The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #169723   Message #4103012
Posted By: cnd
21-Apr-21 - 03:19 PM
Thread Name: Origins: Baptist Shout / Babtist Shout
Subject: Origins: Baptist Shout
There's a song called Baptist Shout by North Carolinian Fred Jenkins played in an early 3-finger (not Scruggs) style of banjo. Here's all I know about it, via The North Carolina Banjo Collection, Rounder Records CD 0439, 0440 (1998):

5. Babtist Shout - Recorded in Richmond, IN, ca. 1927. Original issue: Gennett 6187-B.

J. FRANCIS "FRANK" JENKINS (8/27/1888-4/9/1945) was most famous as a member of DaCosta Woltz's Southern Broadcasters, at whose recording session this solo piece was rendered. A resident of Dobson in Surry County, his father, J. Francis Sr., known as "Old Frank" (ca.1849-1935), played banjo in the downpicking style. Although primarily a sawmill man and tobacco farmer, Jenkins always followed music semi-professionally, performing with medicine-type shows, on the radio and recordings with groups such as the Pilot Mountaineers (his son Oscar and Ernest Stoneman), and at local fiddler's conventions in his three-finger style.

"Babtist Shout" is a version of "Spanish Fandango" and descended from the guitar piece with that same title, played in an open tuning analogous to G tuning on the banjo. The piece appears under many names in the rural banjo repertoire--"Babtist Shout" is just one variation (see cut 6).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My main question is: does anyone know any of the other names this song has appeared under?

As a note, the song appears to be primarily titled "Babtist Shout" rather than Baptist, but the implication seems to be Baptist.