Only cause my wife plays the banjo

[daveswoodhauler]

If anyone is interested, there is a good BANJO show on PBS tonight at 9:00pm with Steve Martin.
Wife picked up the banjo about 6 months ago and has been self teaching herself.....I have a violin/fiddle, and lets just say that I wish I would have picked an easier instrument to learn lol

 

[rottiman]

Man o man, thanks for the heads up. Bluegrass fanatic that I am, love what Steve Martin has accompolished as a picker. He and the Steep Canyon Rangers are always great.

 

[snowleopard]

Is that radio or tv?

 

[Shari]

"A Kazakh Melody" - Abigail Washburn - neat picking - here it is set to a video:

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[Fifelaker]

If that is the one on Austin city limits it is very good+ there is some classic steve Martin funny stuff in it.

 

[daveswoodhauler]

Its was on TV on PBS. Was more of a "history" of the Banjo vs actually playing, but still pretty interesting

 

[homebrewz]

If anyone is interested, there is a good BANJO show on PBS tonight at 9:00pm with Steve Martin.
Wife picked up the banjo about 6 months ago and has been self teaching herself.....I have a violin/fiddle, and lets just say that I wish I would have picked an easier instrument to learn lol

Fiddle's not that bad. I played guitar for a while, and my reasoning for switching was that there are two less strings and a much shorter fingerboard. You just have to get the bowing down.

 

[rottiman]

Its was on TV on PBS. Was more of a "history" of the Banjo vs actually playing, but still pretty interesting

Was intresting for sure. Although not alot of pickin, but what was there was really good.

 

[Milton Findley]

Thanks for turning me on to Abigail Washburn. Good music there.

 

[Delta-T]

I watched it. It was cool. The "bass" player in my band also plays the banjo, and I have a great appreciation for the twang of the thing. Seen Bela Fleck a few times...not what you imagine when someone says "hey, listen to this guy play the banjo". I'm always impressed by how loud the banjo is too. Go Banjo! Recently saw the 6 string Banjotar (guitar meets banjo, has baby= banjotar)...may have to pic one up.

 

[tickbitty]

Any of you guys ever hear of the Lonesome River Band? I love their banjo player, Sammy Shelor, he's awesome, and such a nice guy.

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[tickbitty]

So... I was just checking to see if anyone had checked out Sammy yet! I googled him to see if there's anything recent going on with them, and he's just won a big prize from Steve Martin, in fact, and he's going to be on Dave Letterman Friday night with the rest of the band! Woohoo, be still my heart!

(broken link removed)

 

[Fifi]

Since this seems to be the musical thread....I play harmonica......started with one.....now have lots on different keys....play in our local church band.

Fifi

 

[granpajohn]

(broken link removed)

Please give a listen...something for all tastes here.
Please support if you can.

 

[tickbitty]

Fifi, that's really cool, did you teach yourself?!

Granpajohn, thanks for the link!

If anybody liked the Lonesome River guys, they are on Letterman tonite.

 

[Fifi]

Nice banjo playing. Yeah I taught myself from internet and books, not many harmonica teachers around.

Fifi

 

[tickbitty]

Nice banjo playing. Yeah I taught myself from internet and books, not many harmonica teachers around.

Fifi

What kind do you play? Like, Neil Young or old-timey or ?

My sister tried to play when we were kids, was trying to learn from a record. She would play the record but just breathe in-out-in out on the harmonica and convinced herself she was playing what was on the record! LOL, it didn't last long...
Come to think of it, I should get one of her kids a harmonica for Christmas!

 

[Fifi]

It depends which type of song, if I'm following the tune from a book I use a chromatic (with a slider can play every note in any key). If I'm blending in with the band and improvising I use diatonic in whatever key they are playing in to add effects. The songs are mostly modern Christian worship songs, occasionally an old fashioned hymn which suits the chromatic type playing. I've learned a few western type songs to just play around with such as the traditional Oh Suzanna, Oh my Darling Clementine stuff. I've heard some nice music from the group Alabama3 with some good harmoncia on and want to get round to trying to play along with some of that, not that I'm as good as them of course. I've had a go at playing along with some old harmonica greats blues CD's, again I'm not that good but I can blend in with them and try.

I've found Lee Oskar are a very good brand for the diatonics and I use a Seydel for the Chromatic, a non-valved one...I started on Hohner Chromatic but got through two and both of them the the valves got sticky after a while.

The cheap plastic brightly coloured Hohner diatonics work very well for starter ones, they used to come in packs of 4 but I think they are sold seperately now.

Fifi