Topic: Country Blues Instrumentals

[Johnm]

Hi Blue,
A couple of other good ones:
   *Mance Lipscomb's "Boogie in A", played out of dropped-D tuning
   *Libba Cotten's "Vestapol" and "Honey Babe, Your Papa Cares For You", plus many hymns in Spanish:  "When I Get Home", "Jesus Is Tenderly Calling", "'Til We Meet Again"
   *Sam McGee's "Franklin Blues" and "Buckdancer's Choice"
All best,
Johnm

[Slack]

Spanish Flang Dang (The Spanish Fandango) I know Mance Lipscomb and Elizabeth Cotten did versions, probably a bunch of others did as well.

[Slack]

Oops, I see from the other thread you are already playing it! 

[outfidel]

Here are two of my all-time favorite ragtime blues instrumentals that I hope to be able play...someday...

Rev Gary Davis - "Slow Drag" aka "Cincinnati Flow Rag" (Ernie Hawkins teaches this one on his new DVD)



Merle Travis - "Cannonball Rag" (Marcel Dadi teaches this one on his Guitar Workshop DVD)

[GhostRider]

A great source of CB instrumentals is Big Bill Broonzy. Some that stand out for me are "Saturday Night Rub", "House Rent Stomp". Lots of others (memory?).

Alex

[Pan]

Check out: http://weeniecampbell.com/yabbse/index.php?amp;Itemid=128&topic=2453.0

Cheers

Pan

[uncle bud]

Since Pan (thanks Pan!) dug up a thread with exactly the same subject matter and some good recommendations from the earlier thread, I have merged the two threads.

BTW, one of my favourite instrumentals happened to come on iTunes just now: Jesse Fuller's Fingerbuster.

[Blue in VT]

Awesome Andrew...thanks for combining the threads....cheers to you pan for finding it again!

outfidel...thanks for those clips...I know that RGD has alot of great instrumentals....and that Merle Travis tune is AWESOME....I've not ventured into his music yet but this may make me want to!

Ghost...I think Big Bill has many tunes that can be played as instrumentals and hope to pick up Woody Mann's DVD lesson of his stuff...

Slack...I've been trying to get Libba version of Spanish Flang Dang for a week or two...simple song to play...hard song to get the feel just right.  Of course I think thats true of most of these songs.  I would love to learn both Mance's and MJH's versions...anyone know if there is TAB for Hurt's Version anywhere?

John M...Thanks for the great list...I think the many of Libba's tunes are great instrumentals...I would love to learn "Ontario Blues" one of these days as well.  And its funny that you should mention Mance's "Boogie in A"  I think this is my favorite Lipscomb tune and I WILL master it someday....I'm dropping you a PM about it.

Others of my favorites are the many versions of Vestapol etc., some of Mance's other instrumentals like...Sentimental Piece in G etc...Scrapper Blackwell has a number of good ones...like A Blues.

On the modern side of things I really like Paul Asbell's Chunky Monkey Gumbo, Hawkin's Potato head blues and Lightnin's Hideaway.

We've got a Great list going here!

Cheers,

Blue

[frankie]

David Miller's "Cannonball Rag" is also good - he's got a nice touch...   That's on Times Ain't Like They Used To Be, Vol. 7.  On Old-Time Mountain Guitar (an excellent CD!) there's a recording of Spanish Fandango by John Dilleshaw and the String Marvel that would stand pretty well as a solo piece.  It's purty - and kinda distinctive sounding.

[Stuart]

there's a recording of Spanish Fandango by John Dilleshaw and the String Marvel that would stand pretty well as a solo piece.  It's purty - and kinda distinctive sounding.

John Fahey did it as "Hawaiian Two-Step" with uke accompaniment, and solo as "Spanish Two-Step."

[Rivers]

Good topic. It would be fun to put them all into a table. We will have the perfect new repository for such things very soon.

[Rivers]

Guitar Rag, Sylvester Weaver, later known as Steel Guitar Rag
Twelve Sticks, Rev. Gary Davis
Alma Waltz, Mississippi Mud Steppers

[dj]

They're both duets, so not quite what Blue in VT is looking for, but two of my favorite country blues instrumentals are "Guitar Stomp" and "Railroad Stomp" by the Jolly Two - Walter Roland and Sonny Scott on guitars.  The songs are both on Document CD 5144:  Walter Roland Volume 1.  I have to say, if I were being shot off into space and there was only room on the spacecraft for 10 blues CDs, this would be one of them.

[frankie]

Sylvester Weaver

He's actually a good source of instrumentals, many of which have interesting & distinctive melodies.  The following are all on vol 1 (Document) and are all instrumentals:

Guitar Blues
Guitar Rag (twice)
Weaver's Blues
Smoketown Strut
Mixing Them Up In C
I'm Busy And You Can't Come In
Steel String Blues
Six-String Banjo Piece
Damfino Stump

Guitar Blues, Guitar Rag and Steel String Blues are all played with a slide, so probably not what you're after - Steel String Blues is actually a trio - two guitars and fiddle.  The others are all solo pieces.  Mike Seeger recently recorded Smoketown Strut.  I think there are some really nice ones in there...  and they're not quite the technical challenge of a Lonnie Johnson or Blind Blake piece, while still being fun to play & interesting music...  worth checking out!

[uncle bud]

Sylvester Weaver

He's actually a good source of instrumentals, many of which have interesting & distinctive melodies.  The following are all on vol 1 (Document) and are all instrumentals:

Guitar Blues
Guitar Rag (twice)
Weaver's Blues
Smoketown Strut
Mixing Them Up In C
I'm Busy And You Can't Come In
Steel String Blues
Six-String Banjo Piece
Damfino Stump

Guitar Blues, Guitar Rag and Steel String Blues are all played with a slide, so probably not what you're after - Steel String Blues is actually a trio - two guitars and fiddle.  The others are all solo pieces.  Mike Seeger recently recorded Smoketown Strut.  I think there are some really nice ones in there...  and they're not quite the technical challenge of a Lonnie Johnson or Blind Blake piece, while still being fun to play & interesting music...  worth checking out!

Good point, Frank. I had mentioned Sylvester Weaver, but said that he might not do because of the slide factor. As you point out, though, he has quite a lot that are not slide pieces - more raggy instrumentals. Damfino Stump is one I've always meant to work out, though I'd really prefer to work it out on a 6-string banjo. 

Another musician who has quite a number of great instrumentals spread over his recording career is John Jackson. They are some of my favorites in fact. Some are quite technically advanced but that shouldn't stop anyone from trying...

Some of John's instrumentals (not including banjo instrumentals):

Guitar Rag
John's Guitar Boogie
John's Rag
Flat Foot and Buck Dance
Don't Let Your Deal Go Down
John's Ragtime
Knife Blues
Blind Blake's Rag
Fairfax Station Rag
Rappahannock Blues