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Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,

01 Jun 07 - 01:10 AM (#2065487)
Subject: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: GUEST,Steve Baughman

http://cdbaby.com/cd/banjogathering

Hi Folks, I think this will be of much interest to you old time banjo players. Some of you know that for the past six months I've been working with 22 other banjo players to put out a double CD (50 cuts) of unaccompanied Old Time banjo tunes. The project is available as of today. The following players each contributed two to three tracks, and all have waived artist royalties to help make some money for the Scholarship Fund at the Swannanoa Gathering in N. Carolina. Participants are Bruce Molsky, Mike Seeger, Cathy Fink, Brad Leftwich, John Cohen, John Herrmann, John McCutcheon, Alice Gerrard, Rafe Stefanini, David Winston, Paul Brown, Terri McMurray, Tom Sauber, Gordy Hinners, Phil Jamison, Bob Thornburg, Gail Gillespie, Brett Riggs, Dan Gellert, Joe Newberry, Scott Ainslie, Steve Baughman and Pete Sutherland, ALL UNACCOMPANIED!

ALL ARTIST ROYALTIES GO TO THE SCHOLARSHIP FUND FOR THE SWANNANOA GATHERING TO HELP YOUNG FOLKS STUDY FOLK MUSIC AT WARREN WILSON COLLEGE IN ASHEVILLE, N.C. If you are interested in buying one, or just want to hear some clips, check out the CDbaby link. Full info on the project is below. It's a fun one. AND IF YOU KNOW OTHER BANJO PLAYERS WHO MIGHT BE INTERESTED, PERHAPS YOU COULD PASS THIS ALONG?

thx,
steve baughman


BANJO GATHERING: 100% PURE OLD TIME BANJO. UNOBSCURED, UNACCOPMANIED AND UNADULTERATED.
DOUBLE CD WITH 50 OLD TIME BANJO TUNES AND EXTENSIVE LINER NOTES (20 PAGE BOOKLET). In the Fall of 2006, 23 of the best old time banjo players in the country each recorded 2 to 3 old time banjo solos and contributed them to this project, which seeks to document the state of old time banjo music at the beginning of the 21st century. This is a very unique double CD set that contains 50 tunes, some well-known and some very obscure. Eleven of the tracks contain singing by the banjo player, but there is no accompaniment whatsoever, just banjo.

The old time banjo, "the heartbeat of the band," tends to get lost in jams and it is rarely featured as a solo instrument. So we peeled away all the guitars, fiddles, basses and washboards to let you hear what 23 players do with their banjos when nobody else is around. Nothing like this has been done since County Records released their Clawhammer Banjo series decades ago. This is a similar project, but with contemporary players, all of whom are still alive and kicking.

The project contains a wide variety of banjos, fretted, fretless, gourd, 13" large-pot Spratt, nylon string, gut strings, some slick and some funky, and several banjos made by the players themselves. And although most of the tunes are played clawhammer style, there is a wide variety of styles employed. (Mike Seeger actually goes back and forth between picking, strumming and clawhammer on his two tunes.)   

This project is for anyone interested in old time music or in banjo styles, and for those interested in expanding their tune repertoire, or in just listening to pure, uncommercialized, old time music. It was especially important that we do this project because over a third of these folks had never recorded a banjo solo before, even though most of them appear on many, many CDs and are well-known in old time music. So this is the only place you can hear them totally unobscured.

There is nowhere else to get an album with Bruce Molsky, Mike Seeger, Cathy Fink, Brad Leftwich, John Cohen, John Herrmann, John McCutcheon, Alice Gerrard, Rafe Stefanini, David Winston, Paul Brown, Terri McMurray, Tom Sauber, Gordy Hinners, Phil Jamison, Bob Thornburg, Gail Gillespie, Brett Riggs, Dan Gellert, Joe Newberry, Scott Ainslie, Steve Baughman and Pete Sutherland all in one place. We also paid extra for a 20 page booklet so that you could have a lot of information about the players, their styles, their instruments and their stories.

And by the way, 100% of artist royalties go to the Swannanoa Gathering Scholarship Fund to provide opportunities for economically challenged musicians to spend a week every summer at the Swannanoa Gathering music camp in the hills of North Carolina. This is a non-commercial, but very professionally produced and recorded, project that is a labor of deep love by all 23 of the players involved.


01 Jun 07 - 02:57 AM (#2065519)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: Anglo

Well, this looks just great (apart from the fact that you're missing Walt Koken, Reed Martin and Peter Hoover). But hey, you can't put _everything_ on a double CD :-)


01 Jun 07 - 09:22 AM (#2065672)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: BanjoRay

Also missing - Mac Benford, Mudcat's Pete Peterson, Dwight Diller, Ron Mullenex etc etc.
Ray


01 Jun 07 - 10:19 AM (#2065707)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: Scoville

Blue clicky.


01 Jun 07 - 10:28 AM (#2065711)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: nickp

Plenty missing but then it does say "23 of the best". And maybe there'll be another release of another 23 in future.

Anyway, mine's ordered....


01 Jun 07 - 10:46 AM (#2065721)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: Scoville

"23 of the best", people. My Lord, we're a picky bunch.

Good stuff. You can never have enough clawhammer.


01 Jun 07 - 11:22 AM (#2065746)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: Wesley S

For clawhammer fans - Steve has also produced a compilation recording of Clawhammer GUITAR music - also solo performances. Really enjoyable stuff.


01 Jun 07 - 11:49 AM (#2065777)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: Stringsinger

David Holt


04 Jun 07 - 05:48 PM (#2068554)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: GUEST,steve baughman

Hi, yes, lots of folks missing, of course. I had to limit the project to people who were affiliated with the Swannanoa Gathering otherwise the list would have been endless. Maybe I'll do Banjo Gathering 2 and include the folks y'all recommend. They surely deserve to be on such a project.
thx for the suggestions,
steve baughman


04 Jun 07 - 06:25 PM (#2068586)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: GUEST,wlisk

Great CD, Fast shipping too!
Bill


04 Jun 07 - 08:50 PM (#2068691)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: Fortunato

sounds great, Steve,

I've ordered one for my banjo girl,

regards,
chance


04 Jun 07 - 09:17 PM (#2068702)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: GUEST,steve baughman

Great Chance. I'm pleased to say that we have four "banjo girls" on this project. And they're awesome.

thx,
steve baughman


05 Jun 07 - 03:57 AM (#2068849)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: nickp

My copy is still crossing the Atlantic but I'll certainly go for volume 2... and maybe 3. Such a good cause too.
Nick


05 Jun 07 - 08:02 AM (#2068967)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: GUEST,Arnie Naiman

This must be great! I'll be getting one.


05 Jun 07 - 08:42 PM (#2069603)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: BanjoRay

That reminds me - Arnie Naiman's missing too!
Ray


05 Jun 07 - 11:01 PM (#2069677)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: katlaughing

Sounds fantastic! I'll have to be sure to tell "Lil Neophyte/Banjo Bonnie" about this one; she's still pickin' now and then.


06 Jun 07 - 02:59 AM (#2069742)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: GUEST

Arnie Naiman's partner, Chris Coole, pillars of the Toronto Old Time scene is missing also. Keep listing missing folks for me so that I can make Banjo Gathering 2 (and 3? and 4?) as complete as possible.

thx again for all your enthusiasm.
steve baughman


06 Jun 07 - 11:01 AM (#2069983)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: GUEST,Arnie

It's the Canuk pillar banjo thumper here. Me and Coole were put on another recent banjo compilation - you can find out about it on my website at www.merriweather.ca , but do support this Banjo Gathering project- good music for as good cause.
Lots of banjo - gotta love it.
Arnie


06 Jun 07 - 02:23 PM (#2070107)
Subject: RE: Old Time Banjo Compilation CD, All Solo,
From: GUEST,steve baughman

Yes, Arnie and Chris Coole are on a great brand new project by Cathy Fink that I believe came out last week, or right around last week.

Cathy calls 2007 "The Year of the Banjo" because she's done a compilation this year and so has Banjo Gathering.

We're trying to present the sensitive, sweet side of the old time banjo and thereby put an end to all banjo jokes (even though some of them are really funny.)

steve baughman