Friday, November 25, 2011

Ramblin Rooster Rick

I was ramblin' through some old Mp3 files on my computer and found this solo banjo piece from our first CD Blind Dog Thumpin' on the Porch (2000). It's called Ramblin' Hobo. I learned it from the playing of Doc Watson and his father-in-law Gaither Carlton. This "little ditty" is a cool tune in an odd F tuning (fCFCD). It's easy to get into this tuning from double C, just drop the two G strings down to F.

Ramblin' Hobo, to me, personifies the unique (and sometimes strange) percussive, melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic qualities of old time banjo. Playing the banjo can be a grand adventure in self expression and artistic freedom. This song lends itself perfectly to the type of individual interpretation that makes playing the banjo so much fun. It's like a puzzle whose pieces can be rearranged to form different pictures. . .  There I go ramblin' again.



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