Early Black Banjo Piece

Comment by Rob MacKillop on October 16, 2009 at 1:18am

Converse also mentioned that the guy he took it from played upstrokes with his index. Sounds great either way, though, as you demonstrate. Great piece. I have my doubts about its provenance or authenticity. I believe this was the old Converse talking about the first time he heard the banjo, presumably when a young man. I don't know what your memory is like, but I imagine few of us could be so accurate 50 years or so later. I think there is as much Converse in this piece as a memory of an impression of something characteristic of the Afro-American folk style of his youth.

Comment by Trapdoor2 on October 16, 2009 at 8:40am

Memory is a funny thing. A couple years ago, my wife and I were in a local Mexican resturant. They had a roaming Mariachi band, moving from table to table taking requests (which can be amusing in the south...ever heard "Rocky Top" played mariachi-style?). By the time they got to my table, a tune had popped into my head but I could not recall the title or lyrics...so I whistled it for them...and they joined in (they were in key, I was close). It was a Mexican childrens tune that I learned in the 1st grade (6yrs old)...and hadn't heard it in over 40 yrs. I still can't remember the title but the tune is crystal-clear in my memory. OTOH, I lost my cell-phone all this week...found it yesterday in my desk.

Comment by Tim Twiss on October 16, 2009 at 10:24am

Ah memory...yes. When I was a kid, the Amboy Dukes (that's Ted Nugent for you non-midwesterners) and the SRC played in our town. It had quite an impact on myself and all the new young rockers. Some 25 years later, a reel to reel tape surfaced of that night. It was like re-living a dream. A lot was as I remembered it, but certainly exposed some things I could not comprehend or recognize at the time. Don't think I could have transcribed anything, but I remembered all the tunes.

Comment by Strumelia on June 12, 2016 at 7:38pm

Low bass (briggs) tuning but with the second string tuned up 1/2 step....gives you a lower pitched version of the very common oldtime banjo tuning: "double C" or "double D" tuning... almost standard for playing in the keys of C or D in oldtime sessions.

Comment