Champion Fiddler, Inspired Performer
Today, I didn’t have any specific tune in mind to play, so I went to Cole’s 1000 Fiddle Tunes, as I often do when I’m lacking tune inspiration. I played through a handful of tunes before coming to this one. It has a memorable melody, and I liked the fact that the B Part is [...]
Today I had the pleasure of meeting Erin and Amber Rogers of Scenic Roots, and joining them for a few tunes at their concert at Magnolia Music. Steve Eulberg produced the event, and joined them for a few tunes as well. We had a lot of fun, and I got to learn a new fiddle [...]
I really like the way 49 Cats (in a B ends the phrases. To me, it is reminiscent of a cat howling. I had to pull up a recording of Orville Burns playing it to make sure that I played the B Part of it correctly. The A Part has a really distinctive melody with [...]
It’s my last day judging at the National Old Time Fiddle Contest, and my last time to play in the judges show, so it was a perfect opportunity to play my fiddle tune a day from the stage. And, I was fortunate enough to be joined by Joey McKenzie on Guitar. I was hoping to [...]
Black Pine Waltz is more than just a little way off the beaten path when it comes to waltzes. The structure is non-standard. The chords are a little bit strange (and you are unlikely to find a guitar player who knows it at most contests you go to.) And, I think it’s a cool tune, [...]
Sally Growler is just plain hard to play. On it’s face, it doesn’t sound that tricky, but it sure feels that way to my fingers, especially the B part. Sally Growler is another hornpipe that I learned during my infamous week at Dale Morris‘ house. That week, he gave me a bunch of hornpipes to [...]
Last October, I was inspired to make a go at the National Fiddle Contest in Weiser, ID. I haven’t been to Weiser since 2002, and if I’m going to make the trek, I want to make it worth my while. So, I started thinking about what can I do to make sure that I am [...]
First, I have to apologize for the misstatements I made in my introduction to this tune. 1. I actually learned this tune from Cody Marriott, not Junior Marriott. 2. I should have said that Cody learned it from a recording of Benny Thommasson, not “From Benny Thommasson”. Now that I have that out of the [...]
Who would have known that there are 6 distinct tunes called Cumberland Gap? Not me, at least not until just now. The tune I play by this name, I learned from an Orville Burns recording, and it’s really fun to play. It goes back and forth between G and E minor, and it’s really GROWLY. [...]
There is only one way about it, Shenandoah is a beautiful melody. My primary memory around this song is hearing my dad sing it as a kid. What a great tune. Shenandoah Video Shenandoah According to Wikipedia “Oh Shenandoah” (also called simply “Shenandoah”, or “Across the Wide Missouri”) is a traditional American folk song of [...]
