Hi,
The song of the week is 'Canaan's Land' (a.k.a. 'Where The Soul Never Dies') in the key of F.


Recordings
Here are three versions of Canaan's Land to take a listen to. The third one is not a bluegrass version, but the vocal arrangement is so good that I couldn't help but include it here. It is well worth listening to and learning from, after you have listened closely to at least one of the first two versions. 

Ricky Skaggs and Tony Rice (key of E)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_mJxXFxcy4

Jim and Jesse (key of G)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mV44JL1ktng  

The Oak Ridge Boys (key of F, final choruses modulate to the key of Bb)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YV7RhC9ZGfk  


Harmony & Lyrics
I advise getting solid on of the first two versions first, to the point that you can clearly distinguish between the lead part and the tenor harmony part, and then study the third recording for additional harmony parts that might be better suited to your vocal range than the tenor harmony part.

Canaan's Land is an interesting song to sing harmony on. The set of lyrics used for the harmony part(s) on the chorus, and on the repetitive parts of the verses, is different than the set of lyrics used for singing the lead part (i.e., the melody).

Here is how the two set of lyrics line up with each other for the chorus. Try singing the lyrics for the harmony parts for the chorus along with your favorite of the youtube links:

Lead:       No     / sad                 /      fare / wells        /           no       /
Harmony: Dear / friends there'll / be no   / sad   fare / wells, there'll 

Lead:       tear    /         dimmed / eyes  /     where /
Harmony: be no / tear-dimmed / eyes  /      where /

Lead:        all    /            is    / love      /          and the /
Harmony: all is / peace and / joy and / love, and the /

Lead:        soul    /          never / dies. /       /
Harmony: soul of / man never / dies. /       / 

The repetitive parts of the verses (lines 2 and 4 of each verse) line up in the same way as line 4 of the chorus.

I know 5 verses for Canaan's Land, but at jams I usually only sing 3 of these:

Verse 1 is given on the melody sheets attached here.

The non-repeating parts of my second verse are:

(line 1) The love light beams across the foam
(line 3) It shines to light the shores of home

The non-repeating parts of my third verse are:

(line 1) A rose is blooming there for me
(line 3) And I will spend eternity

Additional Verses:
4th verse: 
(line 1) I'm on my way to that fair land
(line 3) Where there will be no parting hand

5th verse:
(line 1) My life will end in deathless sleep
(line 3) And everlasting joys I'll reap


Learning the Lyrics
I strongly advise against printing lyrics off the internet as a starting point for learning lyrics to songs. People who habitually do this tend to not do nearly as well with memorizing the lyrics than people who write them out by hand while listening to a record. Printed lyrics on the internet are good to consult in cases in which you find yourself uncertain as to what the words being sung on the records are, but in doing this, be sure to look at several versions of the lyrics, for alternative versions that may not correspond closely with the recordings you are learning the song from, not to mention outright errors, abound on the internet.

Make for yourself a cheat sheet that consists of the bare minimum number of words that you actually need to see in order to jog your memory as to what the lyrics are if you are concerned that you will likely forget some of them in the moment when singing at a jam. The most common spots in songs for people to forget the lyrics to when singing at a jam are the first line of the verses that come after the first verse. 


Progression
The chord progression is the same as for 'Gathering Flowers From The Hillside', 'Fireball Mail', 'Bringing In The Georgia Mail', the original version of 'I'm Goin' Back To Old Kentucky' and the verses of 'Feast Here Tonight':

1111
1155
1111
1511
In the key of F: 1 = F and 5 = C.


Melody Notes
The melody uses the major pentatonic scale, and therefore, in the key of F, it contains no notes that are not also part of the C and Bb major scales. F and C are closely related keys, F and Bb are closely related keys. But, C and Bb are not closely related keys. The 5 notes of the F major pentatonic scale are: F, G, A, C, and D. (The 7 notes of the C major scale are: C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. The 7 notes of the Bb major scale are: Bb, C, D, Eb, F, G, and A. Each of these scales share 6 notes in common with the F major scale, but the C and Bb major scales only share 5 notes in common with each other. The 7 notes of the F major scale are: F, G, A, Bb, C, D, and E.)


Guitar: Capo Options
The two most common options used by bluegrass guitar players for playing in F are: 1) Capo 5 and play as if in C. In the key of C: 1 = C and 5 = G; and 2) Capo 3 and play as in D. In the key of D: 1 = D and 5 = A. In the attachments, I have included 2 melody sheets for guitar, one written in C and the other written in D.


Banjo: Capo and Tuning Options
On banjo, there are many ways to play in the key of F, but I think that for 'Canaan's Land', played in Scruggs-style, the 3 best options are: 

1) Capo 3 and tune the 5th string up to a C note (i.e., use your 10th fret spike if you have one, or, if not, then use your 9th fret spike and then tune up the extra half-step to a C note manually). and play as if in D. See banjo tab #1 in the attachments.

2) Tune the 2nd string down to an A note, tune the 3rd string down to an F# note, capo the 3rd fret, then tune the 5th string up to an A note (i.e., use your 7th fret spike), and play as if in D. Your 'open' strings will now register on your tuner as the notes belonging to the F chord: AFACF. See banjo tab #2 in the attachments.

3) Play in F without a capo, but tune the 5th string up to an A (i.e., use your 7th fret spike) so that the 5th string is tuned to a note that belongs to the '1' chord.  

Of these options, I prefer the 2nd and 3rd. The 2nd option allows one to use more open strings than the other options, and favors the use of slides and pull-offs to the same degree as key of G Scruggs-style playing. The 3rd option allows one to play a break within the first 3 frets of the banjo. When played in F, 'Canaan's Land' contains no chords or melody notes that are not also shared in common with key of C playing. So, if you are accustomed to playing in C, but not F, without a capo, I suggest that 'Canaan's Land' might work well for you as a way of introducing yourself to playing in F without a capo. 


Song List 
18 songs were played at last night's jam:

Ashes Of Love - F
Beautiful Brown Eyes - G
Canaan's Land - F
Cherokee Shuffle - A
Clinch Mountain Backstep - A
Columbus Stockade Blues - G
Down In A Willow Garden (played twice) - G & D
Homestead On The Farm - A
I Can't Feel At Home In This World Anymore - D
In The Sweet By And By - A
Little Cabin Home On The Hill - D
Old Joe Clark - A
Will You Be Loving Another Man - G
Why Don't You Tell Me So - G
Born To Be With You - B
Florida Blues - D
Steel Rails - B
I Saw The Light - Bb 

Happy Pickin,
Jason

Hi,
The song of the week is Columbus Stockade Blues in the key of G.

Recordings
Tony Trischka - key of D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTfbb21C0HY

Bill Monroe - key of G
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_uYc2PjVuI

Della Mae - key of A
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4IA0NKOfXIo

Progression
The progression for the verses is:

1111
5511
1111
5511
(Prog. W5 on the basic chord progressions handout)
Notice that the two halves of the progression are identical.

The progression for the chorus is:
4411
4455
1111
5511

Notice that the second half of the chorus progression is identical to the second half of the verse progression.
In the key of G: 1 = G; 4 = C; 5 = D

Stops
As played at most bluegrass jams, there is a stop in the middle of the chorus progression.  And that is how we usually play Columbus Stockade at the Pioneer Building jams.

For measure 8 of the chorus progression, everyone who is playing backup plays a D chord or a D note at the beginning of the measure, then silences their strings immediately afterwards, and then plays nothing until the beginning of the next (9th) measure.  Hence, during the last 3/4 of measure 8 of the chorus progression, the only thing that should be heard is either the vocal (if a chorus is being sung) singing the words: "In your", or the instruments whose break it is (if a break is being played over the chorus progression). 

When playing a break over the chorus progression, there should be no stop made by the instrument(s) playing the break (only the instruments playing backup should do the stop), for there needs to be something keeping time during the measure in which the stop occurs so as to help guide everyone to come back in at the same time as each other at the beginning of the 9th measure of the progression.  Besides, part of the reason for doing a stop during a break is so that more attention can be drawn to the instrument(s) playing the break.  So if the instrument(s) playing the break stop when the backup players stop, then part of the reason for doing the stop has not been taken advantage of.

Arrangement
I start the song off by playing an intro break over the verse progression only. All subsequent breaks (except possibly for the very last one) will be played over both the verse and the chorus progression, and will be split between two different types of instruments. 

Sometimes I will 'tag' the last sung chorus.  That means that after singing the final chorus, I might choose to repeat either the last line (last 4 measures: starts with: "(yes) / leave me little darlin'...) of the chorus, or, more commonly for this song, I might choose to repeat the last two lines (last 8 measures: starts with: "In your / heart...") of the chorus before ending the song.  But, how I choose to end the song is a decision that I tend to make in the moment, rather than planning it out in advance.

Song List
17 songs were played at last night's jam:

Angel Band - Bb
Beautiful Brown Eyes - G
Cherokee Shuffle - A
Clinch Mountain Backstep - A
Columbus Stockade Blues - G
Cry, Cry Darlin' - B
Down In A Willow Garden - G
Homestead On The Farm - A
I Can't Feel At Home In This World Anymore - G
I'll Still Write Your Name In The Sand - A
Little Cabin Home On The Hill - D
Little Willie - Bb
Old Joe Clark - A
Temperance Reel - G
We'll Meet Again Sweetheart - D
Why Don't You Tell Me So - G
Little Georgia Rose - C

Happy Pickin',
Jason

Hi,
The song of the week is 'Cherokee Shuffle' in the key of A.

​
Recordings
Country Gazette (Alan Munde on banjo) - starts at 7:30
https://youtu.be/1yIbt015Dc0?t=452

Gravel Road Bluegrass
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRcn906A7iA&feature=youtu.be

Josh Williams
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOiMSTzwa28&feature=youtu.be


Progression
As played at the jams in the Pioneer Building, the chord progression for Cherokee Shuffle is:

A-Part: 1    1    1    6m               B-Part: 4    1    4    1
              4    1    5    1                               4    1    1    6m   4/5  1

In the key of A: 6m = F#m. In the key of G: 6m = Em

Notice that: a) the 5 chord is played for the entirety of the 7th measure of the A-Part, rather than just for the second half of the 7th measure; b) the B-Part starts with the 4 chord, and alternates between the 4 and 1 three times; c) the B-Part is ten measures long instead of eight; and d) the second to last measure of the B-Part is split between the 4 and the 5 chord.


Related Tunes
Cherokee Shuffle is closely related to the key of D fiddle tune 'Lost Indian', but unlike Lost Indian, Cherokee Shuffle has an unusual form. The B-Part of Cherokee Shuffle is 10 measures long instead of the usual 8 measures that make up a part in a double reel. The A-Part of Lost Indian is essentially the same as the A-Part of Cherokee Shuffle. The B-Part of Lost Indian uses the same progression as, and a similar melody to the A-Part. In some versions of Lost Indian, the B-Part is little more than the A-Part melody played an octave higher.

Lost Indian: Norman Blake, Doc Watson, and Tony Rice
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnbOVXfh1sY


Starting the Tune
Cherokee Shuffle is one of the relatively few AABB-type fiddle tunes that I prefer not to start with an 8 potato intro at a jam, because the first melody note of the first measure is identical with the main note I would be droning in an 8 Potato intro (in the key of A, an A note that is in the same octave as the A note that the melody begins with), thus making it sound unclear where the intro ends and the tune begins. So, I start with three quarter note pickups instead that ascend into the A note (E, F#, G#: the 5th, 6th, and 7th notes of the A Major Scale.) Other tunes like this include Buffalo Gals, Salt Creek, and Red Wing.


Melody & Breaks
The first four melody sheets attached here are just one of many hundreds of differing printed versions of the melody for Cherokee Shuffle. Most, but not all, of the alternate versions available fit just as well with the chord progression I have given for Cherokee Shuffle, so feel free to mix and match as you like the different versions you may know or may come across, but, in doing so, keep the chord progression in mind. 

Although the melody sheets contain far more 8th notes than most other song of the week melody sheets, please remember that these sheets give only the melody (or rather, a melody); they are not full-fledged Bluegrass breaks, they provide you with nothing more than just a good starting point for creating such breaks (compare the melody sheets with the breaks you hear on the youtube links provided here, and notice the kinds of embellishments that are used in these breaks that are not represented anywhere on the melody sheets).


Melody & Breaks: Banjo
The fifth melody sheet attached here gives only the most essential melody notes relative to the version of the melody given on the other melody sheets. The reason why I include it here is because it is characteristic of Scruggs-style banjo breaks for fiddle tunes to take a skeletal version of the melody and surround it with combinations of 8th notes and quarter notes that are clearly distinct from the melody and that often deviate significantly from the combinations of 8th notes and quarter notes that the other Bluegrass lead instruments tend to use as melody notes and/or filler notes. In order to be able to play the sequences of 8th notes written on the fourth melody sheet (banjo tab #1), which are the same notes given on the first three melody sheets, up to speed with finger picks, a banjo player would need to use single-string style or melodic style. (The fretboard locations I wrote for the notes in the A Part are intended for single-string style, and the fretboard locations I wrote for the notes in the B Part are intended for melodic style.)

Of all the melody sheets attached here, the fifth melody sheet has the least in common with a bluegrass-style break. It contains far too many consecutive quarter notes, and no embellishments are given for any of the many half, dotted-half, and whole notes.


The 6m Chord
Most songs played at Bluegrass jams with a 6m chord in their progression could be played without the 6m and still sound musically correct, and Cherokee Shuffle is no exception to this. Although I don't think I have ever heard anyone play it like this, it would work to use the 4 chord in place of the 6m, because the main melody note in the 6m measures is a note that is part of both the 6m and the 4 chord (an F# note in the key of A.) F#m, which is the 6m for the key of A, consists of the notes F#, A, and C#. The D major chord, which is the 4 for the key of A, consists of the notes D, F#, and A.

The 6m chord shares two notes in common not only with the 4 chord, but also with the 1 chord. For this reason, when the 6m chord occurs in a progression for a song, it is common to be able to find other versions of the same song in which, depending on what the melody notes are at that point, either a 1 chord is used instead or a 4 chord is used instead.

For instance, some versions of Will The Circle Be Unbroken (Prog. V3 on the Basic Chord Progressions handout) use 1116m, or rarely 116m6m, in place of 1111 for the third line. At every bluegrass jam I can remember playing Sitting On Top Of The World, 116m6m was used for the third line, yet on all the old classic bluegrass recordings of the song that I am familiar with, that same line is played as 1111 (Prog. V3). In a previous incarnation of the beginner jam, Lonesome Road Blues was often played with 4416m for its third line in place of 4411 (Prog. W4). The Clumsy Lovers, the 'Raging Celtic-Bluegrass-Rock' band originally from Vancouver, BC that I have been a member of since the Spring of 2001, uses 6m511 for the last line of Amazing Grace in place of the much more common 1511 (Prog. V6), and 4416m in place of 4411 for the third line of You Are My Sunshine (Prog. V4). 

At Bluegrass jams, the B-Part of Big Sciota is typically played as 155446m51, but at the Old-Time jam held at Pengilly's on Tuesday nights (right across the street from where our Wednesday and Thursday night jams are held), they usually play 6m in place of 4 and 4 in place of 6m, thus reversing the order in which the 4 and 6m occur in the progression: 1556m6m451.  

When Down In A Willow Garden is made the song of the week for the jam in the near future, it will be played at the jam with only 1, 6m, and 5 chords. But you will hear on some of the recordings that will be sent out in the song of the week email for the song the 4 chord being played in some of the spots where I have put the 6m in the progression.


Song List
19 songs were played at last night's jam:
Angel Band - Bb
Ashes Of Love - A
Beautiful Brown Eyes - G
Cherokee Shuffle - A
Clinch Mountain Backstep - A
Columbus Stockade Blues - G
Gold Watch And Chain - C
Homestead On The Farm - A
Little Cabin Home On The Hill - A
Little Willie - B
Old Joe Clark - A
Temperance Reel - G
Turkey In The Straw (played twice) - G
We'll Meet Again Sweetheart - D
Wreck Of The Old '97 - D
Forked Deer - D
Mountain Dew - A
Paradise - D
Will The Circle Be Unbroken - Bb

Forked Deer
The chord progression we used last night for Forked Deer was:

A-Part: 1    4    1    5             B-Part: 5    5    5    1
            1    4    1/4 5/1                      5    5    1/4  5/1

Notice the similarity of the progression for the A-Part of Forked Deer to the progression for the A-Part of Boil The Cabbage Down and for the B-Part of Soldier's Joy. For some versions of the melody of the B-Part of Forked Deer, the first line of the B-Part would more appropriately be played as: 5   5   5   5/1.

Happy Pickin',
Jason

Hi,
The song of the week is 'Beautiful Brown Eyes' in the key of G, played in cut common time (2/2) rather than in waltz time (3/4).


Recordings
Red Allen (under the title: Beautiful Blue Eyes) - key of G
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhPgbKqwNkc  

The Gibson Brothers - key of Bb
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IupOvRqFqSo  

Jason Homey & The Snake River Boys - key of G (first break, verse, and chorus in 3/4; remainder of the song in 2/2); starts at 5:16.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1NKw99Anlo  


Time Signature
When I introduce Beautiful Brown Eyes into the Beginner Jam repertoire, I play it in 3/4 time because I think it is one of the easiest songs to use for acquainting new jammers with playing in 3/4 time. Also, people from non-bluegrass backgrounds who are already familiar with the song are more likely to have heard it played in 3/4 time rather than in cut common time.

However, while most non-bluegrass recordings of Beautiful Brown Eyes are in 3/4 time rather than in cut common time, the opposite is true of bluegrass recordings of the song. 

The first bluegrass version of Beautiful Brown Eyes, or rather Beautiful Blue Eyes (a common alteration of the title and the chorus lyrics in bluegrass versions of the song), that I ever heard was the Red Allen recording provided here. Apart from retaining 'brown' in place of 'blue', my cut time version of the song follows this recording closely.   

My reasons for recycling Beautiful Brown Eyes as a song of the week for the Intermediate Jam are: 1) to draw attention to a much more standard way of playing the song as a bluegrass song than how it has usually been played at the jam up to this point, and 2) to help demonstrate how to convert a song from one time signature to another.

Time Signature Conversion
Beautiful Brown Eyes is just one of many songs for which there are both 3/4 time and non-3/4 time recorded versions. 

I believe the best way to get started with learning how to convert a song from one time signature to another is by listening to examples of the same song played in more than one time signature. For this reason, I have included youtube links for some of the examples given below.

Another thing that could be helpful would be to compare the timing of the melody notes on the melody sheets attached here with the timing of the melody notes on the melody sheets for Beautiful Brown Eyes in 3/4 time provided for the beginner jam, for which, go to: https://www.idahobluegrassassociation.org/jasons-beginner-jam-blog-2019---2020/category/beautiful-brown-eyes

The classic example of a bluegrass song played in both 3/4 time and in cut common time is Bill Monroe's 'Blue Moon Of Kentucky'.  Bill originally recorded the song in 3/4 time.  But after Elvis Presley recorded his non-3/4 time version of the song  (which the Stanley Brothers later copied), Bill recorded it again, playing the first half of it in 3/4 time and the second half of it in cut common time. 

Bill Monroe: 3/4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtpiqdN2lJk 

Elvis Presley
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r7M0CmkJ-2o

The Stanley Brothers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g67Y9Q15cNU 

Bill Monroe: 3/4 & 2/2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXqW6MiyEZo

Other songs that I have heard both 3/4 and non-3/4 versions of include:  
The Girl In The Blue Velvet Band
Bill Monroe 3/4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATc22oHWitg  
Hylo Brown 2/2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tbwk6Ka5HQc

How Mountain Girls Can Love
2/2 (standard)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrqhZxvsxTs
3/4 (non-standard)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMUosnwJFpQ

Streamline Cannonball
Hank Snow 3/4; 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9vNUJJX6-k  
Doc Watson 2/2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8Ri4YBDnt4

Mary Of The Wild Moor 
Doc Williams 4/4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCkSS0v8Ffs
The Louvin Brothers 3/4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJrKke0sf0s

Before I Met You
Paradise
I'm Thinking Tonight Of The Old Folks (a.k.a. Dixie Home)
Philadelphia Lawyer
I Never Will Marry
Dark As A Dungeon 
Amazing Grace
We Three Kings 
What Child Is This/Greensleeves

Here's a banjo solo version of 'Down In A Willow Garden' that is played first in 3/4 time and then in 2/2 time:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iudBMZgsPDM  


Chord Progression
Just a quick note that Beautiful Brown Eyes as I play it, and as played on the recordings provided here, does not use the Bury Me Beneath The Willow/Wreck Of The Old '97 progression, the most common chord progression in bluegrass, but uses the closely related, but far less common, progression:

1144
1155
1144
5511


Song List
19 songs were played at the jam last night:
Angel Band - Bb
Ashes Of Love - A
Beautiful Brown Eyes - G
Cherokee Shuffle - A
Clinch Mountain Backstep - A
Cry, Cry Darlin' - A
Gold Watch And Chain - C
Homestead On The Farm - A
I Can't Feel At Home In This World Anymore - D
In The Sweet By And By - B
Little Willie - A
Old Joe Clark - A
Temperance Reel - G
Turkey In The Straw - G
Wildwood Flower - D
Will You Be Loving Another Man - A
Little Darling Pal Of Mine - Bb
All The Good Times Are Past And Gone - D
A Memory Of You - Bb

Happy Pickin',
Jason

Hi,
The song of the week is 'Angel Band' (3/4 time) in the key of Bb.

Recording
The Stanley Brothers - key of B (tuned a bit sharp)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIHFxIQfSxc
 

Progression
The progression for the verses of Angel Band is the same as the progression used for playing 'In The Pines':
1141
1511
1141
1511

The progression for the chorus of Angel Band is:
5511
5511
4411
1511
4411
1511 

Notice that:1) this progression (like the progression for 'Silent Night') consists of six 4-measure lines, for a total of 24 measures; 2) the progression starts with the 5 chord; and 3) the last third of the progression (lines 5 and 6) is the same as the middle third (lines 3 and 4) of the progression.


Breaks
When I lead Angel Band at the jam, the song will be played with full-length verse progression breaks, rather than with just the one-line turnarounds that are played for breaks on the recording.


Backup
To indicate that the chorus starts with the 5 chord it is a good idea to play a two quarter-note ascending or descending run on the last two beats of the measure that comes right before the first measure of the chorus, and the same may be done as well to lead into the second line of the chorus, since it also starts with  the 5 chord.

                    Ascending Run                                     Descending Run
                     3    4    leading to 5                               7   6    leading to 5
Key of Bb:  D    Eb                    F          Key of Bb:   A   G                      F
Key of G:    B    C                      D          Key of G:     F# E                      D

To indicate that a change to the 4 chord is coming up at the beginning of lines 3 and 5 of the chorus, a (dominant) 7th chord may be played during last measure of lines 2 and 4 of the chorus: Bb7 for the key of Bb, G7 for the key of G, or an ascending two quarter-note run may be played: 2, 3, leading to 4. (C, D, leading to Eb for the key of Bb; A, B, leading to C for the key of G.)


Key of Bb Review
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.

If you are fiddler or a mandolin player, and you already play songs or licks in the key of 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 thereby be playing in Bb. 

For playing chop chords on the mandolin that use no open strings, if you move the chords 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.)

Here are the corresponding notes of the G and Bb Major Scales:
1   2   3   4   5   6  7
G, A,  B, C,  D, E, F#
Bb,C, D, Eb, F, G, A

Banjo players will need to raise the pitch of the fifth string to a Bb note (registers as A# on most tuners).  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. 

When playing up the neck on banjo in the key of Bb (capo 3, playing as if in G), you may find it helpful to use your 10th and 15th fret markers as your primary points of reference.


Song List
17 songs were played at last night's jam: 

Blue Ridge Cabin Home - G
Columbus Stockade Blues - B
Cry, Cry Darlin' - B
Down The Road - B
Homestead On The Farm - A
I Can't Feel At Home In This World Anymore - G
I'll Still Write Your Name In The Sand - C
Liberty - D
Little Liza Jane (played twice) - D
Old Joe Clark - A
Turkey In The Straw - G
Wildwood Flower - D
Cherokee Shuffle - A
John Hardy - G
Salty Dog Blues - G
Mind Your Own Business - E
Angel Band - Bb

Happy Pickin',
Jason