Fiddlin’ Doc Roberts recorded New Money at an August 24th, 1928, session in Richmond, Indiana. It was paired with Shoot That Turkey Buzzard, and released as Gennett # 6775. It also saw a release on the Supertone label (# 9355), credited to his oft-used pseudonym, Fiddlin’ Jim Burke. This is the only commercial recording of New Money under that title…
Sleeping Lula
The Carver Boys recorded Sleeping Lula at what was, regrettably, their only recording date — a September 6th, 1929, session in Richmond, Indiana. It was released on the Paramount label as #3233, as well as on Broadway and ARC-Broadway (credited to the Cramer Boys). The tune is a fairly straightforward rag in C, with a motive that…
L and N Rag
This transcription is based on a performance Alex Hood and His Railroad Boys recorded at their only recording date, an April 8th, 1930, Knoxville session that produced two sides. A transcription of L and N Rag appeared in my book, but there are three significant issues with that transcription: It is in the wrong key Several phrases are transcribed…
Pallet on the Floor
This Pallet on the Floor isn’t the same tune as Make Me a Pallet on Your Floor. It is, however, an interesting 12-bar tune in C with some nice syncopations. The Stripling Brothers recorded this tune at a session in New Orleans, Louisiana, on March 12th, 1936. It was paired with You Are Always in My Dreams, and…
Mississippi Breakdown
The Mississippi `Possum Hunters had a single recording session to their credit, a May, 1930, session in Memphis that yielded four sides for the Victor Label. Mississippi Breakdown came out of that session, and was paired with `Possum on the Rail. Tony Russell’s Country Music Records: A Discography 1921-1942 lists three recordings of tunes called Mississippi Breakdown: The Mississippi…
Washington Quadrille
This transcription is based on a performance by Jimmy Johnson’s String Band, recorded in Richmond, Indiana, on November 12, 1931. It was released as Champion S-16389 and Superior 2821. The term quadrille is used to mean a wide variety of (sometimes contradictory) things in American country dance. R.P Christeson used it in his seminal Old…
There's More Pretty Girls than One
This transcription is based on a performance by John D. Foster, recorded for the Gennett company on April 11, 1929. It was issued on the Gennett-affiliated label Challenge (#423), credited to ‘Crocker & Cannon.’ This performance is in waltz time. Modern performers often play this in 4/4. Though the lead sheet starts with the chorus,…
Billy in the Low Ground
This transcription is based on a Buddy Griffin/ Red Allen recording from the Folkways CD Classic Old-Time Fiddle from Smithsonian Folkways (SFW40193). Tangleweed recorded this on their Please Punch Richard For Me CD, under the title ‘Billy in the Oh Ground.’