Topic: Sylvester Weaver Playing Positions/Tunings

[Johnm]

Hi all,
I've been noticing and remarking Sylvester Weaver's playing for a number of years now and have thought that he was a good candidate for analysis of the various playing positions and tunings in which he recorded. He was one of the earliest fingerstyle Blues guitarists to be recorded, and in the '20s ended up recording a lot of titles, both under his own name and as an accompanist for singers or other players. Here is a listing of  the recordings he made that were issued. They come in four categories, for the main part: Songs released under his own name, songs on which he accompanied Sara Martin, songs on which he accompanied Helen Humes and songs on which he accompanied Walter Beasley. There is one instrumental track on which he accompanied violinist E. L. Coleman and banjo player Charles Washington, and a single cut for which he may have supplied the accompaniment for Virginia Liston. For all of these recordings you will find the title of each track listed, along with Sylvester Weaver's playing position/tuning, the key at which the rendition sounded and the date it was recorded. For the tunes on which he was joined by Walter Beasley on slide guitar, I included Walter Beasley's tuning as well. A plus sign following the key in which a song was recorded indicates that it was slightly sharp of that pitch, a minus sign indicates flatness. I'll add a few notes today, but will edit in further ones later.

Sylvester Weaver-Playing Positions/Tunings

Sara Martin Tracks:

1. Longing For Daddy Blues E, standard tuning at E- 10/24/23 2. I’ve Got To Go And Leave My Daddy Behind A, standard tuning at Ab+ 10/24/23 3. Roamin’ Blues C, standard tuning at Bb 11/2/23 4. Goodbye Blues G, standard tuning at F 11/2/23 5. Everybody’s Got The Blues F, standard tuning (banjo-guitar) at F- 3/19/24 6. My Man Blues D, standard tuning (banjo-guitar) at Eb 3/19/24 7. Pleading Blues E, standard tuning at F (speed?) 3/19/24 8. Every Woman Needs A Man C, standard tuning at C 3/19/24 9. Got To Leave My Home Blues E, standard tuning at E 3/21/24 10. Poor Me Blues C, standard tuning at Db- 3/21/24 11. If I Don’t Find My Brown, I Won’t Be Back At All E, standard tuning at E+ 5/29/24 12. Can’t Find Nobody To Do Like My Old Daddy Do G, standard tuning at Gb 3-4/25 13. I’m Sorry Blues C, standard tuning at B 3-4/25 14. Daddy, Ease This Pain Of Mine A, standard tuning at Ab 3-4/25 15. Strange Lovin’ Blues Spanish, w/slide at G 3-4/25 16. I Can Always Tell When A Man Is Treatin’ Me Cool A, standard tuning at Ab 3-4/25 17. Where Shall I Be? E, standard tuning at E 4/6/27 18. I Am Happy In Jesus C, standard tuning at C 4/6/27 19. Gonna Ramble Blues C, standard tuning at B 4/7/27 20. Teasing Brown Blues E, standard tuning at Eb 4/7/27 21. Loving Is What I Crave E, standard tuning at Eb+ 4/30/27 22. Useless Blues G, standard tuning at G- 4/30/27 23. Black Hearse Blues C, standard tuning at B 4/30/27 24. Orn’ry Blues A, standard tuning at Ab+ 4/30/27 Sylvester Weaver Tracks: 1. Guitar Blues Vestapol, w/slide at E 11/2/23 2. Guitar Rag Vestapol, w/slide at D+ 11/2/23 3. Weaver’s Blues A, standard tuning at Ab 5/28/24 4. Smoketown Strut C, standard tuning at B- 5/28/24 5. Mixing Them Up In C C, standard tuning at B+ 6/1/24 6. I’m Busy And You Can’t Come In C, standard tuning at B+ 6/1/24 7. True Love Blues C, standard tuning at B- 4/12/27 8. Poor Boy Blues E, standard tuning at Eb 4/12/27 9. Six-String Banjo Piece C, standard tuning at C+ 4/12/27 10. Damfino Stump C, standard tuning at C#- 4/12/27 11. Guitar Rag Vestapol, w/slide at D+ 4/13/27 11. Dad’s Blues C, standard tuning at B- 8/31/27 12. What Makes A Man Blue A minor, C, standard tuning at G#/B 8/31/27 13. Can’t Be Trusted Blues E, standard tuning at Eb 8/31/27 14. Penitentiary Bound Blues A, standard tuning at Ab 8/31/27 15. Soft Steel Piston Open C, w/slide at C 8/31/27 16. Chittlin Rag Blues Weaver, C, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at C- 11/26/27 17. Railroad Porter Blues Weaver, C, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at C 11/27/27 18. Me And My Tapeworm Weaver, G, standard tuning, Beasley, Spanish at G# 11/27/27 19. Rock Pile Blues Weaver, C, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at C 11/27/27 20. Devil Blues Weaver, E, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at F- 11/27/27 21. Polecat Blues Weaver, D, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at D 11/27/27 22. Bottleneck Blues Weaver, C, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at Eb 11/27/27 23. St. Louis Blues Weaver, C minor, C, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at Eb 11/27/27 24. Black Spider Blues Weaver, E, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at E 11/30/27 Helen Humes Tracks: 1. Cross-Eyed Blues Weaver, C, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at C 11/26/27 2. Garlic Blues Weaver, A, standard tuning, Beasley, Spanish at A+ 11/26/27 3. Alligator Blues Weaver, E, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at E 11/27/27 4. Nappy Headed Blues Weaver, C, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at Db 11/27/27 5. Race Horse Blues Weaver, C, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at Eb 11/27/27 Walter Beasley Tracks: 1. Georgia Skin Weaver, C, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at Eb 11/30/27 2. Southern Man Blues Weaver, A, standard tuning, Beasley, Spanish at Bb 11/30/27 3. Toad Frog Blues Weaver, E, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at E- 11/30/27 4. Sore Feet Blues Weaver, E, standard tuning, Beasley, Vestapol at Eb 11/30/27 E.L. Coleman Track: 1. Steel String Blues Spanish w/slide at F- 4/25 Virginia Liston Track 1. Jail House Blues C, standard tuning at C+ 1/10/24 Notes:    * Sylvester Weaver's recording sessions spanned from November 24, 1923, a session on which he accompanied Sara Martin on two songs, to November 30, 1927, a day on which all of Walter Beasley's vocal numbers were recorded, along with Weaver's "Black Spider Blues".    * The first six titles recorded by Sylvester Weaver were all instrumentals, none of which had spoken commentaries, as was to become popular later for instrumental numbers. It seems very likely that all of Sylvester Weaver's slide playing was done lap-style, since he never fretted the two-finger IV and V7 chords commonly played by slide players who hold the guitar in the conventional manner. I had never noticed before compiling this list how late in his recording career all of Sylvester Weaver's vocal numbers were recorded--they were all done in 1927, in between April 12, 1927 and November 30, 1927. Why might this have been so? Perhaps it was partially because his earliest sessions were so early, in the Classic Blues era, really, that the record company may have been dubious that records of a man singing would sell. By 1927, the popularity of Lemon Jefferson, Papa Charlie Jackson and Blind Blake may have made Okeh more willing to take a chance on Weaver's vocals.    * Sylvester Weaver's accompaniments of Sara Martin, in particular, cover a lot of ground, both with regard to the number of playing positions he utilized and his approach to his accompaniments. He was an unusually sophisticated and inventive player, especially harmonically, and had a sort of "stealth" or non-obvious influence on a number of fingerstyle blues players, I think, among them Blind Blake, Lonnie Johnson, Blind Willie McTell, John Hurt and Libba Cotten.    * For the Sara Martin sessions labeled 3-4/25, he was joined by Charles Washington on banjo on all five numbers and E. L. Coleman on violin for two of the songs. That same instrumental trio recorded "Steel String Blues" at the same time. I think the dates for these sessions are more nebulous than for the rest of the sessions because they were done in St. Louis, where it appears less detailed session information was recorded than in New York, where almost all of the rest of the sessions were done.    * The Virginia Liston track lists, in DG&R, Sylvester Weaver as the "possible" accompanist. I'm dubious--the guitar on the track is out of tune and is a dirt simple boom-chang accompaniment with none of the nifty touches I would associate with Sylvester Weaver's playing. All best, Johnm

[Old Man Ned]

Hi John,

Thanks for listing the playing positions and tunings of Sylvester Weaver. What's the tuning of Open C used on Soft Steel Piston, C G C G C E from 6th to 1st string?

All the Best,
Ned

[Johnm]

Hi Ned,
Yes, that tuning is the one Sylvester Weaver used for that instrumental. Incidentally, DG&R show that as a duet between Weaver and Beasley and it is definitely just Weaver, with no second guitar.

[CF]

Great Work, John, Thanks.

[Johnm]

Thanks, Mike.

[blueshome]

Awesome work John, answers a lot of questions for me.