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Turkey In The Straw

4/30/2015

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Hi,
The song of the week is the traditional fiddle tune 'Turkey In The Straw' in the key of G. (Occasionally you will find fiddlers who prefer to play Turkey In The Straw in D or A.)
 
Turkey In The Straw is an AABB type fiddle tune, i.e., it has two parts, each of which is repeated before the next part is played.
 
The progression for the A Part is:
 
1   1   1   5
1   1   1   5/1
 
The progression for the B Part is:
 
1    1    4    4
1    1    1    5/1
 
(In the key of G: 1=G, 4=C, 5=D)
 
In the attachments, I have included two melody sheets.  The first one has considerably more notes in it than the second one; the first one roughly corresponds to how many fiddlers would play the tune. The second one has just enough notes in it for the tune to be recognizable: it corresponds roughly to the way that I might hum the tune (especially at a fast tempo), or how one might hear the tune played by an ice cream truck.  I think it makes a good basis for creating a Scruggs-style banjo break.
 
Mandolin, guitar, and dobro players might wish to mix together the two melody sheets, so as to come up with an interpretation of the melody that contains fewer melody notes than the first melody sheet but more notes than the second melody sheet.  This can be a desirable thing for fiddlers to try also. In general, the faster the tune is played, the less need there is to play so many melody notes; the slower the tune is played, the more one will probably be tempted to put in extra non-essential notes. By mixing the two melody sheets with each other, one can come up with several different ways of playing the tune, simply by choosing differently each time which notes to add in or leave out, and this is good for varying the way you play the tune, because one's playing will tend to be more interesting if you don't play the tune exactly the same way every time.
 
In the first link below, the fiddle carries the melody, while the banjo (as the sole backup instrument) provides a driving, rolling, Scruggs-style backup.
 
The second and third links are guitar lessons for Turkey In The Straw, one using a simple version of the melody, much like the simpler of the two melody sheets I have provided here, and the other using a more complex version of the melody, much like the notier melody sheet I have included here. These should be useful to watch for the sake of comparison, regardless of which instrument you play.
 
The fourth link is an up-tempo, somewhat comic version of the song, with complex mandolin and fiddle breaks (and even a bass break), with two mandolins playing in harmony at certain points, which I include for your listening and watching enjoyment, and to give you some ideas as to what kinds of things can be done with this tune other than just simply playing some version of the melody.
 
fiddle and banjo duet in G:
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BNd1mn4aGY
 
guitar lesson: Turkey In The Straw in G: very few notes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHVCryqxu3Y
 
guitar lesson: Turkey In The Straw in G: many notes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytU6zKcyMlo
 
mandolin and fiddle: Turkey In The Straw in G:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0DsPX26_60
 
Happy Pickin',
Jason​
Turkey In The Straw (1) - melody in G
File Size: 321 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

Turkey In The Straw (2) - melody in G
File Size: 297 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

Turkey In The Straw - Conversion Chart in G
File Size: 396 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

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  • Home
    • About
    • Join Us
    • Donate
    • IBA Newsletter
    • Our Logo
  • Articles & Podcasts
    • Podcasts >
      • ​Jeremy Garrett Interview
      • Keith Reed Interview
      • Jason Homey Interview
      • Becky Smith Interview
      • Marv Quinton Interview
      • Rue Frisbee Interview
      • Donna and Mike Bond Interview
      • Honi Deaton Interview
      • Dennis Stokes Interview
      • Gary Eller Interview
    • Articles >
      • Glen Garrett - The Golden Years
      • Sammie Bush - came to Weiser
      • Mark O’Connor - My History at Weiser
      • Barbara Lamb - Fiddler Extraordinaire
      • Charlie Simmons -The Idaho Bluegrass Association from 1975 to 1985
      • Idaho's 19th century Fiddlers
      • Weiser Fiddle Champions ​ 1950s & 1960s
      • ​Byron Berline
      • Dave Frisbee
      • Weiser Fiddle Champions from 1970s and 80s
      • Megan Lynch Chowning
      • Fiddle Champion ​in 1990s and 2000s
      • Tashina and Tristan Clarridge
    • Snap Shot - Videos from IBA members
  • Events
    • Calendar (BCBB)
    • Open Mic
    • SpringGrass 2023 >
      • Springfest 2022
    • Winterfest
    • IBA Concert Series
    • Virtualgrass
    • Other Bluegrass Events
  • Jam
    • Idaho Jams
    • Jason's Beginner Jam Blog 2021 - 2022
    • Jason's Intermediate Jam Blog 2021 - 2022
    • All of Jason's Songs
    • Old Blogs from Jason >
      • Jason's Beginner Jam Blog 2019 - 2021
      • Jason's Intermediate Jam Blog 2019 - 2021
      • Jason's Beginner Jam Blog 2017 - 2018
      • Jason's Intermediate Jam Blog 2017 - 2018
      • Songs in 2016
  • Camps & Contests
    • Idaho Bluegrass and Banjo Camp
    • Banjo Contest
    • National Oldtime Fiddlers’ Contest
  • Idaho Bands
  • Teachers
  • Classified
  • Links
    • General
    • Learning
    • Specific Instruments