Mandolin1944 Videos

This is just for fun! It is me trying to keep up with one of the greatest old time fiddlers ever -- Mr. Clark Kessinger of St. Albans WV! If you are fans of Clark (I am I have his original LP records from the 1970's) don't be offended! Like I said this is just for fun -- no way can I play as fast as Kessinger even on this easy tune --Sally Ann Johnson (most folks these days call the tune just Sally Johnson). The arrangement was not the best as I could barely hear the fiddler and I actually ...

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IMHO this is one of Bill Monroe's greatest tunes and it is one he played a lot in the later years of his life. It is in the key of E and it always seems to me to be mysterious and inspiring at the same time -- I often lapse into playing it for no good reason!!! BTW, this is my second upload of this tune -- I posted a version last summer and I thought I'd see if I could improve on that one. This time I tried using a computer to supply the back up chords: E, B7, G, F# and D. At least it helps ...

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Here is a shot at the Temperance Reel -- I've played it in one form or another for quite a while -- but my version of the tune seems to have slipped off into some unused part of my conscienceness. But the Mandolin Cafe named it song of the week so that sent me looking through the dust and cobwebs for it. This is what I found -- its not quite right and my version seems to have changed over time. I might just have to go back to basics and relearn this tune! Of course this song is also known as ...

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Isle of Capri -- This is a lovely song that just kind of came back to me this morning. I remember singing it in high school chorus but this was back in another century. This version might not be exactly right but it is how I remember it. FYI. The island of Capri lies off the Italian Sorrentine Peninsula, on the south side of the Gulf of Naples. It has been a resort since the time of the Roman Empire. The song is about the island as was written by Wilhelm Grosz, an Austrian, in 1934. The ...

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OK this is my attempt at Luke Thomasson's famous waltz composition *Midnight on the water*. It is a lovely tune and I've always want to learn it. The Mandolin Cafe song of the week club gave me the inspiration to do it finally. This effort has more mistakes than usual even for me (SORRY!!) But I promised myself I would upload the first effort regardless how it turned out just to try to force a flawless effort -- well obviously it didn't work. On the good side its probably better than most of ...

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Here is a catchy little tune I found while browsing one afternoon for fiddle tunes on the internet. It's a Canadian schottische (which is kind of a two step polka -- at least that is how I remember it). I liked the tune so I decided to work it out -- I'm sure this is pretty close to the version I heard. The tund is quite different from the other Rochester Schottische that I posted earlier on my channel. The previous tune just labled *Rochester Schottische* seems to be tune derived from the ...

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Jerusalem Ridge is one of Bill Monroes signature tunes. Some believe that the Bills long time fiddler in the Bluegrass Boys band, the great Kenny Baker, at least had a hand in co-writing the tune. But we may never know for certain. Bill Monroe is gone now and Kenny still says Bill wrote it. That is good enough for me. Jerusalem Ridge is the crestline of a valley formation near the Monroe ancestral home overlooking Rosine, Kentucky. The tune is played here in the usual key, A-minor, at 220 ...

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This is a great dance tune played here in D major at 180 bpm on a 1919 Gibson F-2 mandolin.

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Bill Cheatem is a very well known American fiddle tune and has many other similar sounding names like "Bill Cheatham," "Cheatum," "Cheat 'Em.". The Fiddlers Companion calls it an old tyme American breakdown. I agree with that. The tune is usually played in A Major (like here) and in standard tuning with an AABB format. Many fiddlers customize the song to their own style which is what I have done here. If you like my version I can probably supply a tab that is close but not the same as I play ...

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This is a tune apprantley from Newfoundland? I'll bet that it is a great dance tune. I picked it up from a youtube video from legarageagilles. They have some great vides! Thanks Guys!! . Edward B. from the Garage plays it wonderfully on the mandolin and he calls it "La Reel De Terre-Neuve" Also the fine Newfoundland guitar player, Smiley Bates, does a fantastic job on it also. I wish I could play as well as those two guys! A tune that sounds very similar is on the CD "Blackwater by the group ...

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