Thanks from Richie: Bluegrass Picker's Tune Book

Subject: Thanks:
From: GUEST,Richiematt
Date: 25 May 06 - 11:38 PM

Thanks everyone at Mudcat for your help with my new book: Bluegrass Picker's Tune Book. It took some time but it's finally out.

I gave Mudcat some PR in the article that appeared today in the WS Journal:

Thursday, May 25, 2006
A Picker's Tune Book: Time seemed right for old-time music
By Lisa O'Donnell
Journal Reporter

Musician Richard Matteson collected the melodies, chords and lyrics to more than 200 folk songs.(Journal Photo by
Richard Matteson is a musician and music teacher, but for the last few years, he has also been something akin to a detective.
Matteson, 52, has compiled a collection of folk songs for Mel Bay Publications, one of the leading publishers of music-instruction books. The book, Bluegrass Picker's Tune Book, includes the melody, chords and lyrics to 213 folk songs, most of which are from the Appalachian Mountains.
This is Matteson's 10th book for Mel Bay. He got the idea for this collection after seeing how the soundtrack to the movie O Brother, Where Art Thou? sparked an interest in old-time and bluegrass music.
"I think it's probably one of the most comprehensive collections to date," he said. "I could have done 400 to 500 songs, but I tried to get the ones that are popular, with a few that no one knows."
The songs are laid out one a page with lyrics in large print so that they can be read during a performance.
Stephen Rekas, a music and text editor at Mel Bay, said that the inclusion of lyrics is important for people who like to sing and play this genre of music.
"At bluegrass festivals I've been to, there is always a demand for what folk musicians call "word books' or lyric collections," Rekas said. "This would ideally fit their needs since most of them don't read music."
What sets this book apart from other folk songbooks is the historical information that Matteson collected about each of the songs. That's no easy task considering the tangled lineage of most folk songs.
Much of his research was done with the help of other professional and amateur folklorists at the Mudcat Café, a Web site devoted to traditional music.
Many Appalachian folk songs have their roots in Ireland and the British Isles, but often verses were changed or added by mountain musicians. Songs could become intertwined or branch off.
"Froggie Went-A-Courtin,'" for example, has gone through a number of incarnations. Its roots are in England, where it appeared as early as 1549. Since that time, the sing-a-long tale about a frog, Miss Mouse and Uncle Rat, has had many titles including "The Frog's Courtship," "The Frog and the Mouse" and "There Was a Puggie in the Well."
Matteson's book includes each song's genre, the date it first surfaced and variations on the title, among other details.
Matteson tried to include the most popular version of each song, and, because some songs might have 30 to 40 verses, he limited most of the songs to just a few verses.
The melody lines and the chords were written for beginners. Anyone who plays a fretted instrument, such as guitar, mandolin or banjo, can play along with the chords in the songs, Rekas said.
Matteson teaches a variety of stringed instruments at Duncan Music on Stratford Road, and plays in Bluegrass Messengers, whose members include a revolving cast of some of his most talented students. He also plays in a praise band, Stand on the Rock, and a pop, jazz and blues band, Madison Blues Band.
He also paints, and not surprisingly, music provides him with inspiration. He has done two paintings based on folk songs, "Froggie Went-A-Courtin'" and "All the Pretty Little Horses."
His grandfather, Maurice Matteson, taught music at the University of South Carolina and made several forays into the mountains of North Carolina to collect folk songs.
Matteson has been playing many of the tunes in this new songbook for years. About half of the songs have shown up on his bluegrass band's play list, including "I Am a Pilgrim," "Man of Constant Sorrow" and "Hallelujah, I'm Ready."
One of the most obscure songs he included in the songbook includes "The Jackfish," which is one of a family of songs that originated from an 1844 minstrel song called "Old Dad."
Many of these songs continue to find new audiences. Just recently, Bruce Springsteen recorded "Froggie Went-A-Courtin.'" And "Man of Constant Sorrow," which branched off a song that dates to 1812, was a big hit off the O Brother soundtrack.
"If a song is good and the lyrics are good, it'll last," Matteson said. ""Amazing Grace' will still be popular for a long, long time."
Churches keep some of these songs alive. Traditional-music festivals also keep songs in circulation.
"There's a lot of reasons why these songs continue," he said.
Lisa O'Donnell can be reached at 727-7420 or at lo'[e-mail]

Here's a link with some music:
http://wsjournal.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=WSJ/MGArticle/WSJ_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1137836325138


Richie

Subject: Contents: Richie's Bluegrass Picker's Tune Book
From: Joe Offer
Date: 26 May 06 - 01:55 AM

Hi, Richie - I added to the thread title to make it more clear. Good luck with the book. Sounds like it's quite an accomplishment. Is there normal musical notation in the book, tab, or what?
Click here for more information about the book. Would you mind if I post the Table of Contents, Richie?
-Joe Offer-

---

A Beautiful Life
A Hundred Miles
Ain't Gonna Work Tomorrow
Alabama Jubilee- Bluegrass Version
All the Good Times Are Past and Gone
Amazing Grace
Angel Band
Arkansas Traveler
As I Went Down In the Valley to Pray (Down To the River To Pray)
Banks of the Ohio
Battle of New Orleans
Beautiful Life (See: A Beautiful Life)
Bile Them Cabbage Down
Bill Bailey, Won't You Please Come Home?
Black-Eyed Susie
Bluegrass Boogie
Bound To Ride (See: I'm Bound To Ride)
Bowling Green
Brown's Ferry Blues
Buddy Won't You Roll on Down the Line
Bury Me Beneath the Willow
Can the Circle be Unbroken? (See: Will the Circle Be Unbroken?)
Can't Feel At Home (See: I Can't Feel At Home In This World Anymore)
Careless Love
Chewing Gum
Children Go Where I Send Thee
Chilly Winds
Church in the Wildwood, The
Cindy
Circle be Unbroken (See: Will the Circle Be Unbroken?)
Cluck Old Hen
Cold Rain and Snow
Columbus Stockade Blues (Major Key and Minor Key)
Come all Ye Ffair and Tender Ladies
Corrina, Corrina
Cotton-Eyed Joe
Crawdad
Cripple Creek
Cryin' Holy
Cumberland Gap
Dance All Night With A Bottle In Yer Hand
Daniel Prayed
Dark Hollow
Darlin' Corey
Davy, Davy
Deep River Blues
Do Lord
Dogget's Gap
Don't Let Your Deal Go Down
Don't This Road Look Rough and Rocky
Don't You Hear Jerusalem Moan
Down The Road
Down To the River To Pray (See: As I Went Down In The Valley To Pray)
Drifting Too Far From the Shore
East Virgina Blues
Eighth of January (See: Battle of New Orleans)
Engine 143
Faded Love
Fair and Tender Ladies (See: Come all Ye Fair and Tender Ladies)
Farther Along
Five Hundred Miles (See: A Hundred Miles)
Fly Around My Pretty Little Miss
Foggy Mountain Top
Footprints in the Snow
Fox, The
Free Little Bird
Freight Train
Froggie Went A-Courtin'
Gal I Left Behind Me, The
Georgia Pineywoods
Give Me That Old Time Religion (See: Old Time Religion)
Give Me the Roses
Glory Land Way
Go Long Mule
God Moves in a Windstorm
God's Gonna Set This World On Fire
Goin' Cross the Mountain
Goin' Down this Road Feellin' Bad
Gotta Quit Kickin' My Dog Around (See: Hound Dog Song)
Grandfather's Clock
Great Speckled Bird
Green Pastures
Ground Hog
Hallelujah I'm Ready
Hallelujah We Shall Rise
Handsome Molly
He Will Set Your Fields On Fire
Hesitation Blues
Hog-Eye Man (Fiddle Tune)
Hold To God's Unchanging Hand
Home, Sweet Home (Bluegrass Lyrics)
Hop High Ladies
Hot Corn, Cold Corn
Hound Dog Song
House of the Rising Sun
How Beautiful Heaven Must Be
I Ain't Broke But I'm Badly Bent
I Ain't Gonna Work Tomorrow (See: Ain't Gonna Work Tomorrow)
I Am A Girl Of Constant Sorrow (See: Girl Of Constant Sorrow)
I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow (See: Man Of Constant Sorrow)
I Am A Pilgrim
I Can't Feel At Home In This World Anymore
I Feel Like Traveling On
I Have Found the Way
I Never Will Marry
I Shall Not Be Moved
I Went Down To the River To Pray (See: As I Went Down To the River To Pray)
I Wish I Was A Mole In The Ground
I'll Fly Away
I'll Remember You Love in My Prayers
I'm Bound To Ride
I'm Sittin' On Top Of The World (See: Sittin' On Top Of The World)
Ida Red
If I Lose, I Don't Care
In the Garden
In the Pines
In The Sweet Bye and Bye
Jack O' Diamonds
Jackfish, The
Jacob's Vision
Jesse James
John Hardy
John Henry
Johnny Booker
Johnson Boys
Jordan
Just A Closer Walk With Thee
Just Over in Gloryland
Katie Dear (See: Silver Dagger)
Katy Cline
Keep My Skillet Good and Greasy (See: Skillet Good and Greasy)
Keep On the Sunnyside
Kneel at the Cross
Knockin' On Your Door
L'il Liza Jane
l'll Remember You Love in My Prayers
Land Where We Never Grow Old (See: Where We Never Grow Old)
Life Is Like a Mountain Railway
Little Bessie
Little Birdie
Little Maggie
Little Old Log Cabin in the Lane
Little Sadie
Little White Church
Liza Jane
Lonesome Valley
Long Journey Home
Lord I'm Comin' Home
Lost and I'll Never Find the Way
Love Somebody, Yes I Do
Lula Walls
Make Me A Pallet on the Floor (See: Pallet on the Floor)
Mama Don't Low
Man of Constant Sorrow
Methodist Pie
Midnight on the Stormy Deep
Midnight Special
Midnight Train
Miss McCleod's Reel (See: Hop High Ladies)
Model Church
Molly and Tenbrooks
More Pretty Girls Than One
Mountain Dew
My Home's Across the Smoky Mountains
Naomi Wise (See: Omie Wise)
New River Train
Nine Hundred Miles (See: A Hundred Miles)
Nine Pound Hammer
Oh Death
Old Blue
Old Dan Tucker
Old Gospel Ship
Old Joe Clark
Old Rattler
Old Soldier (Red-Haired Boy)
Old Time Religion
Omie Wise
One Hundred Miles (See: A Hundred Miles)
Pallet On the Floor
Pig in a Pen
Poor Wayfaring Stranger
Precious Memories
Pretty Polly
Rain and Snow (See: Cold Rain and Snow)
Red Apple Juice
Red Haired Boy (See: Old Soldier)
Red Wing
Reuben's Train
Rock About My Saro Jane
Rocky Top
Roll Down the Line (See: Buddy, Won't You Roll Down the Line)
Roll In My Sweet Baby's Arms
Roll on Buddy
Roving Gambler
Rye Whiskey (See: Also Jack O' Diamonds)
Sail Away Ladies
Sally Ann
Sally Goodin
Salty Dog Blues
Shady Grove (Major Key)
Shady Grove (Minor Key)
Shall We Gather At the River
Silver Dagger
Sittin' On Top Of The World (See: I'm Sittin' On Top Of The World)
Skillet Good and Greasy
Soldier's Joy
Sourwood Mountain
Stewball
Storms are on the Ocean\
Sweet Bunch Of Daisies
Sweet Bye and Bye (See: In The Sweet Bye and Bye)
Sweet Sunny South
Swing Low Sweet Chariot
Talk about Suffering
Tennessee Hound Dog
There'll Be No Distinction There
Thie World Is Not My Home (See: I Can't Feel At Home In This World Anymore)
This Little Light Of Mine
Tom Dooley
Troubles Up and Down The Road
Turkey in the Straw
Turn Your Radio On
Two Dollar Bill (See: Long Journey Home)
Uncle Joe (See: Hop High Ladies)
Uncloudy Day
Wabash Cannonball
Walking in Jerusalem, Just Like John
Way Downtown
We'll Understand It Better Bye and Bye
Weevily Wheat
Were You There
When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder
When The Saints Go Marching In
When They Ring the Golden Bells
Where the Soul Of Man Never Dies
Where We'll Never Grow Old
White House Blues
Whoa Mule
Wildwood Flower
Will the Circle Be Unbroken
Working On a Building
Worried Man
Wreck of the Old 97
Young Man Who Wouldn't Hoe Corn

Subject: RE: Thanks from Richie: Bluegrass Picker's Tune Book
From:
Date: 26 May 06 - 06:06 PM

Wow! That's a tremendous lot of work. Congratulations! Look forward to seeing it on the shelves here in town (Halilfax, NS, Canada)

Subject: RE: Thanks from Richie: Bluegrass Picker's Tune Book
From: wysiwyg
Date: 26 May 06 - 10:14 PM

Well done!

~Susan

Subject: RE: Thanks from Richie: Bluegrass Picker's Tune Book
From: GUEST,Richie
Date: 31 May 06 - 10:05 PM

Thanks Joe- I've missed you.

Susan- I believe I gave you credit for an original verse in Hallelujah I'm Ready. Congrats you are published!

Thanks again to everyone.

I'll try and contribute more. Mudcat rules!

Richie

Subject: RE: Thanks from Richie: Bluegrass Picker's Tune Book
From: wysiwyg
Date: 01 Jun 06 - 11:26 AM

Thanks, dude! It will be very weird to walk into our local music shop and see the book, and they will never suspect I'm anywhere in there!

~Susan