The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #112721   Message #2704078
Posted By: GUEST,Gene Silberberg
19-Aug-09 - 05:08 PM
Thread Name: Lyr Req: When Zephyrs of Heaven Shall Fan Me to...
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: When Zephyrs of Heaven Shall Fan Me to...
I was the fiddler at the jam session in Seattle that Genie refers to, and played "When the Zephyrs..." with Doug Chandler on guitar. (Genie, assuming we're all on the same page here you had Doug's last name wrong.) I heard Ralph Blizard play the tune at Fiddle Tunes in Port Townsend, WA earlier in this decade; it was shortly before he died. I transcribed it and eventually put it in my fiddle tune collection, mainly to keep the tune from being forgotten--I couldn't find anyone here who knew it. I later found out that Doug Chandler also loved and knew the tune and the correct backup, and we've been playing it in this area for about five years now. Ralph Blizard's articulation was less than perfect and we had some incorrect words. In any case, I have a pdf file available for anyone who would like to see my transcription. A year ago Joe Long, from Blountville, TN who was at Ralph Blizard's funeral, somehow found me on the web, and after an extended search, he found the hymnal with this tune in it. But Doug C. just gave me a cleaner copy (I thought he said he got it from Genie), and I have that as a JPEG also. It's a bit different from Blizard's rendition. I love the fact that this tune is being remembered and played. Gene Silberberg
P.S. Danny Coats' words have a small error--it's scar, not star that's a jewel beyond the night. Who knew?
P.P.S. I couldn't find Genie's video on YouTube--is it there, and if so, under what title? It's OK with me for it to be public.