$6.00
Magazine Volume Vol ume 14, Number 5 July/August 2010
Bill Nershi Jon Stickley
The Tony Rice Story! Stor y!
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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CONTENTS
Flatpicking Guitar
FEA FE ATU TURE RES S
Bill Nershi: “Surfing the Red Sea” & “Road of Destruction” CD Highlight: Jon Stickley & “Steamboatin’”
Magazine Volume 14, Number 5 July/August 2010 Published bi-monthly by: High View Publications P.O. Box 2160 Pulaski, VA 24301 Phone: (540) 980-0338 Fax: (540) 980-0557 Orders: (800) 413-8296 E-mail: highview@atpick.com Web Site: http://www.atpick.com ISSN: 1089-9855 Dan Miller - Publisher and Editor Connie Miller - Administration A dministration Jackie Morris - Administration Contributing Editors: David McCarty Chris Thiessen
Subscription Rate ($US): US $30.00 ($60.00 with CD) Canada/Mexico $40.00 Other Foreign $43.00 All contents Copyright © 2010 by High View Publications unless otherwise indicated Reproduction of material appearing in the Flatpicking Guitar Magazine is forbidden without written permission Printed in the USA
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COLUMNS
“Walk “W alk With Me” Craig Vance “Six White Horses” Joe Carr Beginner’ss Page: “I’ll Take Beginner’ Take the Blame” Dan Huckabee Kaufman’ss Corner: “Big Sciota” Kaufman’ Sciota” Steve Kaufman Modal Awareness Awareness & “Scarborough Fair” Fair” John Carlini Nashville Flattop: Rest Strokes & “Lonesome Road Blues” Brad Davis Sharpening the Axe: Music Theory Primer: Major Triads Jeff Troxel Bluegrass Guitar Duets: “In The Pines” Steve Pottier Crosspicking as Filler: “Will The Circle Be Unbroken” Kathy Barwick The O-Zone: “Morrison’s Jig” Orrin Star Favorite Scales Scales & Exercises, Exercises, Part III Dix Bruce Music Theory: “Y “Your our Love is Like Like a Flower” Mike Maddux Flatpicking Fiddle Tunes: Tunes: “Old Joe Clark” Clark” Adam Granger “Daydreams” Bill Bay Eclectic Acoustic: Acoustic: “Great Blasket Blasket Island” John McGann
Reviews
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Cover Photo by: Don Bubba Jackson
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine Podcast We are now broadcasting a new Podcast every month
Interviews, fatpicking tunes, and more. Check it out: http://www.fatpick.com/podcast.html
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
The Flatpicking Essentials Series
Flatpicking Essentials Volume 1: Rhythm, Bass Runs, and Fill Licks In the “Pioneers” issue of Flatpicking Guitar Magazine Dan Miller laid out a atpicking learning method that followed the chronological developme nt of the style. This step-by-step method started with a solid foundation in the rhythm guitar styles of atpicking’s early pioneers—a style that includes a liberal use of bass runs and rhythm ll licks, combined with rhythmic strums. Volume 1 of the Eight Volume Flatpicking Essentials series teaches this rhythm style and prepares you for each future volume. If you want to learn how to add interesting bass runs and ll licks to your rhythm playing, check out this 96-page book with accompanyi ng CD. This book and CD are available in spiral bound hardcopy form, on CD-Rom, or as a digital download.
Flatpicking Essentials Volume 2: Learning to Solo—Carter Style and Beyond
Hardcopy: $24.95 Digital: $19.95
The second book in the Flatpicking Essentials series teaches you how to arrange solos for vocal tunes by teaching you how to: 1) Find the chord changes by ear. 2) Find the melody by ear. 3) Learn how to arrange a Carter Style solo. 4) Learn how to embellish the Carter Style solo using one or more of the following techniques: bass runs; hammer-ons, pull-offs, slides, & bends; tremelo; double stops; crosspicking; neighbori ng notes; scale runs and ll-licks. Even if you are a beginner you can learn how to create your own interesting solos to any vocal song. You’ll never need tab again! This material will also provide you with the foundation for improvisat ion. This book and CD are available in spiral bound hardcopy form, on CD-Rom, or as a digital download.
Hardcopy: $24.95 Digital: $19.95
Flatpicking Essentials Volume 3: Flatpicking Fiddle Tunes Flatpicking and ddle tunes go hand-in-hand. However, in this day and age too many beginning and intermediate level players rely too heavily on tablature when learning ddle tunes. This becomes a problem in the long run because the player eventually reaches a plateau in their progress because they don’t know how to learn new tunes that are not written out in tablature, they do not know how to create their own variations of tunes that they already know, and it becomes very hard to learn how to improvise. Flatpicking Essentials, Volume 3 helps to solve all of those problems. In this volume of the Flatpicking Essentials series you are going to learn valuable information about the structure of ddle tunes and then you are going to use that information to learn how to play ddle tunes by ear, and create your own variations, utilizing the following a series of detailed steps.
Hardcopy: $24.95 Digital: $19.95
Flatpicking Essentials Volume 4: Understanding the Fingerboard and Moving Up-The-Neck The fourth book in the Flatpicking Essentials series teaches you how to become familiar with using the entire ngerboard of the guitar and it gives you many exercises and examples that will help you become very comfortable playing up-the-neck. With this book and CD you will learn how to explore the whole guitar neck using a very thorough study of chord shapes, scale patterns, and arpeggios. You will also learn how to comfortably move up-theneck and back down using slides, open strings, scale runs, harmonized scales, oating licks, and more. If you’ve ever sat and watched a professional players ngers dance up and down the ngerboard with great ease and wondered “I wish I could do that!” This book is for you!
Flatpicking Essentials Volume 5: Improvisation & Style Studies
Hardcopy: $29.95 Digital: $24.95
Are you having trouble learning how to improvise? To many atpickers the art of improvisation is a mystery. In the 5th Volume of the Flatpicking Essentials series you will study various exercises that will begin to teach you the process of improvisation through the use of a graduated, step-by-step method. Through the study and execution of these exercises, you will learn how to free yourself from memorized solos! This Volume also includes “style studies” which examine the contributions of the atpicking legends, such as Doc Watson, Clarence White, Tony Rice, Norman Blake, Dan Crary, Pat Flynn, and others. Learn techniques that helped dene their styles and learn how to apply those techniques to your own solos.
Flatpicking Essentials Volume 6: Improvisation Part II & Advanced Technique
Hardcopy: $29.95 Digital: $24.95
Flatpicking Essentials, Volume 6 is divided into two main sections. The rst section is Part II of our study of improvisation. Volume 5 introduced readers to a step-by-step free-form improv study method that we continue here in Volume 6. The second section of this book is focused on advanced atpicking technique. We approached this topic by rst having Tim May record “advanced level” improvisations for nineteen different atpicking tunes. Tim selected the tunes and went into the studio with a list of techniques, like the use of triplets, natural and false harmonics, note bending, quoting, alternate tuning, syncopation, twin guitar, minor key tunes, hybrid picking, advanced crosspicking, string skipping, etc. There are a ton of absolutely awesome atpicking arrangements by Tim May in this book, with explanations of each technique.
Hardcopy: $29.95 Digital: $24.95
Flatpicking Essentials Volume 7: Advanced Rhythm & Chord Studies Flatpicking Essentials, Volume 7 is a 170 page book, with 67 audio tracks, that will show you how to add texture, variety, and movement to your rhythm accompaniment in the context of playing bluegrass, ddle tune music, folk music, acoustic rock, Western swing, big band swing, and jazz. The best part of this book is that it doesn’t just present you with arrangements to memorize. It teaches you how you can create and execute your own accompaniment arrangement s in a variety of musical styles. Don’t rely on the arrangements of others, learn a straight-forward and gradual approach to designing your own rhythm accompaniment.
Hardcopy: $29.95 Digital: $24.95 Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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Flatpicking Essentials
EDITOR'S PAGE Tony Rice and Doc Watson Biographies I announced in the last issue that the biographies of Tony Rice and Doc Watson were both about to be released, however, we had not seen them yet. Now we have them both in hand and I think that they are both fantastic and each book is something that all atpickers should have in their library. The Tony Rice book came out rst and so we had time to present a detailed review in this issue. We asked three of our regular reviewers to review the book and we presented all three reviews, plus I added a few comments at the end. So, you’ll get a chance to hear about this book from several perspectives. We did not get the Doc Watson book in our hands in time to have a review ready for this issue. However, we will have an extensive review in the next issue and include information about the controversy that has popped up on the internet about the Doc Watson book being “unauthorized.” So stay tuned!
The Guitar Player’s Guide to Developing Speed, Accuracy & Tone Brad Davis and I have just released a new book titled The Guitar Player’s Guide to Developing Speed, Accuracy & Tone and I’ll have to tell you folks, this program works! In the past year and a half I have written and published seven volumes of the Flatpicking Essentials course and I’ve received a lot of great feedback from the atpickers who are working with that material (Thanks!). But I’ll have to say that I personally learned more in terms of taking my own guitar playing abilities to the next level with this new book than I have with any book I’ve ever written or worked with. I really believe in this program that Brad Davis has designed. This program really helped me improve every aspect of my guitar playing. After working with this material I can now play faster and louder and I have better tone and note clarity. I feel my playing is much smoother and more uid as well. And this book is great because no matter what your current level, you can learn a lot from working with these exercises. Brad Davis has been playing professionally for over 30 years and these are the exercises that he uses to warm up for performances and studio sessions. They will work for any body. You can check it out at atpickingmercantile.com.
New CD by Maro Kawabata Our good friend Maro Kawabata has just released a new CD on FGM Records titled Sunset Drive. The CD features the guitar playing of both Maro and Wyatt Rice. Wyatt also engineered and co-produced the project and Maro brought in a great line up of bluegrass pickers and singers to help him out, including Rickie Simpkins, Sammy Shelor, Ronnie Rice, Don Rigsby, Andy Hall, Patty Mitchell, and Richard Bennett. You can nd out more about this CD at www.atpickingmercantile.com.
(800) 413-8296 www.flatpickingmercantile.com 4
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Now Available! Two New Biographical Books covering atpicking guitar’s two most inuential performers: Tony Rice and Doc Watson!
Still Inside: The Tony Rice Story by Tim Stafford & Caroline Wright A decade in the making, Still Inside: The Tony Rice Story delivers Tony’s tale in his own inimitable words, and in anecdotes and observations from his friends, family, fans, and fellow musicians. Tony’s long road has taken him from coast to coast and around the world, through historic recordings and appearances that often profoundly move those who experience them. More than 100 people were interviewed for this book, sharing memories of Tony and discussing his indelible impact on their own music. Alison Krauss, J.D. Crowe, Sam Bush, Béla Fleck, Jerry Douglas, Ricky Skaggs, David Grisman, Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Peter Rowan, and many others contribute intimate stories and frank observations of this private, enigmatic man. In the book’s nal chapter, co-author Tim Stafford—a highly respected acoustic guitarist in his own right—provides insight into Tony’s technique, timing, right hand, choice of picks, and much more. Tim also discusses Tony’s prize possession, the 1935 Martin D-28 Herringbone guitar formerly owned by the great Clarence White.
Call 800-413-8296 to Order
Blind But Now I See: The Biography of Music Legend Doc Watson by Kent Gustavson From the day he stepped off the bus in New York City, North Carolina music legend Doc Watson changed the music world forever. His inuence has been recognized by presidents and by the heroes of modern music, from country stars to rock and roll idols. This is a biography of a atpicking legend. Featuring brand new interviews with: • Ben Harper of The Innocent Criminals • Ketch Secor of Old Crow Medicine Show • Pat Donohue of The Prairie Home Companion • David Grisman of Garcia/Grisman and Old and in the Way • Sam Bush, The Father of Newgrass • Guy Clark, Texas Songwriting Legend • Michelle Shocked, Greg Brown, Mike Marshall, Tom Paxton, Maria Muldaur • And many more!
Both Books are Available at www.atpickingmercantile.com Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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n o s k c a J a b b u B n o D : y b o t o h P
Bill Nershi Colorado has been producing its own crop of inuential Rocky Mountain pickers for some time. A ne example is Bill Nershi, founding member of the titanic Colorado jam-band The String Cheese Incident and one heck of a atpicker. Recently, Nershi has been returning to his roots, joining Drew Emmitt (the luminous mandolin player and singer from that other seminal Colorado jam-band Leftover Salmon) in a new project that stays anchored in modern bluegrass. The Emmitt-Nershi Band released its debut album New Country Blues in the fall of 2009, and the group is touring steadily, bringing some brilliant picking to traditional bluegrass audiences across the country that may have been previously unfamiliar with these jam-band icons. It’s impossible to discuss Colorado bluegrass or Bill Nershi without mentioning the Telluride Bluegrass Festival. Begun in 1973, the festival is known worldwide for its idyllic location, the caliber of its lineups, and its liberal interpretation of bluegrass music. Regular performances by Sam Bush, Béla Fleck, John Hartford, and Peter Rowan set a precedent early on for featuring bands that push the boundaries of bluegrass as 6
well as bands that aren’t bluegrass at all. The festival has had a formative effect on Colorado’s acoustic music scene as well as on Bill Nershi, who arrived in Telluride in 1981 to spend the summer with his older brother. He didn’t leave for 13 years. “Ship my stuff, I’m stayin’ out here,” Nershi remembers telling his family back east. The Telluride Bluegrass Festival made a big impression on him. “Thursday night was Newgrass Revival,” he says. “Before they became the kings of Telluride, it was the local secret. I got to see them go through all the incarnations into the Telluride AllStars and the band that became Strength in Numbers. That kind of newgrass was just mind-blowing. Then Béla Fleck and the Flecktones and that whole line of bands with Sam Bush and everybody else was always the highlight of the festival for me.” Nershi grew up in a musical family in New Jersey, the youngest of six siblings who all played the guitar to some extent. “There were two or three acoustic and electric guitars lying around the house the whole time I was growing up,” he remembers. “My by Eric Carlson
mom played the piano, which I now have in my studio, and my dad would always sing. He was always walking around the house singing. We would all go to church on Sunday, and they’d get around the piano and sing hymns before we went to church.” As a teenager, Nershi took a few guitar lessons and began learning the popular music of the day. His favorite bands included The Allman Brothers, Eric Clapton, The Beatles, The Grateful Dead, and The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. “One of the records that opened me up to bluegrass for the rst time was Will the Circle Be Unbroken ,” Nershi recalls. “My dad liked it, so we listened to that a lot.” Later, he had a memorable experience seeing Peter Rowan and the Greengrass Gringos at the Berkshire Mountain Bluegrass Festival when he was 17. It wasn’t until he moved to Telluride, however, that he really learned to play bluegrass-style guitar. Nershi met a atpicker in Telluride named Jack Rajca. “I worked at his T-shirt shop and he was way into Norman Blake and Tony Rice, and he could atpick guitar,” says Nershi. “I could play solos and leads and everything, but I still didn’t understand
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
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how to play bluegrass, and he showed me my rst atpicking tune, which was ‘Salt Creek.’” Nershi and Rajca played together in The Rusty Stringband with which Nershi made his rst appearance on the Telluride Bluegrass Festival’s Main Stage in 1992. In 1993, Nershi bought a rickety old school bus, xed it up to live in, and drove to nearby Crested Butte, Colorado, intending to enjoy one more year of ski bumming before “getting a real job” as they say. Keith Moseley allowed him to park the bus at his house and use his shower. “I was looking for a gig,” Nershi says. “I wanted to get a ski pass and play some music aprés ski.” He ended up meeting a young mandolin player named Michael Kang, and with Moseley on bass, they performed at the local ski area in exchange for season passes. Later, they added Michael Travis (who owned the house Keith was renting) on percussion and thus began The String Cheese Incident. They began with a repertoire of bluegrass standards, some of Nershi’s original tunes, and a few David Grisman and JeanLuc Ponte compositions. However, The String Cheese Incident gradually became more diverse and electried, adding Kyle Hollingsworth of Boulder, CO on keyboards in 1996, and expanding their stylistic scope to encompass rock, calypso, funk, jazz, reggae, trance, and more. They also developed a penchant for long jams. Over the next fourteen years, String Cheese achieved phenomenal success, performing its eclectic blend of highly improvisational, electro-acoustic music to vast audiences throughout the United States and Europe. “With String Cheese, I’m trying to see how far you can go with an acoustic guitar in a rock band and not just as a singerstrummer, but as a soloist,” says Nershi. In 2007, String Cheese dissolved when Nershi left to pursue other musical interests. Despite a few reunion shows, he has since focused on collaborations with Drew Emmitt and with Portland, Oregon, guitar and mandolin virtuoso Scott Law. With Law, Nershi performs acoustic Americana, sometimes adding Jilian Nershi (Bill’s wife) on vocals and guitar. In 2006, the trio released an album under the name Honkytonk Homeslice, and has shared stages with the Del McCoury Band, Railroad Earth, and Hot Buttered Rum. With Emmitt, Nershi carries on the nest Colorado bluegrass tradition. Despite their far-out, jam-band backgrounds, they keep it rooted and accessible. The four-piece Emmitt-Nershi Band is rounded out with
Andy Thorn on banjo and Tyler Grant on bass. On New Country Blues, they’re joi ned by blu egras s jug ger nau ts Jas on Carter on ddle and Rob Ickes on dobro. Recorded at Nershi’s home studio, the album features original compositions from every band member including a couple of Leftover Salmon and String Cheese songs rendered in a more traditional bluegrass style, as well as some forays into David Grisman-esque, Latin-tinged instrumentals. As Nershi describes it, “The writing is not always straightforward bluegrass, some of it is though, but the playing is pretty head on bluegrass.” Throughout the album, in addition to great vocals, Nershi contributes solid rhythm and strong, clear leads on guitar. According to Emmitt, “When you hear Bill Nershi, you know it’s him. He’s got his own distinctive approach to the guitar.” Readers may remember Tyler Grant from his own cover story prole in Flatpicking Guitar Magazine (Volume 10, Number 5, July/August 2006). Winner of the 2008 National Flatpicking Championship at Winfield, Grant mainly plays bass in the Emmitt-Nershi Band, but he does occasionally switch instruments with Nershi. This allows Grant to display the incredible atpicking for which he is known. In addition, Nershi is currently producing Grant’s latest album. “I feel like Tyler’s so on top of his game right now in atpicking that I want to document it” says Nershi. “He’s really doing spectacular stuff.” Reecting on Nershi’s guitar style, Grant says, “He plays to suit the music. He’s a very
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
dynamic player. He has a very easy-going, light rhythm when he needs to, and he really drives it when he needs to. One thing about Nershi is that he does not sandbag. So, no matter what the situation, he’s going to give it all of his effort especially on stage. He really knows how to play with conviction no matter what he’s playing, be it a sensitive piece or a really driving piece.” The Emmitt-Nershi Band has performed throughout the country, including a 2008 n appearance at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival. They’re also playing more traditional bluegrass venues and festivals out east, allowing Emmitt and Nershi to reach folks they may have been unable to with their more rocked-out projects of the past. “We’ve been going down to N ashville trying to reach different audiences,” says Nershi. “We’re trying to get in front of people who go to the old-school bluegrass festivals.” I caught up with Nershi after a recent Emmitt-Nershi Band performance: What’s it like playing with the EmmittNershi Band? After all these years playing in a band that only touches on bluegrass, it’s a dream come true for me to get in a bluegrass band with people like Drew, Andy, and Tyler who live in this world more. The more you dig into bluegrass, you realize that there are subtle stylistic differences and ways to play different types of songs that make bands like the Del McCoury Band sound like they do. I’m starting to learn those things from Tyler and from the rest of the band.
The Emmitt-Nershi Band at Nedfest 7
Tell me about the guitar you’re playing. My guitar has an interesting history. It’s a ’74 Martin D-28, not anything special. I got it in perfect condition in Telluride in ’84. It’s a great sounding guitar, and I’m really happy with it. It was a standard looking black pickguard Martin. It’s really dry in Colorado, a lot of these guitars get cracks on the tops, but with mine, instead of cracking, the pickguard peeled up. I think the fact that it came off saved my guitar top. The luthier in Boulder at H.B. Woodsongs only had a tortoise shell pick guard, so he put that on. That was the rst change. A couple of years ago, I went to Costa Rica with it, and it was so hot and humid that the neck bowed. I brought it back home and tried to see if it would come back, and it didn’t. So I took it back to my luthier. He had a replica of a pre-war Martin V-neck with ower tile inlays on the headstock and snowakes. It’s beautiful. He put this new neck on, and it’s been incredible. I’d also like to mention Santa Cruz Guitars. I met Richard Hoover, who started that company, years ago, and I really like the way his guitars are sounding. They’re going to build me a guitar. They’re sending me out a guitar right now to play. It’s an old Gibson Jumbo with a sloped-shoulder and 12 frets to the body. It’s an amazing sounding guitar, and I’m gonna design a guitar based on that if I still like it after I play it for a while. The thing is, with my body shape, I wonder if the Dreadnoughts are a little tough on me ‘cause it’s hard for somebody that’s small to play the Dreadnought all the time. I’m 5’6”. Although I love my Martin, 8
I’ve been interested in checking out some different kinds of bodies. I really like the way this Gibson feels, 12 frets to the body. It’s slightly looser feeling, not as stiff as some of the long scale guitars, and I really like that. You get a great amplied sound out of your acoustic guitar on stage. How do you amplify it? I’ve been experimentin g with the [Fishman] Aura. Did you have it custom programmed for your guitar? No, because I didn’t want to mail my guitar away, but I did nd a good pre-set image that I like, and under controlled circumstances, like if I’m using in-ear monitors or if I can control the feedback through floor monitors, it sounds great. It’s so nice to be able to get the sound of your guitar without having to go through a microphone. The problem with it has always been a low-mid range feedback that happens when it’s coming through the oor monitors, so I have an EQ that I run it into. I have what is called a Chard Box. This is something that Richard Battaglia makes, and he’s been Béla’s soundman for years. The Chard Box is a one-space, rack pre-amp for acoustic guitar, and it has good parametric EQ for notching out feedback. Then I run that into an Ashley EQ which is a graphic EQ, and I run out of that into the house. Then I have really good EQ control so I can keep feedback from happening in my monitor. If you’re using in-ear monitors, you don’t have to have all the EQ.
Sometimes I send two different signals from two different outputs on the EQ: one to the monitor desk and one to the front of the house desk. Then I can keep my EQ at for the front of the house if I want to and just control my sound in the monitor. That way I’m not taking anything away from the front of the house. I also use a volume pedal. It’s got an adjustable minimum volume I can set so that when it’s all the way off, it’s at my rhythm level, and when I turn all the way up for a solo, it boosts to just a little above my rhythm setting. That way, I don’t have to bash it out so hard when I’m soloing ‘cause there’s nothing harder than soloing when you have to play really hard to be heard, and the touch goes out the window. One of the most frustrating things in acoustic guitar music is getting a pickup and a sound that you can amplify that sounds like your guitar and feels like your guitar. A lot of pickups, when you play harder or softer, don’t do the same things that your guitar does when you’re playing acoustic. What kind of strings do you use? I’ve been using medium forever, but I’m experimenting now with light-gauge strings. Over the years, I’ve been trying to develop a lighter touch, so I’m using light-gauge now because I realized that playing in a bluegrass band, playing two sets a night, is a very physical activity. As a guitar player, it’s like bangin’ nails or something. It’s a lot of work, and guring out ways to have a lighter touch is a lot easier on the body.
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
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How do you like your action? With my old neck, I could never get the action down. No matter what I did, it would always gravitate to being high-action. I loved the tone because you could wail on it, and it would never buzz. I used to get big, strong tone, but I’d have nights where I was just cursing at my guitar ‘cause it was so hard to play. With the new V-neck, the action is a little bit lower. It’s not low-action ‘cause I still play hard, and I want to dig in on solos and on rhythm sometimes. I would say it’s medium-action. I don’t think I could play with light-action. How about picks? A lot times I use tortoise shell, but I’m really prone to losing them. I like heavy picks. Right now, I’m using a standard teardrop shaped Dunlop Ultex 1.14mm. Do you touch the top with your right hand? Sometimes I do, but I try to play a lot with my right hand not touching the top of the guitar. Sometimes I put the base of my right hand on the bridge, but more and more, I’m trying not to touch the top. I’ve been checking out some Django stuff recently. The whole Django style is a very specic thing. Part of it is that they don’t put their hands on the top of the guitar when they’re playing, and they don’t put their right hand in front of the soundhole, which I do sometimes to get a softer tone. It’s this Django system of being able to get volume. If you’re not touching the guitar, the top is resonating in a much better way. You get a better tone.
What about other inuences outside the traditional atpicking realm? Growing up, I listened to a lot of rock players like Jimmy Page and Clapton. Dickey Betts was a big inuence on me, and somehow I feel like Dickey Betts in the Allman Brothers Band was doing this electric Doc Watson thing ‘cause he had a way of making every solo sound like it was a composed melody, and I think that’s really cool. I don’t know if I can do it now, but I strive to be a player that doesn’t sound like he’s just trying to throw every riff he knows out there, but trying to make a spontaneous composition. Some of the lines I hear you playing with The String Cheese Incident sound African in origin. Have you studied any African guitar styles? Yeah, I’ve listened to a lot of African music and highlife and different stuff because it was one of the things that String Cheese was playing. Travis had that drumming style that he was bringing in with the hand drums. So I wanted to learn more about that kind of music, like those highlife lines and rhythms. What are your practice habits like? It’s hard now that I have a family. I have a wife and two girls, 18 and 11. That cuts into my practice time a little bit. I play a lot. I’m playing with friends all the time, but I do get to sit down and dig in at my studio though. I have tons of instructional books; I kind of collect them, and I’ll pull out one
Who are your major guitar inuences? Doc’s my favorite ‘cause I love the way he can play melody, and then when he’s playing variations and stuff, it doesn’t feel like he’s just rifng for the sake of riffs. He’s still got the melody at the heart of what he’s doing. I love that and his feel, that swingy feel he has; I love it. His time is so great. Of course there’s also Norman Blake and Tony Rice and people that I play with now, like Tyler Grant and Scott Law. I got to pick with Cody Kilby a little. He’s a great player and a nice guy. I’ve also gotten to pick a little bit with David Grier here and there, and it just makes all the sensors in my brain start going off when I here David Grier play. It’s like “Whoa, mackerel, I didn’t know you could do that.” And Django, which is a totally different thing but totally ts in with all this stuff. Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
or another and dig into it for a while. Three times a week I’ll be able to get into it and spend 2-4 hours doing that. What are you focusing on in your practice these days? Well, like I said, I’m getting into the Django thing. To learn the Django thing is to use a different side of your brain, learning how to move through the rhythm changes and go around the horn, w hatever you want to call it, things like that. Jazz is like a square peg/round hole kind of thing for me, and I’m really trying to bust it and gure it out because I think its going to open up a lot of things for me musically. What about the Emmitt-Nershi Band’s approach to practice? We have some hotel room picks once in a while, but mainly what happens with the Emmitt-Nershi band happens on stage. Like last night’s show, there was no set list. We just got up there, and Drew and I started calling songs. We don’t always do that with the Emmitt-Nershi Band, like 50% of the time. I really like when there’s no set list ‘cause you go more on impulse, and a lot of times that can be a better way to keep things owing. What have you learned from playing with Tyler Grant? Tyler is an amazing atpicker, and he’s also got classical training, so I like to watch his hand positions, like left-hand positions that he plays out of for different keys
Bill Nershi 9
have these repeated cycles, and maybe after 16 or 32 bars, you go to something else and play it for 16 or 32 bars. Then you go back to your rst idea, and you build this cycle that makes sense to the audience and to the people in the band where they can kind of get it: “Oh, he’s going back to that”. Now the band can build behind you and work with what you’re doing ‘cause they have an idea of where you’re going, and they feel like they can lay in behind you. You can’t do it all by yourself. Another way to do long solos is to think in terms of telling a story. Sometimes I even sing words to myself about something that’s going on with me or something that happened. Somehow that gets the emotional meter jumping, and interesting things are likely to happen.
s r e h t o r C r o l y a T . C : y b o t o h P
Bill Nershi with The String Cheese Incident especially. That’s kind of rubbing off on me. If you can nd a position where you don’t have to move your hand around very much to play a section of the song, that makes it easier. I get a lot of that from Tyler. What have you learned from playing with Scott Law? The level of musicianship that he’s bringing inspires me to polish my trip. I also get pointers from him on jazz. Scott’s a good teacher. Mostly with Scott and I, we have a thing where, no matter how weird we get in a song or how “out there” we take it, we always sound good together. It’s miraculous. It’s just a matter of having our ears open the whole time, and I think we both strive for that when we’re playing. The String Cheese Incident is known for long jams. Could you discuss your approach to extended improvisations? I’ve been in the position with String Cheese where there are a lot of really long solos, and you’re expected to take the band from point A to point B, like on a journey. It might be the role of that solo or jam to bring 10
the song to a high point, and then something else happens. If you don’t get up to that high point, it doesn’t work. What I’ve found in the long solos is that you have to stay connected with the band. I can get loud if I need to in String Cheese, but if you get too loud, and you’re not connected with the band anymore, then they don’t stay with you. You’re out by yourself, and that’s the position you don’t want to be in. There are different ways to stay connected. You have to keep the band interested in what you’re doing, and part of that is listening to what the other people are doing rhythmically and working with that. You can listen to the band and try to pick out someone that’s doing something interesting rhythmically and try to base something on that, almost to the point where you make clear to that person, “Yeah, I hear what you’re doing, and I’m playing with you on this.” That gives them some enthusiasm, and then you can get momentum in your solo. When I do a really long solo, I try to build the themes. You can’t just do disconnected riffs ‘cause you can’t sustain that for a minute or two. So I try to build on themes. I think in terms of 16 or 32 bars w here you
What about your rhythmic role behind someone else’s long solos? In String Cheese, Kang does a lot of big solos on electric mandolin, and Kyle often will too [on keyboards]. So I do a lot of rhythm playing behind long solos. String Cheese is a big band; there are a lot of frequencies covered, and when I’m playing rhythm, I’ll listen to what area might be lacking. If Kyle’s playing chords up high, I’ll look for something lower to play. If Kang’s playing rhythm on the mandolin and Kyle’s soloing, I’ll tend to go lower too. If Kyle’s doing something real low and Kang is soloing, I’ll try to move to an area that I don’t feel is occupied because when two people are playing in the same space, it’s really easy to step on each other’s toes. So I think in terms of frequency ranges a lot when I’m playing rhythm. If Kyle’s covering the middle with big chords, I’ll go down the neck, and at the end of phrases, I’ll do some bass note runs, maybe even octaves on the 6th and 4th strings to help the phrase come around. Then I’ll just drop back and let the solo stand out. Then that phrase will be ready to come around again, and I’ll do some walk that will build it up and whip it around into the next phrase, adding a little excitement to the solo. Sometimes I’ll really dig in when Mike is crankin’ on electric mandolin and try to make sure that, again, he doesn’t get separated from the band by being louder than everything. So when the soloist is building, I’m choppin’ the rewood, layin’ into it to make sure that the whole thing builds together.
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Any suggestions for aspiring guitar students? The way to improve is to learn how to enjoy it. If you can learn how to entertain yourself, then you’re going to be able to entertain other people. Don’t get too bent out of shape about having to be great, and never be afraid to play with people that are better than you. Actually, try to play with people that are better than you whenever you can ‘cause that’s the way you pick up your stuff. That’s what’s really going to stimulate your mind and your guitar playing. About the transcriptions: Tyler Grant has transcribed the guitar leads from two Bill Nershi compositions on the Emmitt-Nershi Band’s New Country Blues album. The rst is a rather exotic instrumental called “Surng the Red Sea.” Regarding the genesis of that tune, Nershi says, “On atpicking stuff, it’s all about how you use the open strings, and I thought ‘What other keys can you play in where you can use all the open strings on the guitar?’ I got this idea for Cm in open position. It’s almost like a harmonic minor scale.” The second transcription is of Nershi’s solo on “Road of Destruction,” an original bluegrass song with a bit of Del McCoury inuence. “That’s denitely a more straightahead bluegrass kind of a solo,” he says. “I think it’s interesting because it’s not just how many notes I can get down. It’s got some breathing room and some syncopated stuff on there.” Here is what Tyler Grant had to say regarding these two tunes: Surng the Red Sea: “The rst time I heard ‘Surfing the Red Sea’ was about three years ago when I rst joined on as the bass player for the Emmitt-Nershi Band. I was staying at the house with Bill and his family up the hill from Nederland, Colorado, on the windy Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. I was wandering around the house one morning and heard this really interesting modal flatpicking number coming from the studio. I thought it might have been a record at rst until I got closer and realized it was Nershi picking it out on his D-28. I was immediately struck by how cool a atpicking tune it was. The melody rolls by with energy and gusto and is answered by strumming the open Cm9 chord (use your pinky to grab the 9th). It is a complete solo atpicking number that does not need accompaniment and in that
sense I declared the tune as Bill’s atpicking opus. I learned it from him right then and there and started working on a harmony part. The melody is a fine example of how the tuning of the open strings of the guitar can create it’s own cool modality. The scale he plays over the Cm chord is a straight natural minor scale until he hits that open B-string on the way up to the resolving tonic C note then he hits the same pattern on the way down. So the mode is eight notes instead of 7, and combines the natural minor scale with the chromatically added Major 7th scale degree which is enabled by the open B-string of the guitar. Not a typical mode, but just a simple guitaristic idiosyncrasy that sounds really cool and creates a Far East kind of vibe (at the time he called it the ‘Zwahili Breakdown’). Furthermore, the eight-note scale lays out perfectly for the rhythm of the tune. He uses the same idea on the change to the Fm chord, this time the open E-string denes the mode in F minor. The big turnaround on the V chord (G7) is also very guitaristic and just kinda rolls off the ngers (notice the pull-offs to the open strings). The B-part of the tune changes key and is a playful and fun counterpart to the more sinister minor mode of the A-part. The B-part allows for some good crosspicking too. We cut this tune with Eric Thorin as the guest bass player so I could add a second guitar part. Bill’s parts were recorded live on the take. Learn this tune and you will realize how fun it is to play!”
y n z c e r a Z m a d A : y b o t o h P
Bill Nershi
Road of Destruction: “Road of Destruction” is a powerful mid-tempo bluegrass number that Bill wrote with Drew Emmitt for our Emmitt-Nershi Band record. The chord progression is bluesy and perfect for bluegrass guitar in open-G position. Bill’s guitar break was improvised and played live on the take. Notice how he outlines the chord changes in the opening gure, then takes off on a bouncy, bluesy ride, mostly using the G-minor pentatonic scale, outlining some of the changes, then punctuating it with a well-placed G-run. I played bass in this track and when it went down I was impressed with this spirited, spontaneously crafted guitar break.
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
11
Surfing the Red Sea
Audio CD Track 3
Written by Bill Nershi Transcribed by Tyler Grant
intro:
8 8 8 8 10
8 8 8 8
8 8 8 8
8 8 8 8
8 8 8 8 10
8
8 8 8 8
8 8 8 8
8 8 8 8
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8
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8
2.
8 8 8 8
8 8 8 8 10
8 8 8 8
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Copyright © 2009 Gritty Ditties (BMI)
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Surfing the Red Sea (con’t) 2
fine 31
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Editor’s Picks Song Transcriptions With Audio! The Best Deal in Flatpicking Just Got Better! Flatpicking Guitar Magazine’s Editor’s Picks Songs CD-Rom
contains 147 Arrangements, in PDF format, of the most popular atpicking tunes. Now a second disc is available that contains nearly all of the audio tracks for those songs. The combination of the two discs is available for only $24.95. This is the best deal you’ll nd for multiple arrangements of the most popular tunes in atpicking, with audio track references.
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13
Road of Destruction
Audio CD Track 4
h
h
h
Written by Bill Nershi Transcribed by Tyler Grant
sl.
sl.
p p 1
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Copyright © 2009 Gritty Ditties (BMI)
Kessinger, Cosgrove, and Shafer “Picking at Peaceful Bend” DVD Flatpicking Guitar Magazine & SimpleFolk Productions present Robin Kessinger, Mark Cosgrove & Robert Shafer Performing Live at The Peaceful Bend Americana Music Festival
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Walk With Me by Craig Vance
This is one of my own songs that I wrote for my wife Linda in the winter of 2004 and later recorded on my 2006 CD The Hills of Glencoe. The break that I selected was the solo following the second verse which, as you will see, is capoed at the 2nd fret and played in the C position. At the beginning of the song I did the lead in with no capo out of D. I prefer the capoed version in
this particular tune, but I also thought that it would offer a wider range of melodic changes. So for the sake of ease, the rhythm capoed in 2 would go as follows: | |: C / / / / Dm / / / / F / / / / G / / / / : | |
Try getting this version down and then, as a great exercise, transpose it to D and see what kind of different break you can construct to play it in the open position.
C / / / / Dm / / / / F / / / / G / / / / F / / / / / / Eb / / C / / //////
New from Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
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Speed, Accuracy, & Tone by Brad Davis & Dan Miller Learn How To Improve:
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flatpickingmercantile.com Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
flatpickdigital.com
800-413-8296 15
œ
Bluegrass Rhythm Guitar
œ œ œ œ œ#œ œ H.O.
by Joe Carr
0 0
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Six White Horses This recording comes from the rst Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys recording session in 1940. This Clyde Moody original features his solo voice and unique guitar accompaniment. The arrangement, in the key of E, includes several surprising “progressive” chords – E6, A6 and G diminished. Monroe’s mandolin is barely audible on the track until the nal chord. The lead solos are shared by Moody’s guitar and Tommy Magness’s ddle in a sort of free-form duet. Magness seems unable to nd a good note to play over the diminished chord and indeed, the track seems like an under-rehearsed jam. I’ve been unable to determine if Moody was a ngerstyle player, but the recording certainly has this sound. Flatpickers will get a workout trying to duplicate the sound. The form of the song varies from verse to instrumental solo in a very uid fashion common to older acoustic blues singers. In the modern era, bands have generally “squared up” these blues tunes to the more common 12- or 16-bar forms. This particular tune form is unique to this recording and never appears again in Monroe’s music.
While it is credited to Moody, it seems likely that he assembled to song from common verses in the blues tradition. The 14-bar introduction is my “best guess” transcription. The 9th bar is indicated by a measure of 2/4. All the music from this rst session has a new “unnished” quality about it and, with the exception of Monroe’s signature “New Muleskinner Blues,” this music has none of the power and focus that would emerge in just six years with Flatt and Scruggs. Flatt and Scruggs would be inuenced by the guitar playing on this tune. In the Flatt & Scruggs version Earl starts the tune emulating the guitar lick that starts the song. In fact, this became a trademark banjo backup lick for Earl. Scruggs used the phrases and positions on ngerstyle guitar several Flatt and Scruggs gospel songs like “I’m Going to Make Heaven My Home.” The verse generally follows this progression: 441111 441111 555111
I’m leaving you to wear you off my mind, (x2) Lord, you keep me worried, troubled, troubled all the time. Ah, the Six White Horses going two by two, (x2) That some other woman has took my love from you. Oh the train I’m riding is sixteen coaches long, (x2) That woman I’m loving, she’s got another man and gone. If you don’t believe I’m leaving, just count the days I’m gone, (x2) Next time you see your Daddy it will be on Judgement morn’. Ah, tell me pretty mama, which way the river runs, (x2) Runs straight from my back door to the set of the rising sun.
(Special thanks to Gerald Jones for his playing on the CD and for his addition to the article.)
D ! ! V n D o w N o
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In this 90-minute video, rhythm guitar master Wyatt Rice teaches you how to greatly expand your rhythm guitar abilities by teaching: crosspicking rhythm; syncopated rhythm; a variety of right hand patterns combined with left hand technique to develop a “groove” rhythm; unique bass runs; passing chords; chord substitutions; and chord inversions. Additionally, Wyatt is shown improvisationally accompanying various instruments (banjo, ddle, guitar, mandolin) and then analyzing what he has done to provide the rhythmic foundation behind each instrument. Also featured are guest appearances by: Rickie Simpkins on ddle (Sally Goodin’ and Dusty Miller) and mandolin (Big Country and I Wonder Where You Are Tonight), Sammy Shelor on banjo (Ground Speed and Whitewater), Kenny Smith on guitar (Goodbye, Liza Jane and Bill Cheathum) and Tony Rice (Waltz for Indira, Manzanita, and Devlin). Wyatt provides guitar accom paniment to each of these artists and then analyzes the techniques he has employed.
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$24.95 17
Six White Horses
Audio CD Tracks 6 & 7
Arranged by Joe Carr
E
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
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July/August 2010
Gcdgcdgcdgcd
Beginner’s Page
gcdgcdgcdgcd by Dan Huckabee
I’ll Take the Blame
The lesson this issue is by request from an FGM subscriber, and I think he made a choice that will be fun for all. “I’ll Take the Blame” is one of my favorite Flatt & Scruggs tunes and has also been recorded by Doyle Lawson, The Lonesome River Band (with Dan Tyminski), and Red Allen, but there is completely different song of the same title recorded by the Stanley Brothers and by Ricky Skaggs, so be careful not to get them mixed up. I’ve chosen to record the audio in the key of B, same as The Lonesome River Band. So I’ll be playing in G position, capoed to the 4th fret. What makes this melody unique—and provides an interesting problem to solve
musically—is that the second phrase is an octave higher than the rst phrase. The rest of the melody is fairly typical. As you start to read the tab and listen to the audio, take some time to think about the melody and the lyrics and notice how I replaced the vocal melody with some stylized bluegrass guitar licks. First, here are the vocals: I’ve slipped around dear, two-timing you Having fun dear, like some guys do But now I’m sorry, and now I’m blue Forgive me darling, it’s up to you
Now, here’s what I’m doing: I’ve slipped around dear (low), two-timing yo u (octave higher with double-stop harmony)
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
Having fun dear (C-lick), like some guys do
(C connecting back to G-unison), But now I’m sorry, and now I’m blue (same
as the rst line with slight change of the kick-off for variation), Forgive me darling, it’s up to you (fairly standard nal turnaround lick). Those are the basic components. There’s a little more to the tune than that, but as your repertoire grows, so will your design skills. If your rst attempt at solo design is disappointing, keep trying. You should see my scrap heap! If you’d like any personal assistance, give me a call toll free at Musicians-Workshop. com 800-543-6215. Good luck and keep taking those baby steps.
19
Kaufman’s Corner Hi Friends Hope you’re all having a great summer. SK’s Acoustic Kamp was a blast and as always the best year ever! Already looking forward to next year. Wait till you see the Flatpicking line-up! I thought I would send another song your way from Champ Cosgrove and my latest CD: “Big Scioty.” I thought it would be interesting to look at a solo that you may have not looked at. Most people play this tune in the treble but my solo from the recording found me pickin’ in the bass strings. The tune works out perfectly in the bass and teaches us an important lesson: whatever octave you are currently playing your tunes, try to play them in the opposite octave. This will do several things. One of which is give you a second solo. (People will think you are a genius when in fact all you did was play note for note in a different octave.) Sometimes you have to play around with the melody and the runs to make them t but it will t somehow. You will also be learning new runs and licks through this little experiment. Try it out and see for yourself.
by Steve Kaufman
When I play in the key of G, I mostly play out of the “bluegrass-standard” 2nd position. This means I hit the 2nd fret with the rst nger, 3rd fret with the second nger, and so on. Bluegrass 2nd position also means that I will use open strings when available. Classical players would more than likely close off the open strings and play with no opens. With that explained, you now know the ngerings for most of the song without me typing them in. Thank you very much. Measures 18-20: I want you to listen to the CD several times to hear the timing and the “push” of the hammer on between measure 18 and 19. These types of accents are extremely effective when creating a solo. They are usually done with hammerons and really put an emphasis on the note you are traveling to. I hope you enjoy this break and if you want to hear Mark and I ripping though “Big Scioty,” check out our CD Goodnight Waltz from Flatpik Central and also found at many digital download locations. Cheers Ya’ll
Artist formally known as Steve Kaufman
WIth Brad Davis’ Flatpick Jam
You’ll Always Have A Pickin’ Buddy 800-413-8296
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Williams, Falco & Eldridge Live at the Station Inn “Guitarmageddon” In this one-hour DVD Flatpicking Guitar Magazine and SimpleFolk Productions present three of today's top young flatpicking guitarists performing together in a live concert setting at the “World Famous” Station Inn in Nashville, Tennessee. Josh Williams, Andy Falco, and Chris Eldridge perform in a trio setting, as duo pairs, as solo performers, and with a full bluegrass band (with guests Cody Kilby and Mike Bub). Guitar players will appreciate the left and right hand close-ups that are prevalent throughout this DVD.
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21
Big Sciota
Audio CD Tracks 12 & 13
Steve's low break from his latest CD with Mark Cosgrove - Goodnight Waltz
Key of G
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Arranged by Steve Kaufman
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3 (C) 2010 Steve Kaufman Enterprises Inc 800-FLATPIK www.flatpik.com 22
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Big Sciota (con’t)
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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Taking It To The Next Level: Modal Awareness by John Carlini
We’re going to revisit some of the modes this time in order to deepen our ability to internalize the characters of four of the modes: Ionian, Dorian, Aeolian, and Phrygian. As a musical example, I’m using the 16-bar melody of “Scarborough Fair.” We are going to run that melody through those modes. By the way, here are all seven modes arranged in order of brightest to darkest in mood or character. Each mode in succession adds one atted degree. 1. Lydian. The major scale with a #4th degree. 1 2 3 #4 5 6 7 8. 2. Ionian. The major scale. Since Lydian has a #4th degree, naturalizing that #4 to 4 is, in effect, adding a at! 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8. 3. Mixolydian. The major scale with a atted 7th. 1 2 3 4 5 6 b7 8. Think blues or gospel. The rst three modes are major because they all contain a major 3rd. The next four modes are minor because they all contain a minor 3rd. 4. Dorian. A minor scale with a natural (major) 6th and a atted 7th. 1 2 b3 4 5 6 b7 8.
5. Aeolian. A minor scale with a flatted 6th and a atted 7th; known as the natural or relative minor. 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 8. 6. Phrygian. A minor scale with a atted 6th, atted 7th, and atted 2nd; has a Spanish or amenco quality. 1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 8. 7. Locrian. A minor scale with atted 6th, 7th, 2nd, and 5th. 1 ,b2 ,b3 4 ,b5 ,b6 ,b7 8. I have chosen Ionian, Dorian, Aeolian, and Phrygian modes for this exercise because you will be able to hear how the mood of the melody is altered by the differences. Sometimes that difference is completely obvious, and sometimes it is subtle. “Scarborough Fair” is a great melody to demonstrate this because it contains all seven notes of the mode. At this point, it’s probably best to just listen to the audio while following the printed music, but here are a few closing comments: • Ionian: Sounds a bit ridiculous! But, you certainly get a feeling for the mode. And I must admit that it began to grow on me after a while! • Dorian: As soon as you hear it, you realize that “Scarborough Fair” is a Dorian melody;
that natural 6th degree is a definitive characteristic note. • Aeolian: The atted 6th degree adds a pensive sadness to the melody, adding support to the correct choice of Dorian. • Phrygian: Pushes the melody way beyond its original sound; the atted 2nd really distorts things. I hope that you found this modal study interesting and that it will help you to recognize and identify those modes when you hear them on recordings or in live performance. Please visit John’s web site (www. johncarlini.com) to sign up for the latest performance and teaching info and acoustic music news. John is now giving live oneon-one lessons on guitar and 5-string banjo using Skype technology. More info is available on the web site.
Western Swing Guitars: Transcriptions of two dozen tunes by Bob Wills, Spade Cooley, Asleep at the Wheel & other western swing greats, plus instruction on soloing & comping, swing style. Book, $20
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Scarborough Fair
Audio CD Track 15
Arranged by John Carlini Ionian
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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Scarborough Fair (con’t)
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
27
By Brad Davis The Rest Stroke The “rest stroke” has been addressed in a number of columns in this magazine over the years—especially in the columns written by Orrin Star, Steve Pottier, and Chris Jones—so I know that Flatpicking Guitar Magazine readers are familiar with the concept of the rest stroke. However, it has been my experience in working with atpickers at various camps and clinics that most ddle tune atpickers have not developed a strong rest stroke. Most are very proficient at the “swing stroke,” however, they either never use the rest stroke at all, or their rest stroke is not as strong as it could be.
www.massstreetmusic.com A world of fine instruments at
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Typically bluegrass guitar players will use the rest stroke for emphasis when executing a G-run. Bluesy bluegrass players like Clarence White and Charles Sawtelle used them a lot. If you don’t use many rest strokes in your playing, I’d like to recommend that you try using them more often. If you do so, I think that you will nd that your volume and tone will improve. To my ear the rest stroke not only allows for great volume and emphasis, but it also produces the best tone. When I’m playing a slow song, or a blues tune, I will use rest strokes for just about every note of the song. In discussing this subject with my good friend Tim May he said that he does the exact same thing. Tim said, “I will use a rest stroke for every note that I play up until the time the tempo gets too fast for me to execute all rest strokes, then I’ll switch to down-up-down playing, or swing strokes. Typically, if I’m playing a waltz, I’m using a rest stroke for every note.” I agree with Tim and I do the exact same thing. If you are curious about why Tim and I choose rest strokes over swing strokes I think that all you have to do is play a waltz that you know at a slow to moderate tempo and try an experiment. Play it through one time using down-up-down-up swing strokes and then play the same tune again using all rest strokes. I think that you will nd that you are happier with your tone, volume, and
note clarity on the rest stroke version. Since most bluegrass players are most familiar with applying rest strokes to bluegrass tunes when playing G-runs, I’ve tabbed out a few of my favorite G-runs on the next page. On the page that follows that you will nd an arrangement of “Lonesome Road Blues” that uses all rest strokes. I think that blues tunes have a stronger feel and better groove when the guitar solos are executed with rest strokes. Give it a try and see what you think. If you are looking for a way to improve your rest strokes, and your overall right hand and left hand technique, check out the new book that Dan Miller and I have just completed, The Guitar Player’s Guide to Developing Speed, Accuracy, and Tone. In this book I have provided an entire section that focuses on exercises that are designed to improve your abilities with the rest stroke. Other sections include exercises that will also help you improve your down-up-down-up swing strokes, your crosspicking, your string skipping patterns, your use of drone strings, the RPP pattern, and much more. I have used the exercises that I present in this book to improve my own playing and have tested them out on my students with great results.
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July/August 2010
Rest Stroke G-Runs
Audio CD Track 19
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The Essential Clarence White Bluegrass Guitar Leads
by Roland White & Diane Bouska with Steve Pottier and Matt Flinner For fans of the legendary Clarence White, this is the ultimate book and CD package. The photo and biographical information are worth the price of this book alone. Not to mention detailed transcriptions for 14 Clarence White solos and 2 audio CDs. The best part of this book is the performance notes, practice suggestions, and examples that are provided with each tune. These detailed notes will help students understand the techniques that Clarence is using in each song. A lot of work was put into this project by Roland White, Diane Bouska, Steve Pottier, and Matt Flinner. It is the best Clarence White resource available!
To Order call 800-413-8296 or visit: www.flatpickingmercantile.com Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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Lonesome Road Blues
Audio CD Track 20 G
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Sharpening the Axe by Jef Troxel Music Theory Primer: Major Triads Many years ago as a student at Berklee I took a class called “Chops through Triads” from Joe Rogers. Joe was one of the best teachers I ever had and I remember that class as a turning point in both my playing and my understanding of the ngerboard. I can only skim the surface of the topic in a column like this, but I hope it will lead you to further exploration on your own. In the last two columns I’ve been discussing various aspects of music theory, and if you come across a concept or term you’re unfamiliar with in this column I urge you to go back for a review. Inversions: As the name suggests, a triad has three notes; the Root, 3rd, and 5th. When the root is the lowest sounding note, the triad is said to be in “root position.” If the 3rd is the lowest sounding note, the triad is in “rst inversion.” If the 5th is the lowest sounding note, the triad is in “second inversion.”
The C Major triad consists of three notes; C (root), E (3rd), and G (5th). Figure One shows a C Major triad in all its various inversions as they occur in rst position. (See Figure One on the next page.) To isolate the notes of the triad and avoid playing unwanted notes on the adjacent strings use one of the following techniques: • Play the triads with the pick starting on the lowest note and rest-stroking through the highest note. The rest-stroke keeps the pick from travelling further than you want it to. • Play the lowest note with the pick and the other two notes with the middle and ring ngers of the right hand. • Put the pick down and use the thumb, index and middle ngers to play the notes. Triads up the Neck: Let’s look at how the different inversions of C Major look and sound as we move them up the neck. Figure Two shows the C triad moving up horizontally on different sets of strings. (See Figure Two on the next page.)
If you’ll recall from the previous theory columns, major triads are found on the 1st, 4th, and 5th degrees of the major scale. In the key of C, these major triads would be built on C (I), F (IV), and G (V). When played together in a progression these three triads create a very familiar sound. Figure Three takes the I-IV-V-I progression in C and moves it through all the adjacent string sets up the neck. (See Figure Three on page 33.) Visualizing triad shapes on the ngerboard is a pathway to a greater understanding of the guitar and of music. I urge you to play through the examples and get comfortable with the various shapes. Try moving them to other keys as well. We’ll do some more work with triads in the next column. Until then, work hard and have fun. I’ll catch you next time.
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine DVD-Rom Archives Twelve Years of Magazine Nine Years of Audio Companions on 2 DVD-Rom Discs The magazine archive DVD-Rom contains the rst 73 issues (PDF les), which were published from November/December 1996 (Volume 1, Number 1) through November/December 2008 (Volume 13, Number 1). The audio DVD-Rom contains the audio companion tracks (in mp3 format) that were released between September/October 1999 (Volume 3, Number 6) and November /December 2008 (Volume 13, Number 1).
800-413-8296 Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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Jeff Troxel Examples
Audio CD Tracks 21 - 23
Figure One
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Jeff Troxel Books at Flatpickingmercantile.com A Study In Flatpicking: Twenty Tunes & Variations by Jeff Troxel A Study In Flatpicking: Twenty Tunes and Variations is ideal for anyone who wants to learn tunes, and variations, from the standard atpicking ddle tune repertoire. This is the “ideal” book because author Jeff Troxel provides more than just simple tunes and variations here. In the front of the book he talks about how to think about the arrangement and execution of ddle t unes (through text and example) in a section called “Arranging A Fiddle Tune.” He also provides an appendix full of scale and arpeggio ngering exercises, music theory, and slurring exercises that will help any pl ayer increase his or her knowledge of the ngerboard and their technical abilities on the guitar.
Book & CD Available as a Hardcopy or as a digital download
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
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Jeff Troxel Examples (con’t)
Figure Three C
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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Jeff Troxel Examples (con’t) C
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Jeff Troxel Books at Flatpickingmercantile.com The Guitar Player’s Right Hand Workout by Jeff Troxel The right hand is the most important component in the development of your guitar playing skills. You can have great left hand technique and know all of your scales and chords, but if your right hand is not accurate, smooth, and relaxed, then your timing suffers, your tone is weak, your note clarity is lacking and there is no sense of uidity to your music. Your right hand is your metronome and your ability to create great tone and play at high tempos resides mostly in that right hand as well. In this book author Jeff Troxel present a series of right hand exercises that will help you develop dexterity and accuracy with your right hand. Practicing these exercises, with a metronome, will also greatly improve your timing. Additionally, Jeff provides exercises and tips to help you increase your speed.
Book & CD Available as a Hardcopy or as a digital download 800-413-8296 — flatpickdigital.com 34
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Bluegrass Guitar Duets:
In The Pines by Steve Pottier
Playing duets with another atpicker is a fun way to improve your skills, and usually more satisfying than playing in a jam with 15 other players where even the loudest lead player can have trouble being heard. It can be even better when you work out some arrangements together, whether it be harmony, counterpoint, or just using pieces of the licks you just heard from the other guy. Previous issues of FGM—including the Guitar Jam issue—had some great ideas for duets. As everyone has a slightly different take on the music and methods, I offer mine own take on the matter. For making up harmony parts, here are my basic guidelines: 1) Make sure you know the chord progression and the melody line you are going to use harmonize. 2) In bluegrass and country tunes most of the melody notes occur as part of the major triad of the chord you’re in (for example, in a G chord those notes are G, B, and D). 3) For a tenor harmony, choose the next note higher in the chord for these notes. In G, if the melody note is a G, play B; if it is B, play D; and if it is a D, play G. 4) For notes not in the chord (runs between the chord tones), you can either use notes in the scale or just follow your ear as to what sounds good going from one note to the other.
5) Depending on where you are in the melody, the harmony may have to play the same note twice in a row to make sense. 6) For a baritone harmony, start on the next chord note lower than the melody.
7) Try it out by playing both notes at the same time for the phrase (just pinching with your ngers will do).
Steps 1 and 2 kind of go together. When you’re harmonizing, either vocally or instrumentally, you’re making chords (or partial chords) with the notes you sing or play. Generally, if the lead is playing one of the notes in the triad of the chord that would be played in backup, you want your harmony note to be one of the other notes in the triad, thus making part of the chord. Often this note is on the next-higher or nextlower string from the melody. It helps to know the three inversions of the chord as it moves up the neck (inversions = the order of the notes in the chord), since that helps you to locate the note you want to play. In bluegrass the terms “tenor” and “baritone” refer to the relationship to the melody note rather than the range of pitch. Tenor is the first chord tone above the melody, while baritone is the rst chord tone below the melody. High baritone is baritone an octave higher, making it the next chord tone above tenor, and low tenor is the rst note below baritone. In a guitar duet as in bluegrass vocal duets, the tenor has the luxury of jumping to a high baritone note without worrying about duplicating the baritone’s note. You could also choose to use altered notes—sevenths or ninths—but I would recommend sticking to the major (or minor) triad as the backup chords dictate. One more thought: slower tempos and simpler lines make duet harmonies more effective, allowing the tone to develop. Trios can get especially muddy at higher speeds. With this in mind, I offer a duet interlude from Bluegrass Guitar Duets with my friend Sandy Rothman. We played this in E with Sandy playing in open E (playing melody here) and me playing with the capo at the second fret, but the capo only covering the top ve strings. This gives me a drop D tuning, but I can nger a G chord with regular ngering. For purposes of illustration, I converted Sandy’s part to D shape ngering. I had Sandy play the melody, which he wanted to sound as vocal-
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
like as possible, hence the bends, slides and hammers. I found the chord tones he played at the beginning of each measure, then found the next one in the chord. Then I tried matching his bends and slides. The only tricky part was where I land on the atted seventh of the last A chord (G note). You should know the outline of the D chord at the 5th and 10th frets, the outline of a G at the 7th and 10th frets, and the outline of an A (A7) at the 9th fret. For me harmony playing is very visual as I see the triads on the neck, making it easy to quickly get a handle on it. I can often play a harmony to someone just by watching their hands as they play (as long as they are regular in their playing). This is not an exceptional skill: it’s just starting higher and following the contour of their line. However, it does require some practice, but that’s why you and your guitar playing buddy are getting together every week—right?
Robert Bowlin
FGM Records Best Selling CD in 2009 www.fgmrecords.com 35
In The Pines (Melody)
Audio CD Track 24
Arranged by Sandy Rothman
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Crosspicking as Filler: “Will The Circle Be Unbroken” by Kathy Barwick Last issue we looked at how to use crosspicking to ll time between melodic phrases in songs. This issue, we’ll try another song. “Will The Circle Be Unbroken” is a nice simple and well-known song that presents another opportunity to develop this technique. “Circle” is similar to “Fireball Mail” as it is constructed of simple short phrases with lots of time in between. The rst version is simply a basic version of the melody; so basic in fact that you would want to dress it up a little to make it more interesting. (This is where your stock of licks comes in handy.) The second arrangement illustrates how you can use rolls—crosspicking—to ll the spaces between melodic phrases. As in “Fireball Mail,” the rolls are not randomly chosen but are constructed to repeat and emphasize the primary melody note that was “landed on” prior to the space between melodic phrases. This not only lls time, but also emphasizes the melody. A few comments on the arrangement: Measures 18, 26 and 32 are played out of the F-shape G chord on strings 2, 3 and 4, leaving the middle string (G) open. Start the slide with your ring nger and you’re all set to drop your index on the 2nd string note. Measures 20, 28 and 30 are played out of the F-shape G chord on strings 1, 2 and 3. Start the slide with your middle nger and then drop your index to barre the rst two strings when you nish the slide. The second half of measure 31 uses a D-shape D chord on strings 2, 3 and 4. use your middle nger on the 2nd string, your index on the 3rd string 2nd fret, and your ring nger for hammering on the 3rd string 4th fret.
the strongest melody note, so that can be a nice touch. I’ll repeat my nal thoughts from the last column: it’s easy to look at tab and think, “well, I need to play two forward rolls plus one note, or two notes, or whatever.” But it’s much better to do this:
1. Get the melody in your head. Sing it. Play the simple melody on the guitar, making sure you leave the right amount of time between phrases (as in the rst arrangement of “Circle” presented here). 2. When the melodic phrase stops and you play a roll to ll the time, play the roll as long as you need in order to ll the empty space. When it’s time for another melodic phrase, leave off the roll and start the melodic phrase as you would have if you had simply left that time open. You can leave off playing the roll whenever you need to in order to start the next melodic phrase at the proper time (as if you were singing it). Leaving an eighth or quarter-rest to give you time to get to your melody note is ne. Sing, count, or use a metronome: just be sure that you can hear, in your mind’s ear, where the melody is. When the melody stops for a while, ll the time with a roll. When the melody starts up again, then stop the roll and play the simple melody.
3. Two rules for choosing the roll: stay in the chord, and start the roll on the melody note you’re emphasizing. I hope this works for you. Try it with your favorite songs. Play the basic melody nice and slow, and work on lling the empty spaces with a simple roll, based in the chord. Let me know how it goes! Kathy Barwick plays banjo, resophonic guitar, and acoustic bass, and has performed over the years with various bluegrass bands. A founding member of The All Girl Boys, Kathy now plays resophonic guitar with Mountain Laurel, a bluegrass band based in the Grass Valley area of northern California (www.mountainlaurel.us). Kathy is the guitarist in an Irish band: Nine-8ths Irish (www.nine8thsirish.com). And, realizing that the trio needed a good foundation, Kathy recently switched to acoustic bass in the Mike Justis band, a folk trio: www. myspace.com/themikejustisband A Sacramento resident, Kathy teaches at music camps and gives private lessons on guitar, resophonic guitar, banjo, and bass. She welcomes your feedback and/ or comments; you can contact her at [email protected], and visit on the web at http://myspace.com/kathybarwick.
Pick direction: I didn’t indicate any pick direction for this piece. You can play the rolls in DDU or DUDU, they both work. Notice though that the DDU pattern can place a nice emphasis on the rst note of the roll, which is often Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
37
Will The Circle Be Unbroken Arranged by Kathy Barwick (Melody)
Audio CD Track 25 & 26
G
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Will the Circle Be Unbroken (with crosspicking rolls)
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
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July/August 2010
Will The Circle Be Unbroken (with crosspicking rolls — con’t)
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39
THE
O
Morrison’s Jig “Morrison’s” (as it’s most commonly known in Irish music circles) is a beautiful jig that sits beautifully on the guitar. Though often played very fast, it sounds best to my ear at slower tempos. (Due to its frequent deployment as manic ddle fodder “Morrison’s” sometimes loses its dark beauty and becomes almost a caricature of itself—a sad fate for any tune.) One interesting feature of “Morrison’s” is its AAB structure: the B-part is twice as long as the A (that is, the tune is asymmetrical) so it gets played through just once. My arrangement takes us twice through the tune, starting with a basic version and then getting more ornamented. Technically
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speaking this arrangement can be seen as a study in second position ngering, where the index nger handles the 2nd fret, the middle the 3rd and the pinky the 4th. (The tab notes the few exceptions.) Thus it is an excellent piece for any of you who are just starting to think about playing up the neck. Also keep in mind that there are a of couple spots in the second version where you will need to barre your index nger across the 4th and 5th strings (while also keeping your pinky down on the 4th fret of the 3rd). As can never be stressed too much, the foundational pick-stroke pattern for jigs is down-up-down down-up-down , with a slight accent on the rst down. Whenever you see a group of three notes joined in the music or tab that’s how they should be played. There are also many instances in which the rst note of that three-beat sequence is two beats long, eliminating the up stroke. Play those instances as down (pause) down . If you substitute one two three for down (pause) down that should give you the feel of it. Likewise seeing these two picking patterns side-by-side may help clarify things: down-down down-up-down down-down down-up-down.) The other notable technical element is the extensive use of grace notes (mostly pull-offs) in the second version. This is a standard Irish embellishment which sounds like a triplet but is actually a very fast doublet. And note that these are purely lefthand embellishments; nothing changes on the right hand. You pick it exactly the same as if the grace notes were not there. Lastly, the E note which commences the rst phrase of the tune (and which is also repeated at the top of measures 3 and 5) sounds best when quickly muted after it is picked (aka played stacatto). I’m aware that many meat-and-potatoes flatpickers probably consider jigs alien terrain. But I also know that tunes which take you out of your comfort zone can expand your playing. And this isn’t just any tune; it’s a classic.
One area in which Irish tunes distinguish themselves from American tunes—which I nd very amusing—is the vast number of alternative titles that almost every one seems to have. “Morrison’s” is also known as “Cry of the Celtic,” “Jim Morrison’s,” “Maurice Carmondy’s Favorite,” “Morrison’s Aaron,” “The Stick Across The Hob,” and “Tom Carmondy’s Favorite.” Jim Morrison was an inuential Irish ddler and music instructor who lived in NYC for many years after emigrating in his youth. One of his friends was interviewed after Jim’s passing and observed “He was a real gentleman, very jolly, you know, and good company. If Morrison came into your house and started playing the ddle, you could sit down ‘till morning listening to him.” Orrin Star (www.orrinstar.com) is an award-winning guitar, banjo, and mandolin player based in the Washington, DC area. The 1976 National Flatpicking Champion, he has toured and recorded widely, is the author of Hot Licks for Bluegrass Guitar, and performs mostly solo and duo. He offers private music instruction both in person and online.
Tim May
Find My Way Back www.fgmrecords.com 800-413-8296
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Favorite Scales & Exercises — Part 3 by Dix Bruce In the last issue we explored some major scale positions, moved them around, played them in different patterns, and used them as warm-ups and exercises. In this issue we’ll move on to minor scales and things will get a bit more complicated. Unlike the major scale which has only one form, the minor scale has three forms: natural, harmonic, and melodic. The natural minor scale is built on the sixth tone of its relative major scale. Look at the keyboard shown below. The C major scale is played on the white keys and includes the notes: C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8
The C Major Scale 1/2 step
1/2 step
C# b
1 C
2 D
3 E
4 F
5 G
6 A
8
B
C
1/2 step
1/2 step
Whole step
7
E
The lower and upper C notes are one octave or eight notes apart. The sixth tone of the C major scale is A. The relative minor scale of C major is A natural minor. It has the same notes as the C major scale, it just starts and ends on the A notes instead of the C notes. It looks like this: The A Natural Minor Scale
1/2 step
1/2 step
while. Or, as they say in Texas, “This won’t hurt a bit, did it?” Just like with any major scale, we can form chords from the notes of the natural minor scale. The i (“one”), iv (“four”), v (“ve”) chords implied by the A natural minor scale are Am (i), Dm (iv), and Em (v). The problem, at least theoretically, is that we don’t have a major dominant V chord or an E7, just a minor v or Em. Without a major dominant V chord (E7 in the case of A natural minor) we can’t build tension with a V dominant and resolve back to a i (“one minor”) or I (“one major”) chord. Our progression won’t have any pull, energy, or movement. That’s ne in certain types of songs, particularly in traditional modal songs, but for most songs in minor keys, we’ll want a dominant V chord to provide tension and movement in the progression. The reason we can’t make an E7 chord from the A natural minor scale is that the scale is missing one necessary chord tone, the G#. To make an E7 chord we need the notes E, G#, B, and D. The seventh tone of the A natural minor scale is G natural. However, if we raise the G natural by 1/2 step to G#, then we can make the E7 chord and the world will be a happy place. When we raise the seventh tone of a natural minor scale, it becomes a harmonic minor scale, the second form of the minor scale. The recipe for a harmonic minor scale is 1-2-3-4-5-6-#7-8. Here are the notes of the A harmonic minor scale: A-B-C-D-E-F-G#-A 1-2-3-4-5-6-#7-8
C# b
1 A Whole ste
2 B
3 C
4 D
5 E
6 F
7
8
G
A
1/2 ste
The notes of the A natural are: A-B-C-D-E-F-G-A 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8
This next part is a little confusing if you’re not used to thinking in terms of music theory. Don’t worry if you don’t understand it all right now. It will make more sense after you’ve worked with the concepts for a
While the raised seventh in the harmonic minor scale allowed us to have a dominant V chord, it introduced another issue: the large interval, an augmented second or three half steps, between the 6th and #7th tones. In the case of A harmonic minor the notes are F and G#. Composers working hundreds of years ago didn’t think that interval allowed for smooth melodic writing, especially for vocalists. So they decided to do something about it: they left the raised 7th tone and also raised the 6th tone by 1/2 step, but only ascending. The descending scale reverted to the natural minor. The recipe for a melodic
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
minor scale is 1-2-3-4-5-#6-#7-8 ascending, 8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 descending. Let’s compare the three forms of the minor scale: Natural Minor: A-B-C-D-E-F-G-A 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8
Harmonic Minor: A-B-C-D-E-F-G#-A 1-2-3-4-5-6-#7-8
Melodic Minor (ascending): A-B-C-D-E-F#-G#-A 1-2-3-4-5-#6-#7-8
Melodic Minor (descending) A-G-F-E-D-C-B-A 8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Personally, I haven’t found a lot of uses for the melodic minor scale. After all, I am just a poor country boy, but that’s a story for another time. I have used the natural and harmonic minors, especially the harmonic minor, quite a bit and nd them an essential part of my repertoire. The harmonic minor scale is used in songs in minor keys that include a dominant V chord. “St. James Infirmary,” “House of the Rising Sun,” “What Child is This?,” “Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho,” “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen,” and “We Three Kings,” are examples. Let’s learn how to play all three forms of the minor scale. We’ll start with a two octave A natural minor scale (see page 45). Fingerings are shown between the standard notation and the tablature. We’ll identify each position by the nger we use to play the root or rst note of scale. This position starts with the 4th nger. Just like major scales, you can start minor scales with any fretting nger and each will dene a slightly different position. It’s important to work through them all. There are no open string notes in this A natural minor scale so you can move it up and down the ngerboard. Whatever note you play rst will name the scale. For example, if you move this scale up (“up” in pitch toward the bridge) two frets or two half-steps and your rst note is a B, 43
the scale will be B natural minor. If you go back to the original A natural minor scale and move it down (“down” in pitch toward the nut) one fret or one half-step and your rst note is Ab or G#, the scale will be Ab or G# natural minor. Let’s look at the same A natural minor scale with the root note played by the 2nd nger (A natural minor scale #2 shown on the next page). This will dene another slightly different A natural minor scale position but one with the same notes. Be sure to try playing scales beginning with your 2nd and 3rd ngers too. As I mentioned in the first column, the shape of the scale is probably more important to know than the individual note names, though note names ate useful also. Memorize the shapes of the natural minor scale positions and understand how to move them to different locations on the ngerboard. Let’s modify both of these natural minor positions by raising the seventh tone and changing the scale from natural minor to harmonic minor. As you play through the harmonic minor scale you may notice a bit of a middle eastern sound (see the harmonic minor scales 1 and 2 shown on the next page). To make the melodic minor scale positions we modify the natural minor positions by raising both the 6th and 7th tones ascending but leave the natural minor notes descending. These scales can be nger twisters. (See melodic minor scales shown on page 46). Now that we’ve dened the three forms of the minor scale, natural, harmonic, and melodic, let’s work through a few patterns and variations that we can use as exercises. In the last two columns we applied similar patterns and variations to the major scale to create exercises. We won’t re-visit every one of them with all three minor forms, so I suggest you review the last column and apply all the major variations to all the minor forms. Most importantly, move all the exercises up and down the ngerboard taking the time to identify the names of each scale. Exercise 1 (on page 47) uses a pattern of 1, 3, 2, 4, 3, 5, etc., skipping every other note ascending and descending. It’s shown here on the natural minor scale with the fourth nger playing the root. Try this same pattern on all three forms, all positions, moving it up and down the ngerboard to different keys. 44
Exercise 2 (page 47) uses the A harmonic minor scale and a pattern of 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3, 4, 2, 3, 4, 5, 3, etc. You’ll play the root with your second nger. In exercise 3 (page 48) we’ll move the A melodic minor scale up three frets, one and one-half steps. You’ll play the root with your fourth nger and the result will be a C melodic minor scale. It’s arranged with a triplet pattern: 1, 2, 3, 2, 3, 4, 3, 4, 5, and so on. I usually use down-up-down, down-updown pick directions on triplets. Try these variations: 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 3, 4, 5, etc. 1, 2, 3, 4, 2, 3, 4, 5, 3, 4, 5, 6, etc. When you have the scales and variations memorized, play each scale and variation about one thousand times. Repeat as necessary. Of course I’m exaggerating but I think you get my point. Play them slowly to give your brain and ngers a chance to learn. Mix major and minor scales ascending and descending. For example, play a major scale ascending and one of the minors descending. Do the same thing with mixing the patterns. Play a major or minor scale ascending, move up or down a half step and descend. Ditto with all forms of the minor scale. Experiment with other scales and modes and place the roots on all the other strings. The variations we’ve discussed are just a few of thousands you can use to better learn and understand the ngerboard. Good luck with your discoveries! Dix’s latest book/CD set is Christmas Favorites for Solo Guitar: Best Loved Traditional Songs for Bluegrass Guitar. You can’t start practicing too soon for the next holiday season! Especially all those songs that use the harmonic minor scale. Do n’t fo rge t his Pa rkin g Lot Pi cker ’s Songbook, Guitar Edition with over 215 great bluegrass, old time, and gospel songs, with music, chords, tab, lyrics and more, every song demonstrated on the two included CDs. www.musixnow.com
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Minor Scales and Exercises
Audio CD Tracks 31 to 36
Arranged by Dix Bruce
A Natural Minor Scale #1
4
T A B
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2 2 2
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A Natural Minor Scale #2
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A Harmonic Minor Scale #1
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T A B
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A Harmonic Minor Scale #2
2
T A B
4
1
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4
1
3
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1
4 3 3 5
5
6
7
7
7
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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45
Minor Scales and Exercises (con’t) A Melodic Minor Scale #1
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T A B
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A Melodic Minor Scale #2
2
T A B
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4 4 3 5
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Minor Scales and Exercises (con’t)
Audio CD Tracks 37 to 42
Exercise 1: Natural Minor Exercise
4
T A B
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Exercise 2: Harmonic Minor Exercise
2
T A B
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
47
Minor Scales and Exercises (con’t) Harmonic Minor Exercise (con’t) 5
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Exercise 3: Melodic Minor Exercise 3
T A B
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4 1 2 1 2 4 2 4 1 4 1
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4 3 4 1 4 1 3 1 3 4
3 4 2 4 2 4 2 4
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48
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July/August 2010
Music Theory:
Mastering the Fingerboard Technical Studies for Flatpickers by Michel A. Maddux Western Music, the Circle of Fourths, and the Steel String Dreadnaught Guitar
Western music is the music of the West, meaning that it is not from China or India. Whether bluegrass, jazz, blues, or rock, Western music can be analyzed using the Circle of Fourths, also called the Circle of Fifths. For example, consider a song that uses the chords G-C-D, a standard I-IV-V song, like the great bluegrass standard, “Your Love is Like a Flower.” The I chord is the G, followed by the IV chord (the C), followed by the V chord (the D), and the song then resolves back to the I. You can probably name many songs that use this simple musical formula, and that are fun to play and good music. As a review, the notes in a scale are numbered 1 through 8. For the C major scale the notes are C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C. The rst note (C) is the root or tonic, and is the rst note of the scale. The eighth note is the octave, the rst note repeated an octave higher. Count up the notes in the scale and you nd that the IV chord or the fourth note in the scale is the F and the V chord is the fth note in the scale, a G. Look at the diagram of the Circle of Fifths shown on page 51. When you travel to the left around the circle, the intervals are a fourth apart, when you read to the right, they are a fth apart, so the circle is called both the “Circle of Fourths” and the “Circle of Fifths.” The keys that are next to each other in the circle are closely related. Notice that there is a difference of only one sharp or at in adjacent key signatures. At the top of the circle is the key of C major, without sharps or ats. The keys that make up the I-IV-V sequence are C-F-G: C has no sharps or ats, F has one at, and G has one sharp. Notice that they are arranged on either side of the key of C: the IV chord falls to the left of the I chord and the V chord falls to the right of the I chord.
This arrangement is consistent for every key. For example, look at the key of G . The chord to the left (C) is the IV chord or 4th scale degree; the key to the right is the key of D, which is the V chord or 5th scale degree of G. In a similar manner, for the key of F, the key to the left is the IV chord (Bb) and the key to the right is the V chord (C). Because this is so fundamental to Western music I want you to learn, memorize, and practice playing the chords and scales that follow around the Circle of Fourths. Standard Tuning for the Guitar As you learn the scales and changes for the Circle of Fourths, you will understand the logical arrangement of the tuning of the steel-string guitar. For example, when the root of the chord is on the 6th string, the IV chord is directly above on the 5th string, as in G rst-position chord; the C chord and C scale root is directly above the G note on the fth string. When the root of the chord is on the 5th string, the IV chord is directly above on the 4th string: the root of F is on the 4th string, directly above the C note on the 5th string. Exercises and Patterns to Circumnavigate the Circle In the exercise for this issue, I have presented some ideas on playing scales in the order of the Circle of Fourths. As you play through them, watch your down-ups, and be certain to practice with a metronome to be consistent in your timing and sound production. Each note is important, so play them evenly, with good tone. Remember to accent the rst of each group of four notes, and don’t try to play too fast. The speed comes after you have mastered the exercises. Quality Before Quantity! Notice a few things about this exercise. First, it plays through all 12 chromatic changes without stopping. Notice that each new scale and key adds a at or sharp or removes a at or sharp but only differs from the previous scale by one note. That makes it sound right as you play through the progressions, and that is why the I-IV-V
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
sequence works: only one note is different between the keys! Notice also that if you can play through all 12 keys in rst and second position, you can do this in any position on the ngerboard (see my previous FGM columns on the 7-scale patterns and playing in all 12 keys). Practice playing through the exercises with the CD to get used to hearing these different scales. Memorize and practice playing through the basic chords for all 12 keys in the Circle of Fourths. Notice another thing; the relative minor for the major is the same key signature that starts on the minor note. For example, A minor is the relative to C Major (no sharps or ats). Move one key to the left, a fourth scale degree from A is D, and you add a at, which is the same key signature as F major, but you have D minor. This is also why you will often hear musicians substitute D minor for F, and A minor for C. Add another at, by moving to the key of Bb major, you get a fourth above D minor, which is G minor, and so on. The circle works for both major and minor! About the Tune For this column, the break is for a song that’s a great bluegrass standard; “Your Love is Like A Flower.” One of the very rst songs that I learned to play and sing with a bluegrass band, I learned it from the Bluegrass Album Band, with Tony Rice singing lead and playing the guitar break. Play through the break slowly until you have it under your ngers perfectly, and then speed it up to performance tempo and you’ll have another great tune “in the bag!” Just for fun, I have used substitution chords from the Circle of Fourths to make the solo interesting, by playing through the relative minor and alternate major chords to return to the tonic via the Bmin7-Aminor7-D-G changes. For the key of G, these play the iii-ii-V-I change.
Have fun, and keep on pickin’! 49
Your Y our Love is Like a Flower (con’t)
G
A m7
26
let ring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
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GRANGER’S FIDDLE TUNES for GUITAR
COMPANION CDs
for
You can learn a tune a week for ten years (by then, you’ll have forgot
Granger’s Fiddle Tunes for Guitar tunes in
plus p&h
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
53
PICKIN’ FIDDLE TUNES
photo here
across six guitar strings—and in the case of this readership, that’s all of us— for our therapists to deal with (and possibly the police, if the term has been Our focus here is on the positive aspects of our craft, not the frustrat picks (made from grandma’s old hairbrush, of course: no tortoises were in will be the old chestnut Old Joe Clark , also known more rarely as Georgia Buck ABOUT VARIATIONS
Our study of variations will take the same form St Anne’s Reel : stuff that’s not recognizable as the tune, I’d say we’re the tune, which is sort of different: that’s what I do if I don’t know the melody, or when I’ve played the tune so much (in a lengthy back-and-forth with another player, turf which has nothing to do with the tune except that I Old Joe Clark A LITTLE TOUR
pick standards but legitimate nevertheless (and emi is played almost entirely with downstrokes, with the 54
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only upstrokes being one each in the fourth and eighth same thing and then, for variation three, a full-blown four goes down into the basement and returns to Quar the slides audible, as they are on my FGM Number eight is an at-times-slightly-dissonant variation involving a mix of parallel fourths and harmonic make us sound like we don’t know what we’re d oing or like we’ve been to Juilliard—or maybe both—but they make life a little more interesting and they wake up any begin to make sense, you can add your own variations for Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
OLD JOE CLARK X 8 I
Audio CD Track 48
KEY: G or A (Ca po 2)
II
I II
IV
V
VI
VII
VIII
and in the morning you can wake up bright and fresh and create your own variations for the B part of Old Joe Clark
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
55
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Daydreams
Audio CD Track 49
Written by William Bay
Drop D Tuning 6 =D Slowly, With Expression
0
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' 2009 by Mel Bay Publications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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Daydreams (con’t)
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Daydreams (con’t)
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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Great Blasket Island
Here is a tune I wrote which hasn’t yet been recorded on CD, but is available as a YouTube clip from a 2008 performance (and the soundtrack is provided on this issue’s CD). It’s a three-part tune in the unusual (for Irish style music) key of C#m, but a very comfortable key on guitar which eventually resolves to the key of E (the home of rock and roll)! “Great Blasket Island” is a beautiful place off the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, on the southwest coast of Ireland. It was depopulated in 1953, but served as home for some hearty people, including several famous Irish authors. I wrote the tune with this place in mind. It’s not a traditional style Irish tune, but certainly contains elements of “trad” along with whatever I happened to be hearing the day I wrote it. A YouTube search for “John McGann Great Blasket Island” will get you to the clip, which features the great Donegal ddler Oisin Mcauley (of the group Danu) and Jim Kelly on guitar, with yours truly doubling the melody. There are a few position shifts involved in this to make the ngering and articulation comfortable, but nothing higher than 4th
position (rst nger at the 4th fret). There are plenty of open E and B string notes to facilitate the shifts. Enjoy! John McGann (www.johnmcgann.com) is a Professor at Berklee College of Music, and among other mandolin-oriented duties, is leading a Bluegrass Guitar Lab, Django Guitar Lab, Gypsy Jazz Ensemble, and Celtic Music Ensemble. He tours and records with The Wayfaring Strangers, The Boston Edge, and a new group with Julian Lage. His DVDs Rhythm Tune Up and Rhythm Mandolin and books Sound Fundamentals and Developing Melodic Variations on Fiddle Tunes are receiving great accolades. You can check out his custom transcription service, in which you can have any music of your choice notated, at the above web address. Drop by the web site for lots of great free technique tips for atpickers.
Learn the tunes and solos of your choice,in any format. At your own speed! The Original Custom Transcription Service
All styles and instruments: atpicking, ngerstyle, ddle tunes, bluegrass, swing, jazz I can also create custom arrangements. Private lessons available via cassette, custom tailored to your needs–learn crosspicking, variations, improvisation, rhythm styles, repertoire Berklee graduate, professional recording and performing artist. Tab and/or standard notation. Details and atpicking tips on the Web:
http://www.johnmcgann.com
John McGann
P.O. Box 230267 Boston, Ma.. 02123
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
Great Blasket Island
Audio CD Track 50
Arranged by John McGann C#m
C#m
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A
B
3
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Great Blasket Island (con’t)
B/D#
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New Standards for Flatpicking Guitar Original Flatpicking Guitar Tunes Performed in Duo by Many of Today’s Top Pickers Call 800-413-8296 www.flatpickingmercantile.com 62
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July/August 2010
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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CD Highlight
Jon Stickley: Lions by Dan Miller In every sideman’s career there comes a time when she or he needs to step out and record a solo CD. Some move forward and get it done. Others are always “working on it.” Jon Stickley—who has performed with Big Fat Gap, Broke Mountain, The Colorado Playboys, the Biscuit Burners, New Vintage, and Shannon Whitworth—is one of those side guys who went ahead and nished his solo project. And I’m happy that he did because his CD, Lions, is full of great original music. When you are handed a CD that is mostly original music from a guy who spends all of his time on the road as a sideman, you are never really sure what you are going to get. Some stay true to their roots while others try to push the envelope. Some present a consistent theme and feel, while others jump from one genre to the next in an effort to expose all of their diverse musical interest and talent on one disc. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t. To me, Jon’s CD was pleasing on all accounts. There is variety without too much diversity and he displays his multidimensional talent and forward-looking musical perspective while remaining true to traditional acoustic roots. There is a nice mix of instrumentals and vocals and, for the most part, the CD presents a traditional acoustic music groove, yet features some progressive picking and musical expression. The three or four tunes that move outside the scope of traditional bluegrass do so in a way that maintains cohesion with the more traditional and “hard core” cuts. There is a lot here that traditional bluegrass enthusiasts will love, but there is also something for newgrass and new acoustic music fans to latch onto. It is all good music and to me the tie that binds is the overall great feel and groove. Jon plays all of the guitar and mandolin parts on the recording. He also does some of the singing and plays most of the bass parts. On all cuts he is joined by his longtime friend and musical partner Andy Thorn on banjo and Bobby Britt on ddle. Russell Johnson adds both lead and harmony singing to select tracks and Miles Andrews sings lead on one tune. Charlie Rose plays bass on a few tracks and Jon’s brother 64
Jeff adds a second guitar on two tunes. Jon’s picking displays maturity beyond his years. While there are ashes of the Tony Rice inuence here and there in his guitar playing, overall, Jon has developed his own sound. He is denitely someone to keep and eye on in the future. Jon Stickley’s earliest exposure to music came from singing in the Yates Baptist Church children’s choir starting at the age of six. He feels like the choir experience was formative as it helped him begin learning what music was all about and developed his ability to hear harmony. By the age of eight Jon was also taking piano lessons. He stuck with that for about four years, but by the age of 12 he was playing the electric guitar. His father knew how to play a few things on the guitar and taught Jon the chords to “Twist and Shout,” but Jon was soon learning how to pound out power chords to Nirvana songs. Although he was self-taught through junior high, Jon started taking guitar lessons during his freshman year of high school in his hometown of Durham, North Carolina. He said, “My teacher’s name was Michael ‘Hawk’s Eye’ Pope. He was very much into the Zen side of music. He taught me classical music and some ngerstyle folk and blues. He taught the fundamentals of guitar like Mr. Miyagi taught karate in the Karate Kid movie. He had a very disciplined approach to practice. He would teach us stuff like nger exercises and then supervise while we practiced. When he taught a new song he taught just the rst measure until you learned it well. Then he would teach the second measure until you got that down.
Then he would teach you to connect those two measures. It was a very step-by-step approach.” Jon studied with “Hawk’s Eye” through his senior year in high school. During high school Jon met and became friends with Andy Thorn (currently with the Emmitt-Nershi Band). Andy played lacrosse with Jon’s brother, Jeff, and he also took lessons from Hawk’s Eye Pope on both guitar and Scruggs-style banjo. It was through his friendship with Andy that Jon began exploring bluegrass music. Jon said, “Andy signed up for an open mic night and needed someone to back him up. He gave me a mandolin and showed me the chords. Around the same time he also gave me the first David Grisman Quintet album and we started exploring bluegrass together.” During high school Jon also played drums in a “dark emo” rock band with some kids in the neighborhood. Additionally, Andy Thorn, Jon, and Jon’s brother Jeff started performing as an acoustic band called Crawdad PA. After graduation from high school Jon moved to Raleigh, North Carolina, to study at North Carolina State. Academically he worked on a degree in Parks and Recreation. His picking buddy Andy attended UNC. Musically Jon and Andy both “dove into bluegrass” and started going to jam sessions. During their college years Jon and Andy both played in a band called Big Fat Gap. They played at weekly bar gigs and performed at frat parties. Jon said, “Hammering it out three or four nights a week at bar gigs I started getting some chops. I also started meeting a lot of great local pickers, such as Ryan Cavanaugh, John Garris, Rex McGee [all former members of Big Fat Gap]. These guys blew my mind.” Big Fat Gap, led and kept together by Miles Andrews, is an ongoing band whose members tend to come and go. In total the band has had about 30 members over the years. Many members have gone on to win multiple instrument championships and play with big name nationally touring bluegrass and newgrass bands. Their website states, “Big Fat Gap is a back porch bluegrass band that has no plans to take Nashville by storm. Some of them even have day jobs. They just like to pick, they like each other,
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
and it shows. Their shows are known to be excellent for those who enjoy sweet three-part harmonies, smoking solos, and captivating stage dynamics. Their fun performances bring loyal fans back for more.” Jon said, “Playing in the Big Fat Gap is the most fun I’ve ever had. I think the audience can tell when we play shows that we are having the time of our lives.” Jon performed steadily with the band during his four years at college (2000-2004) and still occasionally performs with the band when he is back in the Raleigh-Durham area. After graduating from college, Jon followed Andy Thorn out to Durango, Colorado, and joined a band called Broke Mountain. The members of Broke Mountain included Travis Book on bass, Andy Thorn on banjo, Robin Davis on mandolin, Anders Beck on Dobro, and Jon on guitar. Jon said, “In those days Andy was the gateway to all my bluegrass experiences. He went out to Durango to meet up with some friends at a ski resort. While he was there he met Travis, Anders, and Robin at Canyon Music. He called me and asked if I’d come out and be part of the new band.” Although the band had achieved some notoriety in Colorado, and won the Rockygrass band contest, they broke up when several of the members accepted jobs in nationally touring bands. After Broke Mountain, Jon joined the Colorado Playboys for “a couple of winter tours.” That band consisted of John Frazier on mandolin, Jon Stickley on guitar, Travis Book on bass, and Andy Thorn on banjo. Although the band did record a six-song EP, the band was short lived and restricted to winter touring as all of the band’s members were busy touring in the summer with other bands: John Frazier with Hit and Run Bluegrass, Travis Book with the Infamous Stringdusters, Jon Stickley with the Biscuit Burners, and Andy Thorn with Larry Keel and Natural Bridge. In 2005, Jon moved to Asheville, North Carolina, and joined the Biscuit Burners on mandolin. He stayed with the group for only one year, but it was the band’s busiest year. They toured extensively throughout the country and built a good size fan base. After Jon’s first year with the Biscuit Burners Jon and Shannon Whitworth left the group. Shannon started her own group and Jon continues to play guitar in her band. He also spent a brief stint with a “hard core” bluegrass band out of Raleigh, North Carolina, called New Vintage. When Jon and Shannon rst left the Biscuit Burners they were performing as a duet and
moving towards a “mellower” style of music. Later Matt Smith joined the band on pedal steel and they have also included several different bass players and a drummer. Jon plays both acoustic and electric guitar in the band. Shannon plays clawhammer banjo, uke, and guitar to accompany her songwriting and unique and captivating voice. Regarding his work with the band, Jon said, “The coolest part of being in this band is that when I’m performing with them it feels like we’re painting a picture. It is a beautiful, smooth sound and the band is all in the same headspace. Shannon sings richly and softly and so it forces me to emulate that sound. You can’t afford to overplay in this setting. It has been a great experience for me. I consider myself a bluegrass guitar player and so I spent time in previous bands playing a lot of notes as fast as I could. Playing in this band I’ve gained a new dimension. It has really increased my sensitivity level, so I’m now learning how to combine sensitivity and power.” On his solo CD, Lions, Jon aptly presents a combination of sensitivity and power in his approach to his song selection, writing, arrangement, and performance. In fact, “a combination of sensitivity and power” is a very good descriptive phrase for Lions. Songs like “Please Be My Love,” “Thunder Road,” “Sparkin’ It,” “Piedmont Foothills,” and “Steamboatin’” have a lot of power and energy while others, like “Sticks,” “Temperamental,” “Lions,” and “Ghostwood” display sensitivity. Other songs, like “Della’s Walk” and “You Don’t Love Me Anymore” combine both sensitivity and power. This combination is one of the things that makes this CD very interesting and captivating. Lions was recorded over three weeks in November of 2008 and was released in early 2009. Jon said that he had written six or seven tunes over the course of nine years that he had been performing with various bands. His original vision for the solo CD was to have it be a retrospective of those songs and tunes. He added a few newer tunes to the mix to bring the selection up to
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
Jon Stickley eleven total tracks. The CD’s liner notes lists the guitars that Jon plays on this recording: 1936 Martin D-28, 1934 Martin D-18, 1937 Martin D-18, and a 1955 Martin D-18. That is quite a collection! Jon said that all but the 1955 Martin D-18 were borrowed from the studio owner, Jerry Brown. If you want to hear some great old guitars played expertly, I highly recommend Lions. On this issue’s audio CD we have included a cut from Lions titled “Steamboatin’.” Jon said that this tune was written by Andy Thorn while Andy was riding the Delta Queen and playing with the Steep Canyon Rangers. Regarding his two solos on this tune Jon said, “The rst solo is more melody, the second is more Tony Rice.” Jon admits to have “ripped off Tony Rice the most” when he was rst learning how to atpick. Since then he has also been inuenced by Larry Keel, Bryan Sutton, and Django Reinhardt. Lately he said that he has been listening more to Clarence White, Doc Watson, and Norman Blake. He said, “These guys are the absolute masters and have techniques that atpickers should be studying.” We have presented Jon’s transcription to his rst solo on “Steamboatin’” on the next page. 65
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Flatpicking Essentials Volume 2: Learning How to Solo— Carter Style and Beyond The second book in the Flatpicking Essentials series teaches you how to arrange solos for vocal tunes by teaching you how to: 1) Find the chord changes by ear. 2) Find the melody by ear. 3) Learn how to arrange a Carter Style solo. 4) Learn how to embellish the Carter Style solo using one or more of the following techniques: bass runs; hammer-ons, pull-offs, slides, & bends; tremelo; double stops; crosspicking; neighboring notes; scale runs and ll-licks. To Order: Even if you are a beginner you can learn how 800-413-8296 to create your own interesting solos to any vocal song. You’ll never need tab again! This material www.flatpickdigital.com will also provide you with the foundation for improvisation. www.flatpickingmercantile.com Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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Best of the First Ten Years Series on CD-Rom or digital download Flatpicking Guitar Magazine has released Five CD-Rom versions of the “Best of the First Ten Years” series. These CD-Rom compilations include Flatpicking Guitar Magazine articles that were published from November/December 1996 (Volume 1, Number1) through September/October 2006 (Volume 10, Number 6). All pages from each article are presented in Adobe Acrobat Portable Document File (.PDF) format. All CDs are completely indexed. The five discs in this series are arranged as follows:
Volume 1: Cover Story Articles and Tabs $14.95 This CD is the first in the series and contains all 60 cover story articles that Flatpicking Guitar published from November/December 1996 (Volume 1, Number 1) through September/October 2006 (Volume 10, Number 6). All pages from each article are presented in Adobe Acrobat Portable Document File (.PDF) format.
Volume 2: Rhythm Guitar Articles $14.95 This CD is the second in the series and contains all rhythm guitar articles (89 articles in all) and interviews (29 interviews) that Flatpicking Guitar published from November/December 1996 (Volume 1, Number 1) through September/October 2006 (Volume 10, Number 6). All pages from each article are presented in Adobe Acrobat Portable Document File (.PDF) format.
Volume 3: Guitar Builders, Guitar Building, and Guitar Reviews $14.95 This CD is the third in the series and contains all of the Guitar Builder Articles (over 50 builders featured) and Guitar reviews that were published from November/December 1996 (Volume 1, Number 1) through September/October 2006 (Volume 10, Number 6). As an extra bonus we have included a series of articles about guitar building that were written by Don Gallagher of the Gallagher Guitar Company.
Volume 4: Editor’s Picks Song Transcriptions $14.95 This CD is the fourth in the series and contains 147 song transcriptions that were chosen by the Editor from the issues of Flatpicking Guitar that were published from November/December 1996 (Volume 1, Number 1) through September/October 2006 (Volume 10, Number 6). All pages from each article are presented in Adobe Acrobat Portable Document File (.PDF) format.
Volume 5: Theory, Technique, and Guitar Exercises
$19.95
This CD-Rom contains 240 articles presented on 581 pages that pertain to many topics relating to guitar technique, theory, and exercises and were chosen by the Editor. This is the most extensive and comprehensi ve Volume in this series!
All Volumes are Available for Download at: www.flatpickdigital.com
Plus, Also Check Out Our Volume 1: Volume 2: Volume 3: Volume 4:
Flatpicking Styles Series:
Pioneers and Legends (127 Articles) $14.95 Irish and Canadian Tunes (58 Articles) $12.95 Gospel, Christmas, and Classical Tunes (84 Articles) $12.95 Blues, Jazz, & Swing (to include Gypsy Jazz and Western Swing) (158 Articles) $14.95
Each of these Volumes contains articles taken from our first 12 years of publication, presented in PDF format.
For More Information, visit www.flatpickingmercantile.com or www.flatpickdigital.com
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Reviews [Editor’s Note: The publication of Still Inside: The Tony Rice Story is a hallmark event for the atpicking world. It’s impact on readers may be as mixed as the possible variations on a single, standard ddle tune. To that end, I asked several of our regular contributors to provide reviews for the book. The goal was to provide a diversity of viewpoints and a diversity is what we got. One of our reviewers was unhappy with the way the book was presented. At the end of the reviews I will add my perspective on the negative comment and then allow you to obtain and read the book for yourself in order to make your own decision about this historical publication.]
Part of the challenge was the appropriate format. Most biographies are direct narratives. Biographers of contemporary subjects have the option of obtaining and including pertinent phrases from the subject, but Tim and Caroline came to realize—after transcribing hundreds of hours of interviews—that the best, most candid, and most eloquent “bard” of the Tony story was Tony himself. To provide jou rna lis tic balan ce, tho ugh, Tim and Caroline decided to include pertinent historical quotations. Eventually the format for each of the seven chapters coalesced: the first five chapters had a short narrative providing historical context; a lengthy discussion from Tony discussing that period in his life; and a series of quotations from musicians (and others) who worked with and had been around Tony during those times.
Still Inside: The Tony Rice Story Review by Chris Thiessen The cleaning of the Sistine Chapel’s ceiling frescoes in the 1980s and 90s was a reality check for art historians and critics who had ponticated for centuries about the “dark and moody” colors and tones Michelangelo used. The removal of 400+ years of accumulated grime and soot revealed the bold and vibrant colors Michelangelo intended. The change was so dramatic that the historians and critics—so sure of their opinions—called the restoration into question, even after the restorers conclusively demonstrated that these were the colors Michelangelo put on the plaster. Wouldn’t it have been really much easier if we had Michelangelo’s words: “this is how I really did it?” Certainly less traumatic. Still Inside: The Tony Rice Story has been a project of Tim Stafford for the past ten years, undertaken from beginning to end with the full support of Tony Rice. Laboriously researched, it is the denitive view of the rst 40 (or so) years in the career of one of the most inuential atpicking musicians of our time. We can consider the book Tim and Caroline’s way of making sure that the reality of Tony Rice is not overshadowed by our collective perceptions of Tony Rice, despite what we—as both guitarists and fans—may want to believe. Stafford and Wright are uniquely positioned to perform this service. In 2000, Tim Stafford approached Tony with the idea
for a denitive biography. Tony agreed, but schedules and life prevented the project from moving forward. Nevertheless, Tim continued his research. In 2003-2004, Caroline Wright (a former editor for Bluegrass Now and now a freelance musical journalist) was brought into the mix at the request of Pam Rice (Tony’s wife) based on a Rice interview Wright had previously published. A great balance was in place: Tim could provide the academic and technical viewpoint and Caroline the journalistic. Nevertheless, the project moved slowly towards publication.
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
1. Origins: Birth-1970 2. Summer Wages: Bluegrass Years 1970-1975 3. Gasology: Jazz Cats and Dawgs 1975-1981 4. Units of Measure: The Golden Years 1979-1988 5. Night Flyer: Transitions 1989-2009
The sixth chapter discusses Tony offstage and the seventh chapter is a special bonus for those consumed with technical details:
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6. The Man Behind the Curtain: TR Offstage 7. Me and My Guitar: The Antique & The Technique
who play guitar, but in seeing ourselves in him we also need to stand back and give him the room he needs to be just Tony Rice.
Appendices include a “cast of characters” in Tony’s life, an historical timeline, and a very complete discography of Tony’s 293 (to date) musical projects (just in case your Tony collection is missing an item or two). Overall, the book is an unorthodox, sometimes non-linear approach to an artist who embodies unorthodoxy and artistic non-linearity. Is this work going to appeal to and satisfy everyone? Probably not. Does it have to? No. Without a doubt, Still Inside is a significant work that helps us to better understand a monumental artist. But at the same time it helps ground us, to help us remember that the legendary Tony Rice is, after all, just a guy with his own problems; a highly professional musician with interests other than his guitar; a kid who started out with a guitar, a lot of spare time, a collection of LPs, and a record player. Tony’s intense personal focus has earned him international recognition. To a degree, Tony is all of us
Still Inside: The Tony Rice Story Review by Bryan Kimsey
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I received Still Inside and immediately set aside everything else, xed a cup of fresh ground Melitta-ltered coffee (I think Tony would approve), red up a bunch of Rice music, and plopped down to read. Several hours later, I came up for air with a new understanding and appreciation of Still Inside’s subject. Many things jumped out at me. First, I was struck by how serendipitous some of my favorite records were. Manzanita is banjo-less because JD Crowe had the u! Skaggs and Rice was recorded because Skaggs had a couple of days off from touring with Emmylou! Rounder Records didn’t think Church Street Blues was a good idea! Some of Tony’s favorite cuts were cut in the small hours under the inuence of adult beverages and herbs! And then there were the surprises. Backwaters was recorded mostly on an Ovation. Rounder 0044 [ JD Crowe and the New South] was done on the 1948 D-28. (I guess I should’ve known that since the Guitar album was also done on that guitar.) I know from Tone Poems that Rice can make anything sound good, but…but… those albums have some of my favorite “Rice tones”! My Antique bubble was burst. I loved the stories, too. The one where Tony loses his temper over a hot iron and then just as quickly settles down made me laugh because I can be a little like that. I had my wife read it and she chuckled and said “Okay, so you maybe you are a little bit like Tony Rice. Just a little bit, though.” The story of Tony calming a distraught Donna Hughes shows a very warm side of Rice, while some of the other stories show a moodier side. And who knew about the personal struggles that Rice was going through during the tour with the Bluegrass Album Band? Thanks to the stories and to the Road Trips section, I understand better Rice’s attitude toward live performances which previously were only legend and hearsay. Still Inside served up just one small disappointment. I would have really liked one more detail on the Antique. The action
on the guitar is stuff of legend and myth- is it low? Is it super-duper-low? Is it really kind of normal? I hear different things from different people and some quantitative specs would have made my day. That information isn’t going to make anyone play like Tony Rice, of course, but I’m curious. It’s like wanting to know a car’s transmission ratio. It’s useless information that’s quite important. The thing to do, I reckon, is just call Snuffy Smith and ask him. On the upside, the book gives excellent details on Tony’s playing technique, describing his unique thumb movements well. Again, none of us will ever be like that, but it’s interesting to read about and helps us understand why Tony’s playing sounds like it does (and why we’ll never quite imitate it). The format of the book is interesting and adds a lot of variety. It’s a bit like Rice’s own recording history—there’s the jazz stuff, the bluegrass stuff, the folky stuff, and if you get tired of one avor, you can listen to another. Likewise, the Road Trip tales show us how Rice operates, the quotes from the people around him give us a multi-faceted perspective (and not always attering), and then Rice’s own words give us an inside to his personal thoughts. Together, they make for a book worthy of multiple readings. I have read and skimmed the book several times now and am still picking up details that I missed on the previous read. Still Ins ide falls into the Essential Reading category for any atpicker.
Still Inside: The Tony Rice Story Review by David McCarty Since he burst onto the bluegrass music scene in the mid-1970s, Tony Rice has inspired awe and amazement among musicians in general and flatpicking guitarists in particular. Arguably the most copied and influential acoustic guitarist since Django Reinhardt, Rice’s utterly distinctive, powerful rhythm guitar style and jazz-tinged, lyrical lead lines have dened modern bluegrass guitar and set the stage for great young players like David Grier, Bryan Sutton, Kenny Smith, Tim Stafford and countless others. So when Still Inside: The Tony Rice Story was published earlier this year, its arrival was one of the most anticipated events of 2010 for those of us who love the music created by Rice with David Grisman, Sam
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Bush, the Bluegrass Album Band, his own Tony Rice Unit, and in numerous other settings. Over 315 pages of interviews, rst-person narrative, previously unpublished photos and other materials collected over a 10-year period of research, the book attempts to delve into not just the musical history of the famed guitarist, but also to explore his personal history and its impact on his music. And without a doubt, there’s an enormous amount of fascinating biographic material here. The authors, Tim Stafford of Blue Highway and a noted guitarist in his own right and Caroline Wright, a freelance journalist and former editor of Bl ue gr as s No w magazine, have adopted a three-pronged approach to presenting the material they’ve painstakingly collected. Written with the total cooperation of Rice, the book unfolds in a series of personal remembrances by Rice on key portions of his life and history. Supporting those narratives are rst-person accounts by Wright of her experiences spending time with Rice backstage, on the road and at his home where she was able to observe him at his most accessible. And nally, the authors have assembled an amazing collection of quotations from what seems like every major gure in bluegrass who has ever known or played with Rice, as well as comments from close associates and family members. Filled with great detail on his early family life, musical inuences and the start of his famous associations with J.D. Crowe, David Grisman, Sam Bush and others, Still Inside offers a rare glimpse into how the modern bluegrass scene developed out of those connections. The reader learns all about how key recording sessions went down, how Rice went from being a pure bluegrass master into the father of new acoustic guitar, and much more. Unfortunately, that’s the limit of this densely packed but ultimately unsatisfying work. The triple narrative approach proves distracting and obtuse, never really affording the reader a substantial picture of Rice the man. With all the material here, this is a project that screams out for the help of a professional book editor to deliver a coherent narrative ow. The sections with brief quotes offer individual insights, but are never merged into a unied portrait of the man. Wright’s rst-person accounts are shallow and lackluster; she never succeeds in peeling back any layers to reveal Rice’s inner core until literally the very last page.
Reading Still Inside, I couldn’t help but compare it to Richard D. Smith’s brilliant biography of Bill Monroe, Can’t You Hear Me Callin’. Following a similar approach of interviewing virtually every living band member and close associate, Smith stitches together these insights into a compelling, absorbing portrait of Monroe as a man and a musician. The youngest of three brothers, bullied and tormented as a child, and forced to play the mandolin only because no one else wanted it, Smith shows how Monroe emerged from those trials to create a domineering persona and to forge a musical style heard worldwide. Little of that, sadly, emerges here. Rice’s life history is catalogued with academic skill, but never illuminated or revealed as the core of his music, in my opinion. I nished the book with far more questions than when I started, feeling like a great opportunity had been missed. Despite its aws, Still Inside is still worth a read for anyone who’s been touched by Tony Rice’s music. Stafford’s chapter on his guitar technique is brilliant, and there’s great information on Rice’s disabling vocal condition and other key topics. But as a picture of one of modern acoustic music’s most towering gures, this book reads more like a textbook and not a true biography. Editor’s Comment: To add my two cents to this three-part review, I agree with Chris Thiessen that in formatting this book the authors took an “unorthodox, sometimes non-linear approach,” however, that did not bother me. I will also say that I do not agree with David McCarty’s assessment because what David is looking for in a biography is the exact opposite of what I want to see. When I read a biography I want more facts and data and less of the author’s opinions. I prefer the “textbook” approach. So, this book provided me with everything I had hoped it would contain because I was not looking for its authors to “stitch together insights.” I was very happy that they kept those insights to themselves. In talking with the book’s co-author, Tim Stafford, I learned that it was not the intention of this book to present a “unied portrait of the man.” Tim stated that when he reads a biography he doesn’t want to have to “peel away the biographer ’s layers of bias to get at the real man…” And let’s face it, all biographer’s have bias. Although David McCarty calls Smith’s Can’t You Hear Me Callin’ “brilliant,” many who knew Monroe
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disagree with Smith’s portrait of the man and say that Smith’s suppositions were off base at times. I feel that when a biographer inserts too much opinion and supposition a “unied portrait” cannot emerge. It is merely a portrait painted from the author ’s perspective. What Tim and Caroline do in Still Inside is present Tony Rice’s story as told to them directly by Tony Rice, his family members, and his closest friends. They present the facts and then allow you, the reader, to make your own decisions about Tony Rice “the man and the musician.” I would rather the author of a biography spend his or her time and effort collecting the information and presenting it directly and unedited—without
the lter of personal opinion, viewpoint, and ultimately his or her bias. I feel that this is what Tim and Caroline have done. I agree with Dave McCarty when he states that “Rice’s life history is catalogued with academic skill,” and for me that is really all I’m looking for in a biography. So, David and I were looking for different things and thus hold different opinions of this book, which is OK. Tony Rice is a giant gure in our world. He is a true atpicking legend and a hero to thousands of acoustic guitar players. People are passionate when it comes to their heroes and everyone carries preconceived notions, options, and expectations. So, this book will
effect Rice fans in different ways and each will have his or her own opinion, as we’ve seen here in our reviews. I want to thank our three reviewers for their honest assessment of the book. Some Tony Rice fans are going to love this book while others may be a little let down by its format and presentation. That can be expected. Regardless, it is an important and historic book and I feel like Tim Stafford and Caroline Wright have done the atpicking community a great service in presenting this information. They deserve the gratitude of our entire community for their hard work and dedication to this project. It belongs in every atpicker’s library.
“Flatpicking Styles” PDF Books! Due to the popularity of our “Best of the First Ten Years” PDF Book series we have produced another great series of compilation articles from the archives of Flatpicking Guitar Magazine (rst 12 years). This series, available on CD-Rom and digital download, focuses on atpicking styles as follows:
Volume One: Pioneers and Legends On this CD-Rom, containing 128 articles, we have compiled all of the articles from Flatpicking Guitar Magazine that have appeared during the rst twelve years of the magazine’s publication that pertain to the atpicking guitar styles of atpicking’s legends and pioneers. The Legends section includes articles relating to the guitar styles of: Clarence White (25 articles), Tony Rice (10 articles), Norman Blake (13 articles), Doc Watson (7 articles), Dan Crary (20 articles). The Pioneers section includes 17 articles relating to the Maybelle Carter style, plus articles that explore the styles of Hank Snow, Riley Puckett, Jimmy Martin, Jimmie Rodgers, Roy Harvey, Red Smiley, Charlie Monroe, the Delmore Brothers, George Shufer, Don Reno, Edd Mayeld, Arthur Smith, and many more (a total of 53 articles).
Volume Two: Irish, English, Scottish, British Isles, and Canadian On this CD-Rom, containing 75 articles, we have compiled all of the articles from Flatpicking Guitar Magazine that have appeared during the rst twelve years of the magazine’s publication that pertain to the atpicking guitar tunes that come to us from Ireland, England, Scottland, the British Isles, and Canada. Go to atpickingmercantile. com to see the song list.
Volume Three: Gospel, Christmas, and Classical Tunes On this CD-Rom, containing 85 articles, we have compiled all of the articles from Flatpicking Guitar Magazine that have appeared during the rst twelve years of the magazine’s publication that pertain to the atpicking guitar tunes that come to us from Gospel, Christmas, and Classical traditions. Go to atpickingmercantile.com to see the song list.
Volume Four: Blues, Swing & Jazz (to include Western Swing and Gypsy Jazz) On this CD-Rom, containing 168 articles, we have compiled all of the articles from Flatpicking Guitar Magazine that have appeared during the rst twelve years of the magazine’s publication that pertain to the Blues, Swing, and Jazz styles (to include Western Swing and Gypsy Jazz). The articles in this volume are grouped as follows: Blues:Articles with tunes (20 articles) Technique articles (8 articles) Swing & Jazz:Articles with tunes (39 articles) Technique articles (14 articles) Western Swing & Cowboy Music: Articles with tunes (38 articles) Technique articles (9 articles) Gypsy Jazz: Articles with tunes (23 articles)Technique articles (17 articles)
To Order, Call 800-413-8296 or visit:
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CLASSIFIEDS Classied ads will be accepted for guitar and musical related items @ 40¢ a word, 50¢ a word for bold lower case type, 60¢ a word for bold upper case type. Please call (800) 413-8296 to order, or send ad to High View Publications, P.O. Box 2160, Pulaski, VA 24301
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CLASSIFIEDS Flatpicking Essentials Instructional Series Ever feel like you’ve hit a wall in your practice or reached a plateau that you can’t get beyond? We can help you! The EightVolume Flatpicking Essentials Instruction Method, developed by Flatpicking Guitar Magazine editor Dan Miller, provides you with over 800 pages of information taught in a specific step-by-step sequence so that your atpicking knowledge and skill sets are complete, with no holes, or gaps. Starting with Volume One (Rhythm, Bass Runs, and Fill Licks), this series teaches you how to develop in an easy to follow graduated method. This course is available as spiral bound books with CD, or as digital downloads. For more information visit www.atpickingmercantile.com or www. atpickdigital.com.
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Guitars, Strings, and Accesories: DAN LASHBROOK ACOUSTIC GUITAR SET UP Custom Bridge Pins, Nuts, and Saddles. Neck Re-sets, Fret Jobs, Crack Repairs. Specializing in helping you get the best performance out of your guitar. Occasional high performance guitars for sale. [email protected] Call 828-649-1607
LANHAM GUITARS Handcrafted by Marty Lanham Available from Nashville Guitar Company www.nashguitar.com phone: 615-262-4891
EUPHONON COMPANY STRINGS First quality major manufacturer strings in bulk at fantastic savings. Same strings you buy in music stores, without the expensive packaging. Acoustic guitar sets: extra-light, light, or medium: 80/20 Bronze $31.50/ dozen, $20.00/half dozen; Phosphor Bronze $33.50/dozen, $21.00/half dozen. Post paid. Call for price larger quantities. Twelve string, electric guitar, banjo, mandolin, dulcimer, special gauges available. Request String Catalog. Euphonon also offers guitar repair and building supplies. Request Luthier’s Catalog. EUPHONON CO. PO Box 100F Orford NH 03777. 1-(888) 517-4678. www.hotworship.com/euphonon
Visit www.fgmrecords.com Specializing in Acoustic Guitar Music!
Flatpicking the Blues Book/DVD/CD Course by Brad Davis
Call 800-413-8296 to Order
In this course, Brad Davis shows you how to approach playing the blues using both theoretical and practical methods. You will learn how to play blues style rhythm, learn blues scales at several positions on the neck, and learn how to apply those “blues notes” in a free-form improvisational style over the twelve-bar blues progression. This section increases your knowledge of the guitar ngerboard as it relates to the blues and provides you with a method for increasing your improvisational skills. Brad then examines common blues phrasing, technique, and standard blues licks and demonstrates how to apply them. He also shows examples of licks played in the style of great blues guitarists and even demonstrates how Bill Monroe’s blues licks on the mandolin can be incorporated on the guitar. This course also includes blues ear training. In addition to teaching you how to play straight blues, Brad also demonstrates and teaches how you might take tunes that you may already know from the standard atpicking repertoire and spice them up with blues licks. If you are tired of playing atpicked ddle tunes and bluegrass songs the same old way you will greatly appreciate Brad’s instruction on how you c an add excitement and interest to songs that you already play by adding a blues avor.
Visit the Website for More Information and Blues Guitar Lessons www.fatpick.com/blues 76
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
July/August 2010
A n d y F a l c o ’ s C o l l i n g s D 1 A
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine July/August 2010
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