Clarence Ashley performs "The Cuckoo"

[yenbadcito]

sawmill key ftw

[yenbadcito]

are there any black banjo players from back in the day? it's a serious query. it looks like the whites playd banjo and the balcks gueetar

[MikhailPinyo]

@yenbadcito The banjo is actually derived from an African instrument, so yes. Ashley himself played a lot like his neighbor who was of African decent. I suspect that back in the day there were more black banjo players than white, since in the Minstrel Shows white musicians would wear black face to play banjo--though this was usually also accompanied by racist caricature...

[billbroonzyish123]

crazy about the showbusiness

[kurtozan251]

I've watched this so many times.

[qwertyuiopjoel]

he makes it look so effortless!

[smallinson]

Goosebumps every time

[gearoiddom]

What an amazing piece of americana. Magic. Thanks for posting.

[CVargas]

I love the dog at 4:42

[Dullborn]

I am most thankful that material like this was captured...this fellow, Ashley, is a treasure, as are the rest of those musicians from the early era, and I am glad too that the revival of interest in the music and times came about when the whole lot of them were still in their prime musically...great video and a chance to see the definitive (IMO) version of the tune played..

Thanks

[Robon1]

Awesome.... wish i had this dvd

[PFCBeetleBailey]

2:56 Floyd The Barber!!

3:32 Music Starts!

[cryptidlover101]

someone thought dislike was "Dis I like."

[rmhallman]

lassie making is molassas making

[priser23]

Pretty sure I'm responsible for half the views on this thing.

[Staninec]

I believe that's Clint Howard on the guitar?

[JudgeSturdy]

@Staninec,

Clint Howard is sitting to the right of Ashley. That's Tex Isley to the left of Ashley playing the guitar. He and Ashley made a record together for Folkways in the early 1960s. Isley also played some really nice electric guitar as part of Charlie Monroe's Kentucky Pardners in the late 1940s.

[gat569]

Music starts around 3:30'ish

[locustsymphony]

Magic. 

[VolvoWagon77]

This is a priceless piece of footage I like to see the joy on his face when he starts to play his song.

[dirtyoldbanjo]

This is sawmill tuning or G modal G D G C D (turn your B to a C)

[betterthanbrad]

Cop  this!!

[Forestabri]

I've been playing this for about 15 years and I still can't do it like Mr. Ashley! Amazing.

It sounds like he says "lassy makin" tuning, which would refer to molasses making, a process that required help from the community and took all day. They made a party out of it, I think, with food and music.

[mitchc47]

@Forestabri  Good question, Forestabri. The phrase, I think, is 'laughter making' songs. This vid is part of a DVD entitled "legends of old time music", put out by GtrWorkShp. It has a vid of Jean Ritchie singing an old version of "The Coo Coo". The women took those old 'love songs' seriously and carefully preseved them. The men, however, would sometimes make parodies of them, & call it " laughter making" music.

[priser24]

@mitchc47 pretty sure he says "lassie making", though I'm not sure what that means.

[doozer125]

Greatest Old Time Musician ever, hands down.

[somesecret]

is that roscoe holcomb on the geet?

[dasilvaec]

@somesecret I don't believe it is, doesn't quite look like him, I could be wrong though

[johnnymccrowe]

@dasilvaec, nah, aint him

[xcso77x]

the "?what?" tuning??

[priser24]

@xcso77x

He called it the "sawmill" tuning.

This video is freaking amazing.

[xcso77x]

@priser24 yea but before that they called in something else didnt he?

[BrynTru]

I think he says Appalachian tuning, sawmill tuning.

[themanamp]

What a video! Thanks for posting, had no idea there was footage of him. Is there a video of just the music?

[squarepox]

That's so tight. Really badass stuff. Very cool.

[jrak]

oh my god oh my god

[sconl]

Can you imagine what that sounded like sitting directly in front of Clarence like that?

Even 50 years later through all the limitations of Youtube it's psychedelic as fock!

[dasilvaec]

All the way on the left there, that's Fred Price, and on the back up guitar next to Clarence that's Clint Howard

[blueridger28]

Iwonder if thats filmed in Boone?

[JudgeSturdy]

@blueridger28,

This was filmed in Morgantown, KY by George Pickow. It origianlly aired as part of an educational TV show about hillbilly music produced by the folklore department at UCLA and introduced by Tristam Coffin.

[velvetunderpants44]

Excellent stuff! Really shows the connection between Bluegrass and the old African field songs.

[priser24]

@velvetunderpants44

well, it's actually an adaptation of an old English folk tune. A lot of people would say that it isn't bluegrass at all. If you were dead set on giving it a genre, it would probably be called "mountain music" or "old-time. In any case, it's fantastic!

[fiddlinshim]

Interviewer is apparently D.K. Wilgus, although he looks a lot like Kenny Goldstein.

[dusty5292]

Aren't these guys are on the Harry Smith Anthology

[diamondvega2]

ashley is, yes. i think that version may just be him solo.

[rdf1988]

The quality is great too, considering the age.

[jotaeme14]

Great video.

[Mouldytone]

Wonderful stuff. Thanks for the clip.

[JSarmbru]

Who's that doing the interview?

Nicely played.

[JudgeSturdy]

@JSarmbru,

D.K. Wilgus

[pippofilippo1]

What great deal to rediscovery this roots!

Thanks for posting it!

[thomasd5414]

Incredibly beautiful. Thanks for posting!

[RagMama123]

That's great! Thanks for posting that one. I just got a cello banjo and will have to try this beautiful song on it.

Rick

[rikanechimo]

Cello banjo?! :)

[RagMama123]

Yes, check out my video clip of Tony Ellis' song "Stephen" on a cello banjo.

Rick

[RandyHaddock]

Excellent!