt & Scruggs recording given here, the breaks are consistently ten-and-a-half measures long, while on the second recording, even more measures are added to the end of the breaks, but not always the same number of extra measures. However, and this is important to observe, on all the recordings, all the sung verses that are followed by a break are exactly the same length: nine-and-a-half measures. One way to think about this is that the number of beats that go by between the last sung syllable and the first full measure of the break that follows is always the same.


Progression
Not counting extra measures of the '1' that might occur at the end of some of the breaks, the chord progression for Down The Road is:

1     1/6m  1     5/1
1     1/6m  1     5 1     1

The 'half' measure in the form occurs in the spot where the 5 chord is played in the second line.

If one is counting the beats in the second line in cut common time (2/2), one would count it as: 1,2,1,2,1,2,1,1,2.1,2. Notice the spot where there are two 1s back to back without a 2 intervening between them. On the sheet music provided here in the files at the bottom of this song of the week write-up (see the file labeled as 'Down The Road - melody in B'), I have written the 'half' measure (measure 8) with a time signature of 1/2. And then to indicate that the remaining two measures in the form return to 2/2, I have placed the time signature symbol that represents 2/2 at the beginning of the measure that follows the 1/2 time measure.)

The progression for the last verse is:
1     1/6m  1     5/1
1     1/6m  1     5/1   
after which a 2-measure ending lick is played on the banjo.  
In the key of B: 1=B; 6m=G#m; 5=F#

The B (major) chord consists of the notes: BD#F#
The G#m chord consists of the notes: G#BD# (it has two notes in common with the B major chord)
The F# (major) chord consists of the notes: F#A#C#

Banjo and guitar players should capo to the 4th fret, and then play as if in G. In the key of G: 1=G; 6m=Em; 5=D

For chop chords on the mandolin for the key of B: move the chop chords you use for the key of A two frets higher and you will be playing in B.


Melody
In ascending order of pitch, the notes that make up the melody of Down The Road are:
                   5     6     1     2     3
                  sol   la    do   re    mi
Key of G:    D    E     G    A     B
Key of A:    E    F#    A     B    C#
Key of Bb:   F    G    Bb   C     D
Key of B:    F#   G#   B    C#   D#
Key of C:    G     A     C    D     E
Key of D:     A     B     D    E     F#
Key of E:     B    C#   E     F#   G#
Key of F:     C     D     F    G     A

The starting note of the melody is the 1st note of the scale (do): the note that has the same name as the key that the song is being played in.


Breaks 
When you look at the sheet music files for Down The Road at the end of this write-up, observe that the first measure of the break begins two measures from the time that the last syllable of the verse is sung. Another way of looking at this is that there are two measures of the 1 chord that are played at the end of the verse before the break begins.  If enough of us make it a point to observe and practice this, this will go a long way towards minimizing the confusion that can easily result (due to the unusual form of the song) when Down The Road is played at a jam.

There are two things that one can do to help prevent confusion about when the break begins (i.e., when the form starts over again): 

1) Use three quarter-note pickup notes for leading into your break: F#, G#, A# (leads to a B note) for the key of B. The corresponding notes for the key of G are D, E, F# (leads to a G note).

Dig into your three pickup notes really hard so as to draw attention to yourself, and then dig into the note that comes next (namely, the first note of the first measure of your break) even harder so that there can be no room for doubt as to where the first measure of the form begins.  These three pickup notes should be played during the last three-quarters of the last measure of the form, and they should be spaced apart from each other evenly. 


Breaks & Backup
2) Play a fill-in lick in the measure that contains the last syllable of the verse, and end that fill-in lick on the first downbeat of the next measure. Bring your volume up as soon as after the last syllable is sung, and hit the last note of your fill-in lick really hard (make it 'pop', especially if you are playing a G run on the guitar: the fill-in licks for guitar that are given in the files at the end of this write-up represent three different versions of what is commonly called 'the G-run'). This makes it clear as to where the last measure of the form begins - which is helpful to make clear on account of the half measure that the form contains in its second line, after which some people may find the beat 'flipped around' in their head and/or in their playing.  The first of the three pickup notes into the break begin right after the last note of the fill-in lick is played. But, on banjo, and especially on guitar, it is good to play a fill-in lick at the end of the progression for every break and every verse, except for the last verse, and not just when a banjo or guitar break is going to occur next in the arrangement of the song. 
 

Ending
For the last verse, which is eight measures long, rather than nine-and-a-half, it works best if everyone plays their last note at the same time as the last syllable is sung (as on the standard recordings given here). Then the banjo players can add a two measure tack-on ending lick appropriate for the 1 chord of the song (doesn't have to be the same ones that are on the recordings) that everyone else remains silent on except for the on the very last note of the ending. 

This kind of ending is a single ending, for it consists of only one ending lick, as contrasted with the double endings consisting of two ending licks played back to back that are commonly used for AABB-form tunes like Boil The Cabbage Down, Cripple Creek, Old Joe Clark, Liberty, Soldier's Joy, etc. For a single ending, you may use either the first or the second ending lick that your double endings consist of. Refer back to the files in the song of the week write up for Shortnin' Bread for an example of a double ending on the banjo, which can be turned into two ways of playing a single ending. 
https://www.idahobluegrassassociation.org/jasons-beginner-jam-blog-2019---2020/category/shortnin-bread

In the files for the current song of the week write-up (scroll to the bottom of this page), I have included a simplified version of the up-the-neck single ending 'shave-and-a-haircut' licks that are played on the banjo on the recordings for Down The Road given here. This ending lick will also work well for the second half (but not for the first half) of a double ending for tunes in G (and with a capo, also for tunes in A, Bb, B, and C.) 


Song List
22 songs were played at last night's jam: 13 from the main list, 7 from the additional songs list, and 2 that are on neither list:

All The Good Times Are Past And Gone - A
Blue Ridge Cabin Home - A
Cripple Creek - A
Down The Road - B
Little Birdie - Bb
Long Journey Home - B
A Memory Of You - A
New River Train - F
Nine Pound Hammer - Bb
Old Joe Clark - A
Soldier's Joy - D
Will The Circle Be Unbroken - A
Wreck Of The Old '97 - D
Angeline The Baker - D
Bury Me Beneath The Willow - G
Forked Deer - D
I'll Fly Away - A
I'm Waiting To Hear You Call Me Darling - D
Lonesome Road Blues - G
Will You Be Loving Another Man - B
Sitting On Top Of The World - G
Why Don't You Tell Me So - Bb

Happy Pickin',
Jason



Files:
Down The Road - melody in B
Download File

Down The Road - mandolin tab (B)
Download File

Down The Road - banjo tab
Download File

Down The Road - guitar tab
Download File

Down The Road - fill-in licks (B)
Download File

Shave-And-A-Haircut Single Ending on Banjo
Download File

Hi everyone,
The song of the week is 'Blue Ridge Cabin Home' in the key of A. 

​
Recordings
Flatt and Scruggs - key of Bb. This is the original recording of 'Blue Ridge Cabin Home'. It is in the key of Bb instead of A only because all the instruments were tuned a half-step higher than standard. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcZN9x4q4kg

For a more recent recording of Blue Ridge Cabin Home, here is one of my favorites:
The Bluegrass Album Band - key of Bb
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htxGouge9-g

In many Bluegrass circles, the Bluegrass Album Band (Tony Rice - guitar, vocals; J.D. Crowe - banjo, vocals; Doyle Lawson - mandolin, vocals; Bobby Hicks - fiddle; Todd Phillips - bass) version of Blue Ridge Cabin Home, released in 1981, has replaced the 1950s Flatt & Scruggs version as the primary point of reference for the song.   

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys - key of Bb
Jason Homey and the Snake River boys, IBA Open Mic, 10_22_19 - YouTube 


Jam Videos
Here are four youtube jam videos I have made for Blue Ridge Cabin Home. I recommend starting with the one listed first. In that one, I am on guitar, and am playing in the key of A.
Jason’s YouTube Links – Alphabetical Listing – Parisology (cyberplasm.com)


Progression
The chord progression for Blue Ridge Cabin Home is:
1144
5511
1144
5511
(Progression W8 on the Basic Chord Progressions chart. In the key of A: 1=A, 4=D, 5=E. In the key of Bb: 1=Bb, 4=Eb, 5=F. In the key of G: 1=G, 4=C, 5=D.)

Notice that both halves of the progression are identical with each other, and that the 4 chord is always followed by the 5 chord without the 1 chord intervening between them.

Other very jam friendly songs that use the same chord progression, include: 
A Few More Seasons. 
I'm Thinking Tonight Of My Blue Eyes 
Is It Too Late Now 
Nobody's Business
The Prisoner's Song 
She's Gone, Gone, Gone
Sweetheart You Done Me Wrong 
Unwanted Love
We Can't Be Darlings Anymore 
We'll Meet Again Sweetheart


Starting the Song
On the classic recordings of Blue Ridge Cabin Home, the song begins with a banjo intro break that is based squarely upon the melody for the verses of the song, and that is how the song is usually started at bluegrass jams. The pickup measure played on the banjo on the recordings before the first measure proper of the song consists of a half-note pinch (double-stop or triple-stop lasting for half a measure) on the open 1st (3rd) and 5th strings, followed by two quarter-note pickup notes: open 4th string, then open 3rd string, which leads into the 2-4 or 2-3 slide on the 3rd string that the first measure proper of the break starts with. This is the way that I like to start the song, but at jams, if I feel uncertain that enough people are familiar with how the song starts on the recordings, I will often play a more generic set of pickup notes, so that the song has a better chance of getting off to a strong start with everyone coming in at the right time, like the pickup phrases I recommended using to lead into breaks for the previous songs of the week 'My Home's Across The Blue Ridge Mountains', 'Beautiful Brown Eyes', 'I'll Fly Away', and 'All The Good Times Are Past And Gone'.


Fill-ins
The two spots in the verses, choruses, and breaks where a fill-in lick will fit (both of these spots are during '1' chord measures) are identical with the spots in which fill-in licks will fit into the previous songs of the week on the '1' chord: 'Nine Pound Hammer', 'Little Birdie', 'I'll Fly Away', and 'Way Down Town'. That is, at the ends of lines 2 and 4, starting in measure 3 of those lines. In the files at the bottom of this write-up I have included a chart of simple A chord fill-ins for fiddle, mandolin, guitar, and banjo.


Melody & Harmony
The first melody note of the first full measure of the chorus (just like for the verses) is the 3rd of the 1 chord (C# note when in the key of A, B note when in the key of G, etc.) "Oh I love..." Therefore, the corresponding note that is dwelt on here in the tenor harmony part is the 5th of the chord (E note when in the key of A, D note when in the key of G, etc.), and the corresponding note that is dwelt on here in the baritone harmony part is the root note of the chord (A note when it in the key of A, G note when in the key of G, etc.).

Observe, in listening to the recordings, that the melody for the chorus (especially in the first and third lines) is different than the melody for the verses, and that the phrasing of the lyrics is different in the chorus than in the verses. The melody sheets provided here at the bottom of this write-up give the melody for the first verse, for when the melody of the chorus differs from the melody of the verses of a song, melody-based breaks on the instruments usually take their cues from the verse melody, rather than the chorus melody. So, in this case, the melody sheets given here should not be used as a reference point for finding the harmony parts for the chorus. 


Song List
21 songs were played at last night's jam: 13 from the main list, 6 from the additional songs list, and 2 that are on neither list:

All The Good Times Are Past And Gone - A
Blue Ridge Cabin Home - A
Cripple Creek - A
Down The Road - B
Gathering Flowers From The Hillside - G
Light At The River - A
Long Journey Home - A
New River Train - F
Old Joe Clark - A
Shortnin' Bread - G
Soldier's Joy - D
Will The Circle Be Unbroken - C
Wreck Of The Old '97 - G
Boil The Cabbage Down - A
Bury Me Beneath The Willow - A
Cluck Old Hen - A
Foggy Mountain Top - G
Forked Deer - D
Mountain Dew - A
Lonesome Feeling - G
Red Wing - G

Happy Pickin',
Jason



Files:
Blue Ridge Cabin Home - melody in A
Download File

Blue Ridge Cabin Home - banjo tab
Download File

Blue Ridge Cabin Home - guitar tab
Download File

Blue Ridge Cabin Home - mandolin tab
Download File

Hi everyone,
The song of the week is 'New River Train' in the key of F.


Recordings
The Monroe Brothers - key of D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyWMFjly24o

Tony Rice and Norman Blake -  key of D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y36HCn4Ivws

The White Brothers - key of E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eLjdbN1xdg

Roland White - key of E (New River Train ends at 2:28) 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EZCsTzPb2k 

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys - key of F (starts at 4:02)
Jason Homey and the Snake River Boys, IBA Open Mic, 4/23/19 - YouTube


Jam Videos
Here are four youtube jam videos I have made for New River Train. I recommend starting with the one listed second. In that one, I am on guitar, and am playing the song in the key of F.
Jason’s YouTube Links – Alphabetical Listing – Parisology (cyberplasm.com)


Progression
The chord progression for New River Train is:
1111
1155
1144
5511
This is Prog. W2 on the Basic Chord Progressions handout.

In the key of F: 1=F, 4=Bb, 5=C.
In the key of E: 1=E, 4=A, 5=B.
In the key of D: 1=D, 4=G, 5=A.
In the key of C: 1=C, 4=F, 5=G.
etc.

This chord progression differs by only one measure from the progression that is used to play 'Mama Don't Allow', 'She'll Be Coming Round The Mountain', 'When The Saints Go Marching In', 'Will You Be Loving Another Man', etc.:
1144
1155
1144
1511
(Prog. V2 on the Basic Chord Progressions handout.)

In order to avoid accidentally playing Progression V2 in place of Progression W2 for New River Train at the jam, some may find it helpful to remind themselves before the song starts that in the last half of the progression for New River Train the 4 chord is followed immediately by the 5 chord (instead of returning to the 1 chord first before going to the 5 chord).   


Capo Chart for Guitar and Banjo
                            Guitar & Banjo             Banjo 5th string tuned to

Key of G         No capo, play in G                   G
Key of A          Capo 2, play as if in G             A  
Key of Bb        Capo 3, play as if in G            Bb (=A#)
Key of B          Capo 4, play as if in G             B
Key of C           No capo, play in C                  G
                          or Capo 5, play as if in G       C
Key of D          Capo 2, play as if in C              A
                         or No capo, play in D               A
Key of E           Capo 4, play as if in C             B
                        or Capo 2, play as if in D          B
Key of F           Capo 5, play as if in C             C   
                          or Capo 3, play as if in D        C

For beginner level 3-finger style banjo players, I recommend the 'Capo 3, play as if in D' option for playing New River Train in the key of F. This is why the banjo tab melody sheet in the files at the bottom of this write-up is written in the key of D.

For guitar players who like to play Carter-style breaks (i.e., melody carried on the lower-pitched strings of the guitar, with strums placed between melody notes: e.g., Tony Rice's opening break on the Blake & Rice recording given here), I recommend the 'Capo 5, play as if in C' option for playing New River Train in F. I have included guitar tab melody sheets in the files written in both C and D.

(For a clearer recording of Tony's intro break, check out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aU5vOsAwIYU  


Key of F: Tips for Fiddle & Mandolin Players
Some may find it helpful to think of a less familiar key in relation to a more familiar key. One way of approaching playing in F is to think of the key of F in relation to the keys of C and Bb. F and C are closely related keys: they share 6 of their 7 Major Scale notes in common:

F Major Scale:  F, G, A, Bb, C, D, E (6 naturals, 1 flat)
C Major Scale: C, D, E, F, G, A, B (7 naturals, 0 flats)

F and Bb are also closely related keys: they also share 6 of their 7 Major Scale notes in common:

F Major Scale:     F, G, A, Bb, C, D, E  (6 naturals, 1 flat)
Bb Major Scale: Bb, C, D, Eb, F, G, A  (5 naturals, 2 flats)

The same is true of any two keys that are separated from each other by an interval of a perfect 5th or a perfect 4th.

The keys of F and C share two of their 1,4,and 5 chords in common: 
                     1     4     5
Key of F:      F     Bb  C
Key of C:     C      F    G

The key of Bb also shares two of its 1,4, and 5 chords in common with the key of F:
                     1       4     5
Key of F:       F     Bb   C
Key of Bb:    Bb   Eb    F 

(Bb and C, on the other hand, are not closely related keys. They are separated from each other by a whole step, an interval of a major 2nd. They share only 5 of their 7 Major Scale notes, and only one of their 1,4, and 5 chords, in common with each other.)


Melody
The melody of New River Train uses the first six notes of the Major Scale. In ascending order of pitch, these notes are:
 
                  1    2     3     4     5     6    
                  do  re   mi    fa   sol   la   
Key of A:    A    B   C#   D     E    F#  
Key of Bb:  Bb  C   D     Eb   F    G   
Key of B:    B    C# D#   E     F#  G#
Key of C:    C    D   E     F     G    A   
Key of D:    D    E   F#   G     A     B   
Key of E:    E    F#  G#  A      B   C#  
Key of F:     F    G    A    Bb   C    D   
Key of G:    G    A    B    C     D    E   


Fill-in Licks in Breaks and Backup
There are three 'dead spots' in the melody of New River Train that last long enough for a fill-in lick to be played in them. These spots are in measures 3 to 4 of lines 1, 2, and 4. In lines 1 and 4, the dead spots occur while a 1 chord is called for in the progression, while in line 2, the dead spot occurs while a 5 chord is called for in the progression. 

In the files (scroll down to the very bottom of this song of the week write-up), I have included F and C chord fill-in licks for fiddle and mandolin, for F and C are the 1 and 5 chords for the key of F. Notes in parentheses are not part of the fill-in lick proper and may be omitted or replaced with another note. 

To show how one might get in and out of these fill-in licks in the context of playing a break, or playing backup, I have included in the files a sample mandolin break and a mandolin backup part. I recommend that fiddle, guitar, and banjo players, not just mandolin players, take a look at these mandolin tabs, for even if you do not read mandolin tab, so as to be able to decipher what notes are represented on the tab, you can still see the time values of the notes, and where within the measures and in the lines of the progression the fill-ins occur, so as to draw the application to the instrument that you play.

I have also included in the files, C, G, and D chord fill-in licks for guitar. For those who choose the 'Capo 3, play as if in D' option for playing New River Train in F, the D chord fill-in licks, presented in the context of 2 complete measures of backup playing, are for measures 3 and 4 of  lines 1 and 4. For those who choose the 'Capo 5, play as if in C' option for playing New River Train in F, the C chord fill-in licks, presented in the context of 2 complete measures of backup playing or a Carter-style break, are for measures 3 and 4 of lines 1 and 4, and the G chord fill-in licks, presented in the context of 2 measures of backup playing, are for measures 3 and 4 of line 2.  (If used in this same spot in the context of a Carter-style break, the first note of the 2 measures would be changed to the open 4th string, since that is the melody note in the song at this point.) 

For a D chord fill-in lick on banjo that will work well in both breaks and backup for New River Train in lines 1 and 4, refer back to the files in the song of the week write-up for Bury Me Beneath The Willow: scroll down to the very bottom of the following page:
https://www.idahobluegrassassociation.org/jasons-beginner-jam-blog-2019---2020/category/bury-me-beneath-the-willow 


Song List
19 songs were played at last night's jam: 13 from the main list, 5 from the additional songs list, and 1 that is on neither list:

Blue Ridge Cabin Home - A
Cripple Creek - A
Down The Road - B
Gathering Flowers From The Hillside - A
Light At The River - A
Mama Don't Allow - A
New River Train - F
Nine Pound Hammer - D
Old Joe Clark - A
Shortnin' Bread (played twice) - G & D
Soldier's Joy - D
Way Down Town - A
Will The Circle Be Unbroken - D
Angeline The Baker - D
Boil The Cabbage Down - A
Bury Me Beneath The Willow - G
Forked Deer - D
Hand Me Down My Walking Cane - G
Faded Love - D

Happy Pickin',
Jason



Files:
New River Train - melody in F
Download File

New River Train - mandolin tab
Download File

New River Train - banjo tab in D
Download File

New River Train - guitar tab in C
Download File

New River Train - guitar tab in D
Download File

F & C fill-in licks for fiddle and mandolin
Download File

C, G & D fill-in licks for guitar
Download File

New River Train - sample break in F (mandolin tab)
Download File

New River Train - backup in F with fill-ins (mandolin tab)
Download File