T h e A r t of of Fingerstyle Guitar f ea t u r i n g J o h n R e nb n b ou ou r n Stefan Gr os ossman sman Peppino D’Agostino Ma r t i n C a r t h y Bob Brozman Mar tin Simpson B r a d J o n es es J oe Miller
T h e A r t of of Fin ge r sty le Guit ar by Mark Hum Hum phrey Art, the Ox Oxford ford American Dictionary inform s us, us, is “the production of something beautiful, skill or ability in such work.” Unlike oth er forms of art, w hich w e experience experience as artifac artifacts ts quite detached from their creators, musical performance gives us the experience of the artifact, the artist and in improvised music, the moment of creation all simultaneously. No wonder musicians get stagefright! They have a lot happening (and at stake) every time they perform. Imagine demanding other artists to reveal so many elements of their art all at once. It requires a special sort of concentration, a balanced sense of introspection and extroversion t o excel at such such a pursuit. pur suit. But, risk risk taking takin g aside, aside, being such a com complete plete m eans of express expression is what wh at makes music a joy for performer and audience alike. “Music,” asserts critic Edmund Hildebrandt,“...in a man’s hands is his chief means of self-advertisement, and it unites even the lone figure with the wo rld around him .. ....” The performers in this DVD bear witness to that unity through their music. The music (and musicians) express different t raditio ns, personalities and stylistic approaches via their guitars.. Yet tars Yet th ere is a com com mo nality, not onl y in t he in strument and fundam ental approach approach to it bu t also in the choice of these players to both take risks and to respect tradition. Bob Brozman plays Moa na Chimes (Hawaiian Greeti reetings) ngs) unlike any of the Hawaiian guitarists of the 1920s, yet his cheeky version overflow flo w s wit h lo ve of his sources. sources. John John Renbo urn p lays renaiss renaissance ance lut e music mu sic on a steel stri string ng guitar w ith a phase phase shi shifter. fter. Joe Mil ler feeds his guitar an American fiddle tune and Stefan Grossman picks one from the Irish harp repert oire o f Turlou Turlou gh O'Carolan. O'Carolan. Peppino D’Agostino uses unorthodox techniques to transform his guitar into a Brazilian rhythm band. Brad Jones moves from classicis clas sicism m to t o fleet referen ces to t w o of his h is major in flu fluences ences,, jazz piani st/ comp oser Vince Vince Guraldi Guraldi and coun try guitarist guitari st Jerry Jerry Reed. Reed. Martin Simpson deftly plays the spaces around notes in his solo spot, while his duets with Brozman explore modal music, one selection suggesting the Anglo-American The Cucko and the Cucko o other the North Indian rag Yaman. The incomparable Martin Carthy shows what can be done with a mere five notes from a pentatonic Mixolydian mode in Seven Yellow Gypsies . For all the t he variety in th ese 14 perform perf orm ances ances,, th there ere is a unit y of skill, pass passion and exploration. Starting Starting from such un likely in2
n r u o b n e R n h o J & r e k a B k c u D
spirations as the English ‘skiffle’ craze which brought us such dim-witted delights as Does You r Chew ing Gum Lose Its Flavo r , these musicians have continually on the Bedpost Overnigh t explored new realms of sound until arriving at one which was absolutely personal and right and became the sound of their own voice through the guitar. The means of getting there are obviously different. One guitarist uses fingerpicks while another purely flesh and nails. Some play with a semiclassical right hand position and others anchor the ‘p inky’ on the guit ar’s face, as was recomm ended i n a 17th century manual fo r lut enists: “set your Little Finger dow n upon the Belly of the Lute, just und er the Bridge...it steadies the Hand and gives a Certainty to the Grasp.” Various tunings and styles of guitar - classical, flamenco, steel string, metal-bodied express the musical personalities of these players. They tell us who they are by these means. The art of fingerstyle guitar? It’s playing with such self-certainty that a musical phrase unfolds into som ething as uniq ue and ident ifiable as a fingerprint. Here are eight of the id iom ’s finest artists clearly tellin g us wh o th ey are.
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Stefan Gr ossm an S a r a h & S t e f a n G r o s s m a n ( P h o t o b y J o s e p h i n e A y r e s )
A remarkable career in t eaching and perform ing began for Brooklyn-born Grossman as a teenaged pu pil of t he legendary Rev. Gary Davis. “I was absolutely enamo red by him ,” Grossman recalled in a Guitar Player feature. He spent as much time as possible with Davis, documenting one of the most extraordinary repertoires in American fol k m usic. This was the era of blues rediscoveries and soon Grossman was meeting (and learning from) the likes of John Hurt, Skip James, and Son House. By 1965, his knack for transmitting what he had absorbed was manifest in an instructional album , How to Play Blues Guita r for the Elektra label. A few years later, Grossman wrote an influential series of bo oks documenti ng varied bl ues and ragtim e guitar styles for Oak Publications. By then he lived in England, where he soaked up the music of everyone from Eric Clapton to John Renbourn, with whom he has performed extensively. With the form ation of t he Kicking Mul e label in 1973, Grossman b ecame the nexus of an international crop of fingerstyle guitarists who offered vital and varied music (as well as instructional material). Today Grossman continu es to perform, teach, and docum ent out standing guit ar stylists. He has reissued the b est m aterial th at he produced for Kicking Mule on the Guitar Artistry Series for Shanachie Records. As evidence of his ow n eclectic artistry, Grossman th e ‘Brooklyn blu es boy’ here performs the lilt ing Irish tu ne, Sheebeg a nd Sheemore , attrib uted t o the legendary blin d harpist O’Carolan, as well as som e hot acoustic fu nk in Danish Drone with Duck Baker. 4
Shining Shadows (Shan achie) Love, Devils and the Blues (Shan achie) Guitar Landscapes (Shan achie) How to Play Blues Guitar (Shanachie) Black Melodies on a Clear Afternoon (Shana chie) Yazoo Basin Boog ie (Shana chie) Shake That Thing ( Shanachie) Snap A Little Owl with John Renbourn (Shanachie) Keeper of the Vine with John Renbou rn (Shana chie) Northern Skies, Southern Blues with Du ck Baker (Shanachie)
Videos/DVDs Stefan Grossman - A Retrospective (Vestapol 13 036 ) Fingerpicking Guitar Techniques (GW 966/ 7) Bottleneck Blues Guitar ( GW 902) How to Play Blues Guitar (( GW 903) Country Blues Guitar Parts 1, 2 & 3 (GW 9045 6) Advanced Fingerpicking Guitar/ Blues Guitar (GW 928 ) Advanced Fingerpicking Guitar/ Ragtim e Blues Guitar (GW 929) Advanced Fingerp icking Guitar/ Hot Fiddle Tunes & Rags (GW 930) Fingerpicking Country Blues Guitar (GW 931)
B o b B r o zm a n P No player is more h o t closely identified with his o c o instrument ( or instruments) u r t than Bob Brozman, who has e s y spearheaded th e revived inR o u terest in the Nation al guit ar. n d e The Brooklyn-born Brozman r R came to the instrument via e c o his discovery of such Nar d s tional-brandishing bluesmen as Son House and Bukka White (House praised the metal-bodied guitar’s utility as both a shield and weapon in barroom brawls). “I was into bl ues so heavily th at I w as buying every album with a picture of a National on it,” says Brozman, who found one such album offering not only blues but also the Hawaiian m usic of Sol Hoop ii. The discovery of Hoopii’s astonishing technique prom pted Brozman to seek out vintage Hawaiian 78s and replicate their sounds on his ever-expanding collection of vintage National guitars.
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In the 1970s, Brozman w as also honin g his performi ng skill s as a street busker in Santa Cruz: “I learned yodeling, scat singing and growling on the street,” says Brozman, who adds that the projection and visual appeal of National guitars helped stimulate ti ps. By the early 1980 s, Brozman had m oved off t he streets and on to such coveted gigs as opening for the Grateful Dead and Bonn ie Raitt. He has recorded and t oured extensively since, authored t he defini tive history of vintage Nation als and w orked as consultant t o the new National company in the developm ent of their Tricone guitars. Brozman’s performances here demonstrate both his technical range and some of the varied sounds of t he Tricone and style “ O” m odel Nationals. M o a n a Ch i m e s becomes a showcase for Brozman’s use (Haw aiian Greetings) of h armonics on hi s Tricone, whil e his ragtim e jaunt on h is style “O” suggests the forgott en splendors of vaudeville tenor banjoists. A Trucklo ad o f Blues (Round er Records) Devil's Slide (Rounde r Records) Hello Centr al, Give Me Dr. Jazz (Roun der Records)
Videos/DVDs Bob Brozman in Concert (Vestapol 13047 ) Bottleneck Blues Guitar (Hom espun Tapes) Tradition al Haw aiian Guitar (Hom espun Tapes) Hot Guita r Techniq ues From Folk to Jazz Volum es 1 & 2 (Ho me spun Tapes)
B r ad J on es Brad Jones grew up surrounded by pickers. When his dad wasn’t working on the Ames, Iow a police force, he w as starring on one of those once-ubiquitous ‘live’ country radio shows, The Buster Jones Sho w. Older brother Ron was fingerpicking a la Merle Travis and Chet Atkins, so it w as natural for Brad Jones to follow in the family tradition. As is evident from the autographs on his classical-style guitar, Jones wears his influences proudly, primarily that of the wise guy who wrote, “To Brad, My Hero”
P h o t o b y S t e f a n G r o s s m a n
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- Jerry Reed. Also kn ow n as ‘the Claw,’ Reed t ook Atkin s’ style t o another dimension in the 196Os and Jones says, “I went crazy with Jerry’s stuff. I do a lot of h is licks but I do ‘em d ifferen t.” The influ ence of left-h anded broth er Ron contri but ed: Ron pl ayed a right-handed guitar upside down, picking the bass notes (a la Libb a Cott en) with his fingers. “I just never learned to p lay right,” says Jones. “I double pick a whole lot on the bottom and get a kind of fun ky sound .” (Not ice that he someti mes cross picks up and down with his thumbpick as if it were a flat pick.) Jones has three albums ou t o n t he Virginia-based Flat Five label, and in 1992 won the fingerstyle guitar competition in Winfield, Kansas. He has played in Europe in the company of such legends as Albert Lee, Larry Coryell and Marcel Dadi, but Jones doesn’t l ean on th e guitar for his livelihood . “I mo ve furniture,” he says. “I go on to ur w hen I can, but I don’t take it all th at serious. I tried that a while, but I got severely overweight, so I had to go back to work.” Live at Five ( Flat Five) Backpo rch Boogi e (Flat Five)
Videos/DVDs Guitar Portraits (Vestapol 130 96) Bag of Tricks, Pocketfu l of Licks (GW 92 5) Styles & Techniq ues of Jerry Reed ( GW953 ) Hot Licks, Rhyth m s & Grooves (GW95 5) Legacy of Country Fingerstyle Guitar Volume On e & Two ( GW962 & GW963) Back Porch Picking ( GW964) Songs of Inspiration & Joy (GW965)
Mar tin Sim pson Writers have tied them selves in knots of ad jectival ecstasy describin g Simpson’s playing (“understated beauty...,” “breathtaking musical clarity,” “tunes..like glistening jewels”). Simpson first inspired praise on th e English folk club circuit, where he trailed in the wake of the seminal 1960s folk revival guitarists (Davey Graham, Bert Jansch, Martin Carthy, John Renbourn) and absorbed a fair measure of American blu es and ‘o ldtimey’ music in the bar7
gain. He was sharing bills with the likes of Richard Thompson and Steeleye Span w hile still in his teens and made a qu antum artistic leap in 1977 w hen he em barked on a decade lon g venture as accompanist to singer’s singer, June Tabor. Sim pson’s work w ith Tabor not only brou ght him greater attention bu t focused h is attitud e tow ards interpreting tradition al songs. (He became hoo ked on them w hen he l earned Barbara Allen at school in Scunthorpe at age seven.) “I started playing the guit ar because I wanted to tell stories like Marty Robbi ns,” says Sim pson. “I still feel I’m mu ch mo re infl uenced by singers and songs than I am b y guitar players.” And t hat’s how Sim pson approaches his arrangements of traditio nal songs: “ I don ’t l earn the tunes,” he says. “I learn the songs...I know exactly what the lyrics are about. If I don’t, I don’t play.” Since moving to America in 1988 , Simpson has found ample opportunity to flaunt his blues chops as well, even performing at blu es festivals with pianist Henry Gray, onetim e How lin’ Wolf band member. “When the British became aware of black music,” says Sim pson, w ho has played bl ues as long as he has ballads, “the effect w as unb elievable.” His duet s with Bob Brozman are thus no great stretch for th is gifted m ulti -stylist. Sim pson is the author of The Acoustic Guita r of M arti n Simpson (Accent on Music) Leaves of Life (Shana chie) When I Was On Horseback (Shanachie) The Collection ( Shan achie) A Closer Walk With Thee (Gourd Records) Red Roses w/ Jessica Simp son (Rhian non Record s)
Videos/DVDs Mar tin Simpson In Concert (Vestapol 1304 6) Acoustic Guitar Instrum entals/ Arrangem ents in Alternate Tunin gs (Homespun Tapes)
Peppin o D’A gostin o Messina, Italy was the birt hplace of Peppi no D’Agostino, who has since taken in mu ch of t he w orld’s mu sic and become, according to San Francisco Examiner critic Phillip Elw ood , “a poet on acoustic guitar, handling th e instrum ent as if it were a dance partner...” D’Agostino took his first steps with guitar at age 11 and was moving smoothly enough by age 18 to be performing across Italy. Paco DeLucia was an early influence, but soon D’Agostino was writing his own distinctive material incorporating influences from across Europe as well as Brazil and North America. His debut album, Bluerba, was a collaboration with Enzo Ponzio and Alfredo Morabito. 1983s Silk And Steel presented D’Agostino in the comp any of Duck Baker as well as several noted Italian guitarists, among t hem Giovanni Unt erberger. D’Agostino ’s mastery of varied ‘attacks’ and repert oires came in 8
g n u o Y e n e r I y b o t o h P
handy that same year when Berben-Italy had him w rite a bluegrass and count ry guitar flat-picking instruction al boo k. In the decade since, D’Agostino’s reputation has gone international and he has expatriated to the West Coast. He has shared stages with the likes of Doc Watson, Leo Kottke, Chet Atkins, John Lee Hooker and Michael Hedges Whimsically calling his style “minestrone music,” D’Agostino says of the guitar, “You embrace it. It’s intimate. Unlike a keyboard, the guitar can be held close to the heart.” Sparks ( Shan achie) Acoustic Spirit ( Shan achie) Close To The Heart (M esa/ Blue Moon ) Silk And Steel (Lizard Records) Bluerba (Drums)
J oh n R en b ou r n London-born and nurtured on American folk music via ‘skiffle,’ Renbou rn became deeply entrenched i n th e vibrant London music scene of the 1960s. Inspired by Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Big Bill Broonzy and other seminal American influences, Renbourn played Jimmy Reed tunes with English R 'n' B bands before absorbing the eclectic music of Davey Graham and the jazz/ blues tinged traditionalism of Bert Jansch. Ren bourn ’s friendship w ith flat-mate Jansch prod uced some legendary guitar duets ( Bert & John / After the Dan ce , Shanachie Records), and provided the core for the uniquely adventurous ‘folk baroque’ ensembl e, Pentangle. Since the dissolution of Pentangle in 1973, Renbourn has maint ained an active solo career as w ell as performi ng and re9
s e r y A e n i h p e s o J y b o t o h P
cording duets with Stefan Grossman ( Sn a p a L i t t l e O w l , Shanachie Records). Readers of Renbou rn’s prose in Guit ar Player and elsewhere know he is also a passionate scholar of guitar music from varied genres and eras. Dick Weissman wrote of Renbourn in Acoustic Guitar: “He always has a clear vision of what can and cannot be done on the steel-string guitar and he can coax an alm ost classical sound out of t he in strum ent, wi th all th e subtle gradations of tone that t he b est classical players can create.” Renbourn’s performances here illustrate his expansive renaissance-to-rock artistry. “I thin k t he m ost enjo yable approach to the guitar,” Renbourn told Stefan Grossman in a Frets magazine interview, “ is to regard it, if you can, as something like as keyboard instrument, with the possibility of playing the separate parts, rather than embracing a style of music which you then have to fit all the music into...My concern is playing the type of music I like. How it actually sounds is an accident.” The Black Balloon ( Shan achie) Sir John Alot... (Shan achie) The Hermit (Shanachie) The Lady And The Unicorn (Shanachie) Snap a Little Owl w/ Stefan Grossman (Shana chie) Live In Concert w/ Stefan Grossma n (Shana chie) Jo h n R e n b o u r n G r o u p / A M a i d I n B e d l a m ( Sh a n a c h i e ) John Renbou rn's Ship Of Fools (Flying Fish) The Nine M aidens (Flying Fish)
Videos/DVDs John Renbourn 196 5-199 5 (Vestapol 13032 ) Folk, Blues & Beyond (GW 9 07) Celtic Melodies & Open Tunin gs (GW 908 ) The Jazz Ting e (GW 917 ) Medieval & Renaissance M usic for Fingerstyle Guitar (GW947)
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Ma r t i n S i m p so n & B o b B r o zm a n
How did this seemin gly unlikely duo come to be? Sim pson and Brozman met at the 1993 NAMM (National Association of Music Merchandisers) Show in Los Angeles, testing and d emo nstrating in strum ents at the National guitar com pany display. “It was a seemingly telepathic relationship from the start,” says Brozman, w ho admit s to “ a prejudi ce against...Celtic stuff” prior to meetin g Simp son. Com mo n groun d, how ever, was provided by the blues. “What makes it work,” says Simpson, “is that Bob and I are w ell grou nded in traditio nal form s...We have a sim ilar vocabulary of mu sic and it wo rks wond erfully.” Enough so t hat a Sim pson/ Brozman album i s in the w orks.
Ma r t i n C a r t h y The prem ier singer/ guitarist o f Britain’s folk revival w as inspired t o t ake up th e guitar by Big Bill Broonzy and has quipped: “Basically, what I do is Travis picking trodden upon to make it work for English music.” But there’s little mistaking Carthy’s oblique yet commanding attack on his lovably battered 000-18 Martin for any American antecedent. His triump h h as been creating a style wh ich is uniqu ely personal and singularly right for traditio nal English m usic. Carthy has been a main stay of the English folk scene since the early 1960s, during which time he influenced such visitors as Bob Dylan ( Lord Fran klin came from Carthy) and Paul Sim on ( Scarbor oug h Fair ). His punchy, angular playing and penchant 11
for ballads rife with murder, myth and magic made him a sensation, and yielded several classic albums for the Fontana label in the 1960s. He was then just developing his uniqu e guit ar tuning and rhythm ically challenging approach to such songs as the pentatonic S e v e n Ye l l o w Gypsies.
The 1970s fou nd Carthy occasionally engaged in the folk-rock bands of bass-playing enfant terrible Ashley Hutchings (Steeleye Span and Albion Country Band), n sometimes solo as a singer a m s guitarist and others a s o r cappella in the traditional G n vocal quartet the Watersons. a f e t The 199Os find Carthy again S y teamed with fiddler Dave b o t Swarbrick, who accompa o h P nied him on many of his most memorable 1960s recordings. Widely acclaimed as one of the most creative living acoustic guitarists (Musician magazine once ranked him among the ‘Hundred Greatest Guitarists of All Tim e’), Carthy dow npl ays his achievement as an instrum entali st and says, “Your business is to transmit the song.” The Collection ( Green Linnet) Life and Limb w/ Dave Swarb rick (Green Linnet) Mar tin Carthy (Topic Records)
Video/DVD Mar tin Carthy: British Fingerstyle Guitar (GW 927)
S t ef a n G r o ssm a n & D u c k B a k er Fingerstyle funk on an acoustic guitar? No sweat for Duck Baker, ably assisted by Stefan Grossman. Baker, it’s tempting to say, took t o m usic like hi s namesake to w ater. “The first musical experience I can recall,” he says, “was when I w as in kindergarten and one o f th e kids’ parents came in dressed up like a gypsy and played the fiddle. I thought it was the greatest thing in the world.” Though violin lessons bored him, Baker later managed to become something of gypsy, living variously in Vancouver, Torino, London before recently returning to his native Virginia. 12
In Gitano tradition, Baker embraced the flamenco guitar, thou gh he’s more apt t o pl ay sw ing than soleraes on it, as w ell as a potpourri of folk and jazz from Appalachia to Manhattan (and a few foreign ports besides). The guitar usurped the ukulele’s place in Baker’s world when he was 15 and trying to learn Doc Watson’s arrangement of the Delmore Brothers’s Deep . But t he infl uence of Richmo nd ragtim e pianist Buck River Blu es Evans plunged Baker headlong into a lifetime of arranging keyboard music, principally jazz, for guitar. “The way you learn to compose,” Baker told Michael Crane in an Acoustic Guitar feature, “i s to learn to arrange...The in strum ent w ill teach you wh at you can and can’t do wh en it comes to arranging. Go ou t t here and try it.” Opening the Eyes of Love (Shan achie) The Art of Fing erstyle Jazz Guita r (Shan achie)
Videos/DVDs Celtic Airs, Jigs, Reels & Horn pip es (GW 90 9) Guitar Aerobics (GW 910) Classic Ameri can Folk Blues Them es (GW 919) Fing erstyle Jazz Guita r (GW 920, 921 & 92 2) Introduction to Gospel Fingerstyle Guitar (GW312) Introduction to Swing Guitar (GW313 )
J oe Miller The Smothers Brothers aren’t often cited as seminal influences by virtuoso guitarists, but as a kid Joe Miller enjoyed the fun he saw them having and followed Tom’s example. But the guitar wasn’t the only instrument in Miller's world. Growing up in Toront o, wh ich has a large Indian comm unit y, Miller studied sitar with Shambhu Das, a student of Ravi Shankar’s . “It had a big effect on me,” Miller recalls of his sitar lessons, “learning about rhythms and the way I think about scales.” Mandol in, clas13
sical guitar, electric bass, and even viola da gamba w ere amon g the succession of stringed instruments Miller explored before devoting hi mself to the acoustic steel-string guit ar. His mo ve to Berkeley in 1978 put him in th e midst of w hat locals deem ‘the music capital of the West,’ and opportunities to play with the likes of mandolin virtuoso David Grisman and to t each Coun try Joe McDonald. Miller too k hom e the gold from the Olympi cs of fingerpi cking at Winfield, Kansas in 1987. Active on the American folk festival circuit, Miller has made two album s on his Rising Sleeves label, w hich inspired England’s Folk Roots m agazine to marvel at h is “rare com bination of t echniq ue, hum or, and p anache.” West Coast M usic for Guita r (Rising Sleeves) Semi-Trad ition al Guita r Solos (Rising Sleeves)
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1 0 0
3
˚ j j œ # œ œ œ ‰ ≈ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ. œ œ & œ. œ. Jœ. œ b œ
Ô
2
3 1
2 1
1
2 0
1 2
0
0
18
0
1
. Œ œ. œ œ œ œ œ. & œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ. œ. J J
Ô
2 0
2 0
0 3
2 0
3
2 0
— 1 2
3
3
0
˚ j j j œ œ œ œ . & ‰ œ Jœ. œ # Jœ. n Jœœ . . Jœœ . œ # œœ œœ œœ œœ œ.J J¿.
Ô
0
5 7
5
3
3
6
5
5
3 — 1
7
5
7 0
4 — 2
2
0
3
2
X
j j ‰ ˚ j œ . œ œ & œ . œ œ œ œ œœ œ . . ‰ œj˚ œ œ œj. œ J J¿. J¿. J J¿. J¿. œ
Ô
2 0
2
3
Repeat
X
A
2
0
2
3
2
3
2
0
X
X
to 3rd—Last time ending
19
2 X
2 0 3
Charming
# # j 4 œ ‰ # œ œ œ œ œ & 4 œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ œ œœ œ œ œ Ô VERSE 1
2
2
3
2
4
2
2
4 2
2
2 2
0
2
4 2
0
0
0
# # œ ˙ ‰ œ œ # œ œ & œ nœ œ œ nœ œ . œ œ œ Ô 0
3
2
3
4
3
3
3
0
3
0
0
0
# # . j Œ ‰ œ œ # œ œ . œ œ œ œ œ œ & œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ Ô 3
2 4 4
3
3
2
4
4
2
4
4
0
4
0
0
# # # & Œœ n œœ ‰ œ Ô 2 2 5
0
œj œœ œ œ n œœ œ œ œ œœ œ œ 3
0 2 2
3 4 5
3 4 5
0
2 2
0
0
0
20
3 4
2 2
0 0 5
# # j œœ œœ œ œ œ œ œ # œ ˙ . & œ œ œ n œ œ œ œ œ œ œ J ‰ Ô 3
2 3
2 0
2 2 0
2 0
0
2
2
2
0
2
0
2
3
2
# j j # j j # . œ œ œ & n œœ n œ œ œ n œœ . n œ œ œœ œ œ Ô 0
2
0
2 3
3
3
2
2
3
3
3
3
3
# # Œ ‰ # œ œ . & wœ œ œ n œ œ œ œ œ Ô 2
2 2 4
2
0
2 2
3
0
0
0
# . # Ó # ˙ . œ œ œ œ & œ œ œ œ # œ œ œ Ô 2 2
2 2 2
2
2
1
0
0
0
21
2
4
# jœ œ œ # œ œ # œ œœ ˙ & œ œ œ œ œ œ œ Ô VERSE 2
2
3
3 2
4 2
2
2 2
0
4 2
0
0
0
# # œ ˙ . œ œ # œ œ œœ & œ nœ œ œ nœ œ œ Ô 0
2
3
2
3
3
3
4 3
3
0
0
0
0
# # . j Œ ‰ œ œ # œ œ œ œ œ & œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ. œ œ œ Ô 3
2 4 4
3
3
2
4
4
2
4
4
0
4
0
0
0
j j # j j # œ œ Œ ‰ œ œ # œ œ œ & œ n œ œ œ nœ œ . œ œ œ Ô 0
2 2 5
3 4
3 4
5
2 2
0 0
5
0
5
0
0
0
22
# # j œ œ œ # œ œ œ ˙ . œ œ œ œœ & œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ Ô 3
2 3
2 0
2 2 0
2 0
0
2
2
2
0
2
0
2
2
# j # j j # . œ œ œ œ œ . œ œ & nœ nœ œ nœ nœ œ œ . œ Ô 0
2
0
2 3
3
3
2
3
3
3
3
3
# # ‰ # ˙ . œ œ œ œ . & œ œ œ n œ œ œ œ œ Ô 2 2
2 2 2
2
2 2 4
0
2 2
3
0
0
0
fi # . # Ó j j œ . œ œ œ # œ . œ œ œ & œ œ œ œ œ œ Ô 0
2 2
0
3
2
1
2
2
0
0
0
23
2
# # œ œ œ j œ . œ Œ # œ œ & œ œ œ œ œœ œ œœ œ Ô BRIDGE
2
2
0
3 2 4
0
2 4
2
1 4
1 4
2
2
0
# j # Œ # œ œ & œ œ œ . n œ œœ œœ œœ œœ œ Ô 2 2 4
2 2
2 2
3
0
2 2
2 2
0
2 2
0
0
j j . œ # œ . j j . # œ œ œ . œ # n œ œ & œœ . œ œ œ œ œ œ œ Ô 2
5
4
3 2
7
5
4
4
2
6
6
2
0
0
j j j # # j œ . œ . œ œ # œ œ œ œœ œ & œ œ œ œ œ œ œ Ô 0
0
0
0
6
6
7
6
0
6 4
4
0
0
0
24
j # . # œ œ j œ . œ œ Œ # œ œ œ & œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ Ô 2
2
0
3
0
2 4
1 4
4
2
1 4
2
2
0
# j j œj œ . # œ œ # œ œ & œ œ œ œ œ . œ ˙œ n œ œ Ô 2 2
3
3 2
2
4
2
2
2
2
0
4
4
3
2
# # œ ˙ Œ # œ # œ œ œ ˙ œ # œ n œ œ ˙ œ & œ #œ œ # œ œ œ œ œ Ô 0 2 1
2 0 2
0 2 1
3
2
0 0 2 1
4 2 1
2
2
2
# œ # œ œ œ œ œ # œ n ˙ # œ & #œ œ œ n˙ œ ˙. Ô 0 0 1
4
0
0
0
4
0
3 1
1
4
0
0
25
# # œ . Ó # œ œ œ # œ & #œ œ œ œ œ œ n˙ Ô 0
2
3
4
2
3
4
Repeat: VERSE 1 BRIDGE VERSE 2, to Then:
fi
0
2
4
# # œ # & œ œœ ‰œ œ . œ fi Ô 0
2 2 2
2 2
2
0
0
# j # # . œ & n œœœ œ œœ œœ n œœ ˙œ . œ œ Ô 0 2
2 2
0
3
2 2 0
2 0
3
3
0
3
# j # # . œ & œœ œ œ œœ w œ œ œ œ œ œ Ô 0 2
2 2
2 0
0
2
2
0
2
26
0
2
27
The performers in this collection express different traditi ons, personalities and stylistic approaches via their guitars. Yet there is a commonality, not only in the instrument and fund amental approach to it b ut also in t he choice of these players to both take risks and to respect tradition. Bob Brozman plays M o a n a Ch i m e s ( H a w a i i a n G r e e t i n g s) unlike any of the Hawaiian guitarists of the 1920s, yet his cheeky version overflows with love of his sources. John Renbourn plays renaissance lute music on a steel string guitar with a phase shifter. Joe Miller feeds his guitar an American fi ddle t une and Stefan Grossman picks one from the Irish harp repertoire of Turlo ugh O'Carolan. Peppi no D’Agostino uses unorthodox techniques to transform his guitar into a Brazilian rhythm band. Brad Jones moves from classicism to fleet references to two of his major i nfluences, jazz pianist/ composer Vince Guraldi and country guitarist Jerry Reed. Martin Simpson deftly plays the spaces around not es in his solo spot, while his duets with Brozman explore modal music, one selection suggestin g the Anglo-American The Cucko o and the other the North Indian rag Yaman. The i ncomp arable Marti n Carthy shows what can be done with a mere five notes from a pentatonic Mixolydian mode in Seven Yello w Gyp sies. For all t he variety in th ese 14 perfo rmances, there is a unit y of skill, passion and exploration. One guitarist uses fingerpicks while another purely flesh and nails. Some play with a semiclassical right hand position and others anchor the ‘pinky’ on the guitar’s face. Various tunings and styles of guitar - classical, flamenco, steel string, metal-bodied - express the musical personalities of these players. They tell us who they are by these means. The art of fingerstyle guitar? It’s playing with such self-certainty that a musical ph rase unfol ds into something as unique and identifiable as a fingerprint. Here are eight of the idiom’s finest artists clearly telling us who they are. Sheebeg An Sheemore Haw aiian Greetings, Steel Guitar Stomp Med ley: Lam ent For Ow en Roe O'Neill/ Mist Covered JO H N R E N B O U R N Mou ntains Of Home/ The Orpha n, Sweet Potato B R A D J O N E S Fun ky Fing ers M A R TI N SI M P SO N Medley: Lord Gregory/ Bob's Song Seven Yellow Gypsies JO E M I L L E R Lime Rock M A R TI N CA R TH Y P E P P I N O D ' A G O S TI N O Grand Canyon , Ponteio Bentonia, Chim es Of Timb uktu M A RTI N S I M P SO N & B O B B R OZ M A N S TE FA N G R O S SM A N & D U C K B A K E R D a n i s h D r o n e S TE FA N G R O SS M A N
B O B B R OZ M A N
Vestapol 13021 Nationally distribu ted b y Rounder Records, One Camp Street, Cambridge, MA 02140 Representation to Music Stores by Mel Bay Publications © ® 2004 Vestapol Productions / A division of Stefan Grossman's Guitar Workshop Inc. 0
ISBN: 1-57940-996-2
1 1 6 7 1 3 02 1 9
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