Hi everyone, It has not been confirmed yet, but the tentative plan is for the weekly Intermediate Bluegrass Jam to resume on Wednesday, Sept. 8 from 6:30 - 9pm, with the new location being the Ironwood Social. Due to changes in my family situation and in my work schedule, it will probably be awhile until I can commit to leading the intermediate jam every week. For now, my plan is to be at the intermediate jam at least once a month to lead it when it resumes in September. This week, I'm back on mandolin for the video jams. Intermediate Jam: Steel Rails - G (114) I Saw The Light - Bb (116) Cryin' Holy - G (120) Intermediate Bluegrass Jam 6/11/2021 / Jam Along / Idaho Bluegrass Association / Jason Homey - YouTube Happy Pickin', Jason Chord Progressions:
Steel Rails 1 1 2m 2m 4 5 4 1 1 (x2) Ending: 2m 5 5 5 5 4 1 1 I Saw The Light 1111 4441 1111 11511 Cryin' Holy 1111 4411 1111 1511
0 Comments
Hi everyone, Here are some songs to jam along on, with me playing banjo. Intermediate Jam: Steel Rails - G (114) I Saw The Light - Bb (116) Cryin' Holy - G (120) Intermediate Bluegrass Jam 2/27/2021 / Jason Homey - YouTube Happy Pickin', Jason Chord Progressions: Steel Rails 1 1 2m 2m 4 5 4 1 1 (x2) Ending: 2m 5 5 5 5 4 1 1 I Saw The Light 1111 4441 1111 11511 Cryin' Holy 1111 4411 1111 1511 Hi everyone, Here are some more songs to jam along with. Keep safe and well. Happy Pickin', Jason Intermediate Jam: Red Wing - G Roving Gambler - A Steel Rails - G Hi, The song of the week is 'Steel Rails' in the key of G. Recording Alison Krauss - key of E https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RX_YZD-r-Qc Progression 1 1 2m 2m 4 5 4 1 1 1 1 2m 2m 4 5 4 1 1 On the recording, the progression for the verses is slightly different: line 2 is played as 45111. I have jammed this song many times over the years with many different people, and not once do I ever recall a different progression being used for the verses than for the choruses and the breaks. So, to keep it simple, when I lead the song at the jam, I will use the same progression for the verses as for the choruses and the breaks, with line 2 consistently being played as 45411. Even if the progression were 16 or 17 measures long instead of 18 measures long, and even if it did not contain 2m chords, it would still be an unusual progression for a bluegrass song, in that a 5 chord measure is sandwiched between two 4 chord measures. Of the 6 possible chord change sequences involving the 1, 4, and 5 (14, 41, 15, 51, 45, 54) 54 (a 5 followed by a 4) is the least common, and when this order does occasionally show up, the 5 is usually preceded by a 1 rather than by a 4. Ending Steel Rails ends with a vocal tag that follows the final chorus. The progression for the tag is: 2m 5 5 5 5 4 1 1 and there is a stop at the beginning of the fifth measure. The 2m Chord When 1=G, 2m=Am; when 1=A, 2m=Bm; when 1=Bb, 2m=Cm, when 1=B, 2m=C#m, etc. Just as the root note of the 2 (major) chord is always a whole step higher than the root note of the 1 chord, so by the same token, the root note of the 2m chord is always a whole step higher than root note of the 1 chord. Minor Chords in Major Key Songs The 2m (two minor) chord is the second most frequently used minor chord in songs played in a major key. The most common minor chord used in major key songs is the 6m, and the third most common (which only very rarely shows up in bluegrass songs) is the 3m. The 6m is the relative minor of the 1. The 2m is the relative minor of the 4. The 3m is the relative minor of the 5. 6m, 2m, and 3m are the only three minor chords that contain no notes in them other than the notes that make up the major scale that has the same letter name as the 1. For example, the C major scale has no sharps or flats in it, but consists of the 7 natural notes: C, D, E, F, G, A, B. Just as the 1,4, and 5, when 1=C, are the only major chords that contain no sharps or flats in them: C = CEG; F = FAC; G = GBD, so also their relative minors: 6m, 2m, and 3m respectively, when 1=C, are the only minor chords that contain no sharps or flats in them: Am = ACE; Dm = DFA; Em = EGB. History of Minor Chords in Bluegrass The use of minor chords in major key songs shows up less frequently on bluegrass recordings from the 40s and the 50s than on recordings from the 60s onward. In the spots in where a minor chord would have been suitable to play, the older recordings more often than not have the major chord that is either the relative major or the parallel major of that minor chord. For instance, in the spots where it is now standard practice to play a 6m in Down The Road, the original Flatt & Scruggs recording used a 1 instead (1 is the relative major of 6m), and in the spots where it is now standard practice to play a 6m chord in Foggy Mountain Breakdown, a 6 chord was played on the guitar by Lester Flatt on the original recording, even though the 6m chord is so clearly outlined in the banjo breaks (6 is the parallel major of 6m). 2m & 6m vs. 2 & 6 In contrast to the 2 (major) chord, which is almost always immediately followed by a 5 chord, the 2m chord may often be followed just as easily and naturally by a 1, a 4, a 6m, etc., as by a 5 chord. A similar observation may also be made about the 6m chord relative to the 6 (major) chord. The 6 (major) is almost always followed by a 2 (the most notable exception to this being the obsolete practice of sandwiching 6's between 1's in playing Foggy Mountain Breakdown and certain other songs) but the 6m is often followed by a 1, a 4 or a 5. Song List 22 songs were played at last night's jam: Are You Missing Me - G Clinch Mountain Backstep - A Down In A Willow Garden - D Gold Watch And Chain - D Homestead On The Farm - A I Can't Feel At Home In This World Anymore - G I Saw The Light - B Little Liza Jane - D Love Of The Mountains - A Love, Please Come Home - G Temperance Reel - G We'll Meet Again Sweetheart - Bb Wildwood Flower - A Cripple Creek - A Bill Cheatham - A Where We'll Never Grow Old - F Cabin In Caroline - G Are You Teasing Me - A Red Wing - G Midnight On The Highway - E The Girl I Left Behind Me - G Foggy Mountain Top - G Happy Pickin', Jason Steel Rails - banjo tab Download File Steel Rails - guitar tab Download File Steel Rails - mandolin tab Download File Steel Rails - melody in G Download File |
Jason's Intermediate Jam Blog 2019 - 2021Was weekly on Thursdays Songs regularly called at the Beginner Bluegrass Jam and links from Jason's "Song of the Week" emails. (from Renee)
in alphabetical order
Categories
All
Archives
July 2021
|