Blackwaterside - Folk Song (Traditional)

[crapshack1111]

That sounds great man!

[countryboy72tele]

Alan,

Beautiful job on this tune! I definitely need to practice more!

Cheers,

Mike

[Coyoteboy12]

Nice work

[SuperBeanson]

nice Fylde- I've got an Oberon :P

[salixarbour]

@SuperBeanson

Good choice for sure! :-)

[lusiferotoma]

I tried to play that in the toilet...but actually he's right, in the kitchen sounds a lot better

[salixarbour]

@lusiferotoma

One can practice in the toilet until flushed with success,

before finally cooking up the actual recording in the kitchen.  :-)

Alan.

[mjt11860]

@salixarbour sir thomas crapper & julia childs would b proud! thumbs up 4 this comment.

[FattyCorpusle]

Mr. Clean plays "Blackwaterside" in his shiny Mr. Clean kitchen!..

nice job sir!

[WalksWithTurkeys]

Very nice indeed, and your voice goes well with the piece.

[37zeus37]

excellent version

[VERB65]

Beyond beautiful...lot of skill there. Just recently discovered Jimmy Page didn't write this piece. More over just discoverd thr piece has words. I've been listening to Jimmy play this for over 20 years and I had no idea. Awesome to here this version. You rock great job. If I could do that I would be getting laid constantly.

[costa1953]

listening to you after such a long time.

dear mate, it's always a pleasure ... ;O)

[wratchild771]

amazing really nice...can you tell me some folk songs like blackwatter side please

[TomRAFC]

check out martin carthy/bert jansch

[djembesimon]

Really enjoying this version. Agree with Paddy about the singing - I love Bert's scrappy voice, but this too is very nice. Thanks for posting.

[paddyfrogfart]

seen some unjustified compliments about other versions of this song. You've sung it better than any of them. Thumbs up for not trying to copy Bert's unique voice.

[salixarbour]

Thanks, Paddy.

Listening to my interpretation tonight is making me cringe, here and there; can see room for improvement now! :-)

Cheers.

Alan.

[paddyfrogfart]

Comfort yourself Alan and go watch some other versions. Until I post something of my own I have no right to knock anyone, but equally I won't post a "that was brave of you" kind of comment.

You've sung it in your own style, and it suits the song.

I'm sure Michelangelo said at times that "the creation of Adam" wasn't perfect. That fussiness will serve you well sir.

[costa1953]

still listening to you ... happy new year from rome

costa

[salixarbour]

Hi, Costa.

Not playing much these days as very busy with work etc. Hoping for a better year in 2010. Best wishes to you for Xmas & New Year.

Alan.

[dirtystrings]

Excellent!

[dogeatdog69]

Top show!!

Excellent viewing!

[DoomIsHere]

great cover!

[MadSpoon23]

you did a very beautiful job of this. i don't know I came upon this video but I'm so glad I did. take a listen to my song Blue Stem if it pleases you. Maybe you would like it - your beautiful playing reminds me of it somehow.

[jaybullen]

good singing

[makitfunkee]

You know I didn't like the guitar arrangement that much (too much high neck positions make it more tenuous and you don't get the ring of the open positions) although it's damned good playing.

But your voice and vocal arrangement are absolutely wonderful, so much better than Jansch. This sounds like Nick Drake covering the tune.

*The bathroom must have good reverb, but maybe record by candlelight since the sink fixtures and bright light work against the mood here. 5 Stars !!!!!

[salixarbour]

I agree with your opinion on the high neck positions; the piece needs longer strings for more a more sonorous bass sound. Maybe one day I'll rearrange it.

I'm flattered with the Nick Drake comparison. :-)

Hope my wife never reads this; she'll be upset that you mistook her kitchen for a bathroom. Ouch!

Best wishes.

Alan.

[oplbgtfdesv654bvtgrf]

Boss that mate, great voice too

[StringedDuet]

nice kitchen

[irelephant]

Beautiful job on a challenging song. Your picking is excellent and you have a lovely tenor as well.

Are you playing in drop D or DADGAD? I've got pretty good tab for the latter. I think Bert switched to the drop D version after first recording it on Jack Orion in DADGAD tuning, but you can't find accurate tab for it.

[salixarbour]

Thanks, irelephant.

Oddly, I've never been totally happy with my way of delivering this lovely song. I've always thought Bert's deep rich voice added a tremendous dark quality to the piece. Still, it was a pleasure to learn to play, all the same. I play the drop D version, by the way.

Best wishes.

Alan.

[beethovenbix]

"DAVEY GRAHAM" - Played this before HERBERT JANSCH.

Herbert was still at SCHOOL when Davey

Graham made this popular !! ?????

Herbert Jansch, John Renbourn, Martin Carthy, and Jimmy Page himself were all

influenced by Davey Graham before any of them could even play this style of Acoustic Folk guitar ! Herbert Jansch actually learn't to play folk style acoustic from Davey Grahams Sister. When he was learning from her -she lent him a recording of Daveys that Totally influenced

his Playing."

[gtrfinger]

Yes, Jansch was influenced by Graham, and cites him as his favourite guitarist, but... never heard Graham play this. This is Jansch's arrangement.

[viking1au]

Na, Bert & Davy were friends but this trad song was given to Bert by Anne Briggs. - He then adapted it for guitar. - Anne used to sing it unaccompanied. - Bert got Anji from Davy Graham, and that was ripped off by Paul Simon.

[beethovenbix]

Thanks man. Paul Simon actually invited

Davey Graham to join him and Art Garfunkel - but Davey declined. Because

Simon and many others held Davey in high regard - he decided to do a version

of Anji on their Debut Album - 'The Sounds

of Silence' which came out in 1965.(Or

thereabouts) It still remains the Only Instrumental recorded on any Simon and

Garfunkel album, It would have been interesting to see how 'Simon, Graham and Garfunkel' would have progressed - had Davey Joined.

[thunderider1]

i would love to play this song...but not good enuff,i cam about it via jimmy page! great tune

[salixarbour]

Many thanks, thunderider1.

Alan.

[psychevince]

Exelent!!! you have that mystical sound, that you don´t see too often... real music would be lost if people like you dont keep on playing.

[salixarbour]

Cheers, psychevince.

Alan.

[costa1953]

still listening ... ;O)

amazing ...

[seanfan69]

Great version man, damn straight.

[salixarbour]

Cheers, mate.

Alan.

[salixarbour]

Thanks, Costa.

Alan.

[420IrishRasta420]

Great Job man. BRING FOLK MUSIC BACK TO AMERICA!!!!

[Rigbyband]

Awesome!

[TomRAFC]

hi alan, have always loved your vids, since jansch played fyldes too you get the sound just right, love it!

[salixarbour]

Hi, TomRACF.

Ha! You're very kind, but seriously, I'd be pleased if I sounded just half as good as Mr.Jansch, and had just 10% of his genius!!!

Best wishes.

Alan.

[seanfan69]

Would'nt mind hearing your high voice WITH Jansh.

[costa1953]

still listening ... and a happy new year

cheers from rome

[salixarbour]

Hi, Costa.

Many thanks for that, and best wishes for the New Year to you too.

I really must start playing my guitar again in the new year!! :-)

Salute! / Cheers!

Alan.

[Beemerboy324]

This melody goes back hundreds of years and the only other time I had heard it done with this modulating tempo was at a historic music festival. Probably originally written for lute, it sounded very much like this. Excellent performance.

[salixarbour]

Thanks, Beemerboy.

What you say about its origins and relation to the lute are very interesting. I love the lute, and am waiting for my first lute to the built; probably August 2009. It would be intriguing to learn this piece on such an instrument. Great idea, thanks.

Alan.

[costa1953]

the real secret of this piece is the "tempo":

salixarbour plays guitar exactly with this strange "tempo" feeling, flowing/playing slow&fast as it needs. that's why is masterpiece, imho.

[HartShlemiel]

sorry mate, nothing like it.

[costa1953]

It is more than one year I can't stop listening to this song at least once per weeek. Greetings from Italy.

Ciao

Costa

[salixarbour]

Hi again, Costa.

I think one year ago you made the first ever comment on this song! Welcome back and thanks for writing again. Actually, I think my performance of this song is quite poor! :-(

One day, I may get round to re-recording it.

Very best wishes...from England...it's raining here again! Well, it's only July!

Alan.

[bjornvb1991]

i dont like the song but u know i think you're nice guitarplayer and singer =]

[EllJayAitch]

Fine rendition - thanks. It also provides a bit more insight into Bert's version. All video with Bert is murky and uninformative.

[kiaweking]

Most excellent! Each player gives a piece His/her personal vibe. You play here with feeling. Thanks for sharing your music here on YouTube.....

Aloha, Thomas

[salixarbour]

Thanks again, Thomas.

You probably read below how I don't actually like my own performance of this song that much! So your compliments are that much more appreciated!!

Very best wishes to all in Hawaii. :-)

Alan.

[kiaweking]

We are often our own worst critics. When others listen they hear the beauty of the gift we share with them.

[jlawrencecarr]

You are wonderful! Whenever I see someone playing in their house I expect to be some hideously out of tune substandard attempt at imitating their favourite singer, but you really blew me away! I don't suppose you record CDs that I could buy?

[salixarbour]

Hi, jlawrence. Sorry, I wish I was good enough to have recorded CDs! :-)

Thanks for being so complimentary by the way, but it's really funny how we have different perceptions on a piece of music...I've always thought of this performance as quite sub-standard...must try harder etc! :-) So, it really is nice to feel that it is appreciated by someone out there!

Cheers.

Alan.

[jlawrencecarr]

You should look into producing CDs, even if you just do it at home...people seem to really enjoy listening to you and I imagine you could make some extra cash!

[jackorion85]

you are very good...well actually you are more than "very good" on further thought! I was thinking that your version resembles the melody of "She Moved Through the Fair".

[salixarbour]

Hi,Nicola/Jack Orion! Great to see that folk music from these fair isles has made it all the way to Italy!! Yes, you're right, this song does have similarities to 'She Moved Through the Fair'. Never noticed that before. Hmm. Enjoyed your vids...must learn 'Scarborough Fair' some time in the future. Can't believe I've never tried that song yet!

Ciao. :-)

Alan.

[pcsbyte]

Beautiful Voice and Great job on the Guituar.

Good Stuff

Enjoyed it.

Thanks.

[gm1sxx]

Very nicely played. Your voice blends nicely with the guitar. FWIW Bert plays it in Drop D too while most of the other posters on Youtube seem to favour DADGAD. I must check out your other postings.

Thanks, Al.

[gordykw]

Alan, thank you so much for putting a smile on

my day. Very inspiring,beautifull work.

Please what tunning are you using ? Happy holidays from Key West Florida, Gordy

[salixarbour]

Hi, Gordy. I'm so jealous of you enjoying that lovely Florida weather; it's pouring down here again in Manchester UK! :-) I'm grateful to you for your compliments...I used to think I played this piece so very badly! Thankfully, people keep saying nice things about it though. Tuning...just dropped the bass string down to D, that's all.

Best wishes.

Alan.

[cruiserc57d]

Very nice. I noticed your voice seems to go with the melody more than any other singer I have heard so far.

[salixarbour]

Thanks, cruiser. I think many musicians possibly try too hard to present impersonations of the original (Bert Jansch) sound rather than just accepting our own vocal limitations and working around that.

Cheers.

Alan.

[kissthepirate]

That was beautiful. The first time I heard Blackwaterside, it was by Altan and done slower and with a fiddle, if I remember correctly. Thank you for posting!!

[salixarbour]

Hi, Sam (kissthepirate). Many thanks. I feel honoured that I'm included alongside your other favourites, especially when they're mostly Beatles tracks.

Best wishes.

Alan.

[shezmear]

Wonderful, I learned to play this song when I was 11, I often wondered how jimmy came up with it, it is so beatiful, now I know....he did not really write it...strange how they let him get away with it...

[levib]

Beautiful!

[Heinmot]

Wonderful, very good.

I love Led Zeppelin and I used to think that this song was a Jimmy Page composition, but now I know the truth, thanks Alan.

[salixarbour]

Hi, Heinmot. I must admit that I didn't find out that Led Zeppelin played this song until after I'd been playing it the Bert Jansch way for some while.

Best wishes.

Alan.

[goodfellow1951]

Excellent nice guitar playing Fylde make fine guitar I have a Goodfellow

[salixarbour]

Cheers, Goodfellow! Best guitars in the world...probably!

Alan :-)

[losthills]

Very nice...

[Slohands]

Excellent salix - and ditto the compliment of your voice.  Really great.

[salixarbour]

Cheers, Slohands!

Alan.

[hitman261]

wow - superb

I've never been able to get the hang of this but you've inspired me to give it another go

great voice also!

[salixarbour]

Thanks again, Hitman. It's a tricky one...I've probably forgotten it myself since I did this recording...must practice this one again some time soon! :-)

Alan.

[aplaceformyhead100]

it sounds like black mountain side

[thejunkyardbear]

very nice indeed

[Pageix]

I love your playing! That was so cool! Very well done.

[salixarbour]

Thanks, Pageix.

All the best.

Alan.

[neponsetriver]

It looks as if you are playing in the kitchen - for the close live reverberance perhaps?

[salixarbour]

Hi, neponsetriver. That's right, I get decent acoustics in the kitchen. Also handy if you start to feel peckish!

I'll figure out how to use a mixing deck one day for better acoustics. :-)

Cheers.

Alan.

[ricko112]

That was amazing, I love folk music and you nailed this song! When I play it I use DADGAD, wot do you use?

[salixarbour]

Thanks, Ricko. I just use 'drop D' tuning. I recommend looking at Troubleclef's version on YouTube, if you haven't already done so. I think his is superior to mine, and looks like it's DADGAD.

Cheers.

Alan.

[climberjde]

Wonderfully Haunting. Superbly done.

[DoobieWah]

Damn, you´re good!!! Your voice is similar to Phish´s Trey Anastasio... Beautiful song!!

[salixarbour]

Thanks, DoobieWah. It never ceases to amaze me how popular this great Bert Jansch song is.

Many thanks.

Alan.

[Spiker611]

Very nice playing, and I like your voice a lot!

Keep it up, id love to see more videos!

[salixarbour]

Many thanks, Spiker. Oddly, my version of Blackwaterside isn't one of my favourites...I much prefer the lovely deep rich tones of Bert Jansch. Got to make use of what we've got though! Spiker, I have posted another 12 or so videos recently...presumably you've seen some of them?

Kind regards,

Alan.

[Spiker611]

Yup! I've been watching a bunch of yours. Consider yourself +1 fan.

[salixarbour]

Cheers, Spiker. I've got quite a few more to record yet, but just can't seem to get time to even look at my guitar. It's a busy old life! :-(

Thanks.

Alan.

[dkb1970]

Alan, what an amazing guitarist and vocalist you are. All i can do is shake my head and hope someday i can play 1/2 that good. Thank you for the video's.

[salixarbour]

Hi, dkb1970. I'm very flattered. To be honest, many of my videos make me cringe when I listen to them. I know that sounds weird, but it's true! :-) I'm just so pleased that through the magic of music, others do like them!! :-)

Cheers.

Alan.

[costa1953]

Alan thank you ... no words ! Amazing ....

Greetings from Rome

Costa

[salixarbour]

You are very kind, Costa1953. Thank you very much.

Regards. Alan.

[costa1953]

I have no words .... amazing

Greetings from Italy

[lemonjenny]

Thank you! Much appreciated!!

[mrtaekwondo]

wow I really like your voice for the singing of this song--higher than I've heard it before but quite nice

[salixarbour]

Thanks, mrtaekwondo/Frank. I love the deep rich voice of Bert Jansch, but I'm kinda just stuck with my higher sound ... guess I should've been more careful on my bicyle years ago! :-)

Regards

Alan.

[bluebellmagic]

Fantastic, five stars just isnt enough - this is magic - where do I get your CD? :)

[lemonjenny]

I have the same question! Do you have your songs on a cd or mp3 somewhere?

[bonzo6880]

nice

[suemalc]

absolutely wonderful keep it up :)