Lemon Jelly

Rambling Man



Nice Weather For Ducks

Songs with animations: Harry Belafonte; Jackie Wilson

Harry Belafonte. Jump in the Line


Aha! This animation is from the film "The Nightmare Before Christmas"


Jackie Wilson. Reet Petite

Technical Problems

When you view the clips do they keep stopping with a spinning circle or not playing smoothly?
It means your broadband speed isn't fast enough.


You can test your speed here (This is the BBC's iPlayer site)

If your speed is only about 1000 kilobytes per second (1 Megabyte) that isn't fast enough.

You're probably paying for a faster service, but you have to complain to get it.

Apparently most Internet Service Providers will increase your speed if you phone and complain

Incidently, the iPlayer site allows you to see certain BBC television programmes.

Oirish - Songs of Emigration

Jimi Hendrix

This song, In 1983 a Merman I Shall Turn to Be (or something like that), is on Hendrix's Electric Ladyland album. It's over 13 minutes long and it's great.
This version seems almost acoustic.

In a Dark Wood Wandering

In a Dark Wood Wandering. music by Tchaikovsky




Igor Shpilenok. Russian nature photographer

I Am The Walrus

I am the walrus

Deep Forest - Sweet Lullaby

Young brother, young brother hey? although you are crying to me
Your father has left us
He has gone to the place of the dead
Protect the head of the living, protect the orphan child

Interpreting the Song:

This interpretation and lyrics come from one very old lady, living in Fataleka (one of the Solomon Islands), as translated by her grandchildren. The song is said to be very old and hence the new generation does not understand every word.

The song is about a young child crying because he does not see his father with the family. In response his elder sister sung this song to comfort as well as tell him the reality, with an appeal for their deceased father to protect this child in the land of the living (local ancient belief is that the dead care for loved ones they left behind).

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?

A couple of songs for the credit crunch.



Bessie Smith - Nobody wants you when you're down and out

Eden Ahbez Nature Boy

eden ahbez 1


eden ahbez2


This guy, Eden Ahbez, was a bohemian type living in California in the 40s. Apparently he lived for a long while behind the "L" in the big Hollywood sign.
He wrote the song Nature Boy that was a hit for Nat King Cole. These clips show him meeting up with Nat King Cole for the first time.

He rides his bike on stage and seems to speak from a pre-arranged script about how he likes to live simply and close to nature. He says he's staying in the best hotel - Central Park. I initially thought he meant he was really staying in a grand hotel, but I think he means he was sleeping in the park.

One thing that sounds a bit weird these days is his saying that he'd like a jeep so he could "get to nature more quickly".

Eden Ahbez died in the mid-90s aged 85 when he was run over by a lorry while riding his bike.

Other Hollywood sign curiousities: In 1932, Welsh actress Peg Entwistle committed suicide by jumping from the letter "H" when she thought her career was on the slide.
Ironically, when she jumped there was already a letter in the post offering her a big part in a film. Even more ironically, the character they wanted her to play was a woman who commits suicide.



Nat King Cole's version of the song.

Anarchy in the UK Big Band version

Diggin my potatoes

Big Bill Broonzy




Memphis Slim






Lonnie Donegan singing Whoa Buck.
Lonnie Donegan was a skiffle performer in the UK in the 50s. He copied a lot of songs from American blues artists, particularly Lead Belly, and, so I've heard, claimed them as his own.

This song was recorded by Lead Belly but also features on a very early recording of prison chain gangs in Mississippi.

Abbots Bromley

The Abbots Bromley Horn Dance. Very old it says.


This is the tune Abbots Bromley.

Peter Trimming Plays: Abbots Bromley Horn Dance Tune

Cannon's Jug Stompers

Cannons Jug Stompers - Minglewood blues

Dock Boggs

Country Blues




Sugar Baby



Dock Boggs recorded these songs in the 20s or 30s. He gave up music and went back to mine working - he'd also had a spell as a bootlegger during Prohibition.
Like a lot of those old guys, he was "rediscovered" in the folk and blues movement of the 60s and took up music again.

INTRO

Intro

A collection of links to video clips, music shops, tutorial clips, etc.

Mostly . . . US country / old time/rock and roll(a bit); Blues; English, Irish folk; humour and curiosities; sixties stuff


Also try my new Comedy Blog

Bukka White

Bonzo Dog Do Dah Band

The Intro and the Outro

Captain Beefheart

Ice Cream For Crow

Bluejeans and Moonbeams

Electricity

Temperance Seven

Temperance Seven website

Some songs:

Everybody Loves My Baby

Charleston

Charleston 1923

BLUES

Three songs of Bukka White

Aberdeen Blues

Poor Boy a Long Way from Home

Don't Put Your Daddy Outdoors

intro

Intro

A collection of links to video clips, music shops, tutorial clips, etc.

Mostly . . . US country / old time/rock and roll(a bit); English, Irish folk; humour and curiosities; sixties stuff

The Sand Dance; Little Tich

Wilson and Kepler (no Betty) The Sand Dance

Little Tich

Bits and pieces - 60s reminiscences

On the road again - Canned Heat

Going up the country - Canned Heat

A couple of songs from the 60s. I think Canned Heat are still going in some form, though Alan Wilson and Bob Hite have been dead for years. Alan Wilson wrote both these songs (on the road again adapted from old blues songs). He died of a drugs overdose at the age of 27 in the tradition of rock musicians.

The name "canned heat" came from an old song called Canned Heat Blues - a reference to drinking Sterno ( a cleaning fluid) by desperate alcoholics.




Donna Donna Donovan version
Donna Donna - lyrics
Donna Donna Wikipedia info

I remember this song from the Donovan version in '65. I didn't realise it had such a deep (but unclear) history. Some people say it was written by Itschak Katsenelson (1886-1944) in the Warsaw ghetto or actually in a cattle truck on the way to a concentration camp. The wikipedia version says that it was a Yiddish song written in Nazi Germany in the 30s and performed in a play called "Esterke" in 1940 - obviously not performed in Germany at that time.

Here comes the sun fingerstyle

Just stumbled on this one. Nice bit of fingerstyle guitar to try and copy. George Harrison wrote some good songs, didn't he?




Memphis Jug Band - On the road again

Great song (but dodgy lyrics!). Recorded in 1929. Just a photo accompanying it - what can you expect for nearly 80 years ago! I've got this song on a CD that came with a book of Bob Crumb drawings of old time American music.
Highly recommended. Yours for $20!











Days of Pearly Spencer

I also remember this from the 60s. It used to be played a lot on pirate radio. It turns out that the guy who started Radio Caroline also had a record label and this was the first release.

Mark Almond did a version in the 80s.

I was curious as to what the story behind it was. Apparently it was about a friend of David McWilliams who went down the tubes with alcohol.
David McWilliams was from Belfast and died in 2002.

Jesu,Joy of Man's Desiring

The well-known Bach tune.


The Wikipedia page


A YouTube video of this tune played on guitar, showing both hands

It's from this site: Guitar for Beginners

Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia

In the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. A song sung by Laurel and Hardy in the film Way Out West.

Andrew Cronshaw

My Space

Discography

Through Moorfields (audio clip)

Meg Merrilies

Meg Merrilies

Stumbled on this YouTube site. She is a Celtic harpist, but also has lots of other clips on the site.
I was actually looking for a guy called Andrew Cronshaw and I found this clip of a bike ride on the moors with moody music. Bit short though.

Freight Train Tablature

Freight train tablature

Freight Train was written by Elizabeth Cotten in 1907 when she was 12 years old. She taught herself to play her older brother's guitar. He was right-handed, but she was left-handed, so played the guitar upside down. Despite this she became a serious player.

She stopped playing publicly for a long time, but was rediscovered by the Seegers during the 60s folk boom and her career took off again. She was still giving concerts when she was 90 years old.

Online Folk Music Station

The Music Well I haven't heard it yet, but it seems worth a listen.

Homespun Tapes

Homespun Tapes

Happy Traum's music tutorial website. Covers lots of instruments and styles, particularly blues and country.

Online Music Shops

Hobgoblin

Amazing variety of acoustic instruments.

Folk Instruments Collection of shops and instrument makers.


Songstones Unusual ocarinas for £12:95

The Music Room



TUTORS

Folk Revolution

KIng Oliver

http://www.doctorjazz.co.uk/portnewor.html#koliver

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_%22King%22_Oliver




http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazz/profiles/joe_oliver.shtml

Cisco Houston

Cisco Houston long gone

New York Town
http://www.ciscohouston.com/MP3s/new_york_town.mp3

The Blackleg Miner

Wikipedia. Background to the song

Dick Gaughan.Words

Dick Gaughan. Music. Including Midi file.

Ryan's Fancy performing a version of this song.

Collection of old mining photos backed by Steeleye Span version of this song

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWA7QujvQl0&feature=related

Blue Horses Their version of this song. I saw them at the Trowbridge festival a few years ago. Wonder if they're still around.

American Banjo

Above: Donald Zepp from Zepp Music





Zepp Music

A music shop in Wendell, NC (North Carolina?) owned by Donald B. Zepp.
This is a great site. It's mostly banjos and he records them on this site to give people an idea of how they sound. Lots of great tunes to listen to. He has recorded a tune called Shady Grove lots of times. The link takes you to a video on YouTube.

One thing that strikes me is how much English/Scottish/Irish influence there is in this style of music - though of course, the Americans have given it their own distinctive sound.
Shady Groves sounds like the English folk song Matty Groves - similar name too.
Then there are more or less straight Irish tunes like Paddy on the Turnpike.


Old Hat Records

















Click on photo for link to Old Hat records.



http://www.honkingduck.com/

http://juneberry78s.com/index.html

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

http://www.ronimusic.com/

http://70.154.102.35/%7Emtsouth/ssblinks.htm

Sister Rosetta Tharpe

Wikipedia

Down By The Riverside

Up Above My Head

Candyman; Fotheringay

Meet on the Ledge

Candyman

Tablature, How to

Guide to Tablature

Fifth Avenue

I bought a guitar tutoring video from a secondhand shop. It was produced by Fifth Avenue Films. I thought it was pretty good.

Irish Music

Irish Fiddle Welcome Page

A comprehensive guide to Irish fiddle music. Has some tunes on it using software called Scorch. Didn't work for me, although I downloaded the Scorch program.

Mel Bay

Mel Bay is a long-established American company who specialise in music tutorials. This address is the home page. You can navigate to everywhere else from there, but I'll include a few links to help you -

Guitar Sessions Various bits and pieces about guitar playing. Not that brilliant, but worth a mooch.

http://www.fiddlesessions.com/

Fiddle Sessions Online newsletter about all aspects of fiddle playing. Also check out the Back issues