Topic: Miller's Breakdown

[Pan]

Thanks for the clarification John!

Cheers

Pan

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Well, if folks enjoyed listening to and working on Andrew Dunham's "Sweet Lucy Woman", here's another one to try and work out aurally.  It is Jaydee Short's recording of "My Rare Dog", from the 1960s, recorded by Samuel Charters. 



Oh, early this mornin', I heard my rare dog bark
Oh, early this mornin', I heard my rare dog bark
Well, my love has gone away, she drifted somewhere in the dark

Well, call your wife, know my baby's near around
Well, call your wife, know my baby near around
You can't hide from me, baby, 'cause I ain't gonna let you put me down

Come on home soon in the mornin', 'cause you stayed away all last night
Come home soon in the mornin', 'you stayed away all last night
I want to know from you, baby, you call that treatin' me right

Well, in the wee, wee hours, don't want to keep my company
Well, in the wee, wee hours, don't want to keep my company
Well, I've got the blues about my baby, I'm blue as any man can be

Hold my hand, I'm really in love with you
Hold my hand, I'm really in love with you
Well, you do things to me, baby, that I would never do to you

Well, I'm just settin' down wonderin', tryin' to drive away my blues
Well, I'm just settin' down wonderin', tryin' to drive away my blues
Well, I've got the blues 'bout my baby, and no one else but you

Well, this mornin' 'bout dawn, you come walkin' in
Well, this mornin' 'bout dawn, hooo, you come walkin' in
Well you been out playin' at love, with my old-time friend

SOLO

I'm gonna forgive you, baby, if you don't do that again
I'm gonna forgive you, baby, if you don't do that again
Well, you remember now, baby, I always have been your friend

The questions for "My Rare Dog" would be:
   * What playing position/tuning is Jaydee Short playing the song out of?, and
   * Where on the neck does he start his accompaniment for each verse?

Once again, if you bypass any transcription software, and just work from what you can hear and find by experimenting on your guitar, you'll build skills and be working on an equal footing with everybody else.  And please don't post any answers to the questions above until Thursday, May 22.  Thanks for participating, and I hope you have fun with it.  Boy, could Jaydee Short sing!
All best,
Johnm

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Any takers for Jaydee Short's "My Rare Dog"?  What's he doing?
All best,
Johnm

[Prof Scratchy]

Is it Thursday already? Well, we have a quiz programmer here called QI. If anyone answers a question with the absolutely obvious answer (which is also wrong) a klaxon goes off and they are awarded minus 50 points. So, for my minus 50 points I'm going to say: regular tuning, key of D, and he starts each verse by bending a D shape at the fifth fret!

Sent from my HUAWEI MT1-U06 using Tapatalk

[Gumbo]

Phew! I'm not completely mad then

[harvey]

I don't have much time during the week but had a quick go last night.

I had a partial D shape at the 5th fret 1st string 6th fret second string. Not sure what was going on in the base though, either standard or drop D

In the key of D standard I will take a guess at

[ScottN]

I'll use my minus 50 points to back The Professor.  Sounds like a D shape up 3 frets for the first bars of the I chord then back down 3 frets to normal D position for bars 7 and 8.  I had a lot of trouble distinguishing the bass notes but what I did hear over the I chord I couldn't really place on the low strings 6 or 5 well - gotta say that I got sidetracked trying to make St Louis E with the 4th string raised to E work and the bass on I living on the 4th string but then my meds kicked in...

Thanks,
              Scott

[Old Man Ned]

I'd gone for open G on the Andrew Dunham piece but forgot to post.  Agreeing with other folk with D and off around the 5th fret at start of the verse with a fair amount of distortion going on.  He sounds amplified or is he just really close up to the mic?

[Pan]

Standard tuning D position for me as well. I think I'm hearing the standard D and A chords played in the open position. There are not many altered bass notes played, which was making things a little hard to hear at first. No 6th string notes played at all, as far as I can hear, so dropped D is out.
The verses start with a double stop played at the 5fh fret on the 1st string, and the 6th fret at the 2nd string, the 2nd string is slightly bent for a blue note. This is then followed by the open 5th and 4th strings.
The IV or G chord was also a little elusive, since the common bass notes are not heard, and the chord is played by only 4 top strings.

Cheers

Pan

[Laura]

I only just saw this post now and am not going to have a go but I wanted to say what a great idea, John.  Thanks for starting the thread!

[Norfolk Slim]

Agree with Laura- fun idea.

But Ive not had time to give it any serious consideration.  Maybe next time!

[mr mando]

I'm not sure about the D-Position in Standard because of the way the single note fill sounds. Maybe he's in EAEGBE down one step, so the beginning of the verse lick would be a D-shape chord up at the 7th/8th fret, back to a D shaped E at frets 4/5/4. In this position I can make the single note fill sound closer to the recording, the second note being fretted instead of open which would be the case in D position std. tuning.

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Jaydee Short did play "My Rare Dog" out of D position in standard tuning, so well done for all of you who chose that as the playing position.  He starts every verse up at the fifth fret of the first string and bending the 6th fret of the second string.  I can't say with certainty as to whether he took the entire D shape up three frets, but I never hear him play the note at the fifth fret of the third string when he's up there, so I think he's just fretting the first two strings up there.
Some really good points were made about his bass disqualifying dropped-D tuning.  One thing I hadn't noticed before listening really carefully to the song was how unusually he plays the bass for his G chord.  For the most part, he just hits the open fourth string, as Pan noted, and it is a chord tone, but a few times, he also hits the open fifth string under the G chord.  He never hits either the G note on the sixth string or the B note at the second fret of the fifth once in the course of the song.  So everything that makes it sound like a G chord is played in the treble.
Way to listen, folks, and identify what you were hearing. Well done!  I remember hearing this song for the first time and feeling like Jaydee was sort of working Tommy McClennan's territory.

I"ll try to come up with another tune in the next couple of days.  Thanks for participating.
All best,
Johnm

[frankie]

I remember hearing this song for the first time and feeling like Jaydee was sort of working Tommy McClennan's territory.

Exactly!

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Here is Sammy Hill's "Needin' My Woman Blues", from 1929.  It is a guitar duet.  Here are the questions:
   *  Both guitarists, the one handling the treble and the one handling the bass, are playing out of what position/tuning?
   *  Right around 1:27, the guitarist handling the bass starts playing a little three-note lick over and over.  Where is he fretting that lick?  In the same verse, when it goes to the IV chord, where are the three notes that that guitarist moves to?  What is the guitarist who plays the treble playing over the IV chord?

Once again, please just use your ears and your instrument to answer the questions.  And if you could hold off posting your answers until Sunday, May 25, that will give folks a chance to listen to the song and work out their answers.  Thanks!



My baby's gone, three long weeks today
My baby's gone, three long weeks today
I'm sorry I wasn't at home, mama, here's what my babe had to say

When I went back, home vacant, stood in my back kitchen door
When I went back home, stood in my back kitchen door
I just wanted to see my mama, I wouldn't see my babe any more

Then I went out, mama, honey, I begin to pray and mourn
I went out, pretty mama, baby and I begin to pray and mourn
I wants the good Lord, Lord, send me my babe back home

Mmm-mmm, mmm-mmm
Mmm-mmm, mmm-mmm
Lord, Lord, send me my babe back home

Once I heard her knockin' on my back kitchen door
Once I heard her knockin' on my back kitchen door
It's knockin' like my sweet mama, boy, she's been here before

SOLO (Spoken: Lord, Lord!)

Babe, honey, what am I to do?
Baby, what am your daddy to do?
Don't you want your sweet man, mama, honey, lie down and die for you?

But I feel so sad, baby, honey, and I'm lonesome, too
Baby, I feel so sad, mama, Lord, I was lonesome, too
Ain't nothin' in this world, boys, Lord, for your black man to do

EDITED TO ADD, 6/21:  The second guitarist on this track and deliverer of the spoken "Lord, Lord!" coming out of the solo is Keno Pipes, courtesy of Eric Hubbard.

All best,
Johnm