The Hillbilly Thread

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Frank Lee

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Hey! You got my attention with hillbilly! Real hillbillys have one leg shorter from running around all those steep ridges. Ever hear of brother Howell?

Here in Arkansas a long time ago I saw a special on PBS about a fellow named Bookmiller Shannon. I watched a video of him as he sat in his cabin doorway playing the banjo. He'd never heard a radio or been influenced by modern music. Raised in the rural Ozarks he'd been taught the old timey ways of playing. Born in 1908. Several of his tunes have been recorded. He's gone now but he was a real old time mountaineer picker. He played some with Jimmy driftwood who wrote the battle of New Orleans, Tennessee stud and other well known folk times.

Here's a little of his unique picking!


Here's an interview link ca 1970.

http://web.lyon.edu/wolfcollection/songs/shannoninterview1305.html

SmartSelectImage_2018-05-26-07-25-04-316x368.png

This one has pix
https://rackensack.wordpress.com/2011/04/10/bookmiller-shannon-banjo/

Here's Jimmy playing a bit. He was university educated and taught school.

 
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Josho

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Hey! You got my attention with hillbilly! Real hillbillys have one leg shorter from running around all those steep ridges. Ever hear of brother Howell?

Here in Arkansas a long time ago I saw a special on PBS about a fellow named Bookmiller Shannon. I watched a video of him as he sat in his cabin doorway playing the banjo. He'd never heard a radio or been influenced by modern music. Raised in the rural Ozarks he'd been taught the old timey ways of playing. Born in 1908. Several of his tunes have been recorded. He's gone now but he was a real old time mountaineer picker. He played some with Jimmy driftwood who wrote the battle of New Orleans, Tennessee stud and other well known folk times.

Here's a little of his unique picking!


Here's an interview link ca 1970.

http://web.lyon.edu/wolfcollection/songs/shannoninterview1305.html

View attachment 2508

This one has pix
https://rackensack.wordpress.com/2011/04/10/bookmiller-shannon-banjo/

Here's Jimmy playing a bit. He was university educated and taught school.


Nah I haven't heard of brother Howell, but nice stuff from Bookmiller and Driftwood.

I don't really know much in playing old clawhammer style on the banjo haha, I have given it a little try, but haven't really been able to stick with it, maybe I will give it another shot someday and properly get into the clawhammer style, haha. I started of with Scruggs and I still play Scruggs 3 finger style and I know a little bit of Melodic style, I'm only really a hobby picker at the moment, it would be nice to become professional one day though.

Clifton Hicks is pretty good.


 
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Josho

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Just messing around, I tried making a diddley bow a couple of months ago haha, it isn't proper or anything, but it failed, the log I used was unfortunately a bit too rotten, the stick just wouldnt hold the tension of the string properly, the wood in the log was just too rotten and soft. :p

Screenshot_2018-05-27-17-24-40-06.png
 
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Frank Lee

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Keep it up. Lots of fun. When I was young a family named shook that lived near us played music. The son Richard sdarted a band called merging TRAFFIC and made a one hit wonder song about 1970


That's Richard singing. Chet Atkins and others would show up at their house to play.
 
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aspen

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Is this a real thing?
 

Josho

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Is this a real thing?

Yes the diddley bow is a real thing, it's not all that popular, it's usually one stringed, some are 2 stringed though, people make it out of different things, some people use cigar box as a resonator, others use a glass bottle, some use nice round old cookie tins, and some even go electric and use a pickup, and people use old broom handles, planks of wood, or whatever as the neck, there's someone on youtube who even used a hockey stick.

Here's one with a cookie tin

and this one is just a genius simple idea, hahahaha

Here's another that uses a cigar box and a pickup
 
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Josho

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Love Andy Griffith...

I can remember when i was young and tv and movies were full of good christian values, fun and good times...

How far weve fallen as a society...
Makes me weep

Especially old comedies, you don't get all the dirt that they have in today's shows. Was watching Different Strokes on tv yesterday, I haven't seen much of that show, but that was pretty funny. Good old Abbott & Costello is good too. And for English comedy, Some Mothers Do Ave Em, is pretty good as well. I only just came across the Andy Griffith Show the other day while flicking through youtube, the music on it is wonderful though. I am only in my early 20s though, so still a young fella, but you guys had some good shows back then though. :D
 
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Philip James

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Especially old comedies, you don't get all the dirt that they have in today's shows. Was watching Different Strokes on tv yesterday, I haven't seen much of that show, but that was pretty funny. Good old Abbott & Costello is good too. And for English comedy, Some Mothers Do Ave Em, is pretty good as well. I only just came across the Andy Griffith Show the other day while flicking through youtube, the music on it is wonderful though. I am only in my early 20s though, so still a young fella, but you guys had some good shows back then though. :D

Ha ! Abbot and Costello were a scream. I remember there was a station that would air one of their movies every Sat afternoon. I almost never missed one lol.

I also remember when i was about 10, going to see planet of the apes in the theater, and what a huge uproar it was when Heston said 'damn them all to hell' on screen.
 
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twinc

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Ha ! Abbot and Costello were a scream. I remember there was a station that would air one of their movies every Sat afternoon. I almost never missed one lol.

I also remember when i was about 10, going to see planet of the apes in the theater, and what a huge uproar it was when Heston said 'damn them all to hell' on screen.
Is this a real thing?