Here’s another Canadian old time gem, featuring two of our great fiddlers, Graham and Eleanor Townsend..
I’m amazed at how much fantastic music we have immediate access to these days…
Tag Archives: Daily Dose
Saturday Night up the Gatineau
I came across a remarkable video this evening, shared by doghousedonnie
It features some home movie footage of a Saturday night wedding celebration at Keon’s Hotel in Chapeau Quebec and a live recording of the wonderful Mac Beattie and his Ottawa Valley Melodiers performing Saturday Night up the Gatineau. Great tune. Great little movie. I thought you might enjoy this one as much as I did, so I’m sharing it here.
Winse Saunders
I stumbled across Winse Saunders on the YouTube machine this evening. I don’t know anything about him except he’s from Newfoundland and he squeezes the hell out of that accordion of his. If any readers know anything about Mr. Saunders, please comment.
The Coo Coo
Time for a Daily Dose. Let’s start at the start – with Clarence Ashley. Nice interview segment with this one…
Here are Sutton, Holt and Coleman…this version starts with a great little story about Doc Watson.
The Coo Coo has a lot of legs and still gets played a lot today. Here are the Avett Brothers
I really like the way Townes Van Zandt used to play this song as well.
She likes kielbasa better than fish…
Somebody entered “she likes kielbassa better than fish” into a search engine and came up with this blog. You asked for it buddy, you got it. It’s polka time on 27th St.
Here are Buffalo’s own Scrubby and Trojak
But while we’re on a Polish foodfest post, let’s not stop there. Here are Stanky and his Pennsylvania Coal Miners Polka Band performing Who Likes Pierogi
How about the Original Ampol Aires performing Polska Kielbasa. I love the dancing in this video…
OK OK, here’s Papa Crow performing Walt Solek’s masterpiece, Who Stole the Kishka
And finally, an old Czech commercial celebrating the virtues of kapusta.
Carolina
There is one more group we really loved at Merlefest that I wanted to highlight. Unfortunately I didn’t get a good photograph nor any video. The group is the Kruger Brothers. They are known as a trio, with Jens Kruger on the banjo and his brother Uwe on guitar and vocals, and Joel Landsberg on bass. They’ve been playing together since 1995. At Merlefest there was a 4th player as well on snare drum. I’m sorry I don’t know the drummer’s name, but I’m sure someone will let me know along the way. These guys moved to North Carolina from their native Switzerland and while they aren’t from the Appalachians, they are from the Alps.
They played one of their best known tunes, Carolina in the Fall, and their performance was so moving I found my eyes welling up during it. I don’t have a video of this performance but here’s one from YouTube featuring a performance of the same song elsewhere. It’s a really beautiful song and if you haven’t heard it before, you’re in for a treat.
As if that was not good enough, here are the Kruger Brothers playing Shady Grove with the late Doc Watson from back in 2002. Magic.
Another tune the Krugers played at Merlefest was People Get Ready.
Reuben
Here are Kirk Sutphin and Riley Baugus, two excellent old time performers who will also both be playing at Merlefest, which starts tomorrow afternoon.
Cumberland Gap
The Cumberland Gap, a mountain pass in the Appalachians located where Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia meet, is also the name of a song first recorded in 1924. There are countless versions. Here are a few that I really like.
Let’s start with bluegrass, and Flatt and Scruggs.
Now on to Old Time and Tommy Jarrell on the fretless banjo
Here’s a combo called Notorious. Very nice playing
And finally, the Rockridge Brothers
It was called Old Time….
….even when it was new.
Check out this fantastic bit of history… It’s called Folkways: Music of Surry County hosted by David Holt. It’s all about the home of the Round Peak style of Old Time. I don’t know much about the program…there it was sitting on YouTube waiting to be found and listened to. David Holt will be performing at Merlefest, and that’s a show I’m really looking forward to!
Formica!!
Check out this interview David Holt did with Kirk Sutphin. Mr. Sutphin is playing a fretless banjo with a Formica fingerboard! What a great idea.
