The Ray Brothers recorded Mississippi Echoes at their second and final recording session, November 21, 1930, in Memphis Tennessee. The group was comprised of Will Ray on fiddle and Vardaman Ray on guitar. The tune was paired with Tuscaloosa Waltz, and released as Victor # 23552. The tune is comprised of two eight-bar strains in C, played…
Lazy Kate
The Leake County Revelers recorded Lazy Kate at their final session, December 18, 1930, in Jackson Mississippi. It was paired with a side recorded two years earlier, Memories, and released as Columbia # 15767. Theirs is the only recording of this tune under this title. The tune is comprised of two eight-bar strains played in the standard…
Avalon Quickstep
Narmour and Smith recorded Avalon Quickstep at a June 7, 1930, session in San Antonio. It was released on OKeh’s country 45000 series as OKeh #45469. It was also released on OKeh’s Mexican 16000 series as #16732. The Mexican series issue was titled Tiempo Alegre, and, per Tony Russell’s discography, may have been credited to ‘Duo Instrumental.’ Avalon…
Johnny Inchin’ Along
Johnny Inching Along is a fairly simple and straightforward AABB fiddle tune in G major, based on two four-bar strains. It was recorded by Fiddlin’ Doc Roberts at a March 15, 1929, session in Richmond, Indiana, and released as Gennett #7049. Roberts uses a variation of the ‘A’ strain repeatedly in his performance. This is…
Buck Creek Gal
Fiddlin’ Doc Roberts recorded Buck Creek Gal at an August 26, 1927, session in Richmond, Indiana. It was released as Champion #155500, credited to the pseudonym Fiddlin’ Jim Burke. The tune is unusual structurally. It can be broken into three primary sections: An eight-bar ‘A’ section in E minor An eight-bar ‘B’ section in G major…
Bill Cheatham
The Red Headed Fiddlers recorded Bill Cheatham as Cheat `Em at an October 27, 1929, session in Dallas. Bill Cheatham remains a standard in old-time and bluegrass repertoires. There are several recordings under various spellings listed in Tony Russell’s comprehensive discography: Bill Cheatam: Blind Joe Mangum/ Fred Shriber Bill Cheatham: Arthur Smith Bill Cheatum: The Light…
What’s the Matter with the Mill
I made this simple arrangement of What’s the Matter with the Mill years ago for <a href=”https://kennethrainey.com/writing/my-wildly-unsuccessful-book/”>my tunebook</a>, based on a Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys recording from a September 29, 1936, session in Chicago. Coincidentally, that same session produced Wills’ first recording of the Western Swing standard Steel Guitar Rag. The tune is a…
Wish I’d Stayed in the Wagon Yard
I made this simple arrangement of Wish I’d Stayed in the Wagon Yard years ago for my tunebook, based on Lowe Stokes’ recording from a November 1st, 1929, session in Atlanta, released as Columbia 15557-D. Stokes’ recording is the only version listed under the title ‘Wish I’d Stayed in the Wagon Yard’ in Tony Russell’s comprehensive…
Run Smoke Run
Fiddlin’ Doc Roberts recorded Run Smoke Run at an August 24th, 1928 session in Richmond, Indiana. The recording was released as Gennett # 6689. The tune is comprised of two short four-bar strains, played AABBB. There is substantial variation between some of the repeats, so they are written in full.
Bull at the Wagon
The Lewis Brothers recorded Bull at the Wagon at a July 11, 1929 session in El Paso. Sadly that was the only known session for the duo. It’s a pity because Bull at the Wagon is a charming and energetic recording. The tune itself is fairly simple, composed of three strains in A Major, played…