Any John Hartford fans out there?

[HFWR]

Yesterday I received my $90 copy of "Aerio-Plain", purchased from a seller on E-bay. Pretty pricey for a cheapskate like me, but one of my all-time favorites, that's been out-of-print for years. A real listening pleasure...

"Way up on the hill, where they do-do the boogie.."

 

[harley]

Big time fan, since I first saw him in the 70's. I've still got a soft spot in my heart for such classics as "Granny Wontcha Smoke Some Marijuana" and "Old Joe Clark". I always like his version of Gentle On My Mind" better than Glen Campbell's cover of it too. A great an underrated musician, may he rest in peace. He sparked my interest in Bluegrass, too.

Out of curiosity, why was the album so expensive?

Harley

 

[HFWR]

It is no longer a part of Rounder's catalog, and not available on johnhartford.com, so I was at the mercy of "private collector's"...

 

[Rivrider]

I'm a long time fan of his. Great example of roots music.

YouTube - John Hartford- Steam-Powered Aereo Plain

This is my favorite song of his.

YouTube - Gumtree Canoe - John Hartford

 

[JB]

I saw him about 15 years ago as the intro act for Doc Watson. He was an outstanding solo performer playing old time banjo with innovative percussion.

 

[HFWR]

I saw him about 15 years ago as the intro act for Doc Watson. He was an outstanding solo performer playing old time banjo with innovative percussion.

You mean the amplified sheet of plywood?

I saw him at Poor David's Pub in Dallas in the late 80s; he had half a sheet of plywood, sprinkled with salt, with a transducer of some sort to amplify the sound. He would play banjo or fiddle, and do a soft-shoe shuffle on the plywood for rhythm accompaniment. Saw him again in 2001, about three weeks before his passing...

Saw Doc and Merle Watson there, too. Great pickers!

 

[outtarentals]

YES!! I was lucky enough to take some workshops from him years ago. He could fit more notes on a bow than any fiddler I've seen - master of the long bow! A perfect gentleman.

 

[HFWR]

My fiddle playing sounds like cats in the wringer... Fortunately, for ears everywhere, I donated my cheap fiddle to the Salvation Army...

Have an autographed copy of All In The Name Of Love, featuring the aforementioned Granny Won't You Smoke Some...

Next up, Mark Twang, luckily still in print, for $16.95.

"Don't leave your records in the su-u-un..."

 

[outtarentals]

You do need a strong constitution to live with a beginning fiddler!

I have a friend who picked up the fiddle at 50 when he was thinking about retiring. His wife made a rule that there would be 2 closed doors between them when he was practicing. He is a multi instrumentalist - plays mandolin, guitar and bass as well and has become a pretty good fiddler too. He practiced up to 8 hours a day for several years though.

These days they're starting kids very young with Suzuki method violin lessons and a lot of the rising bluegrass stars are teenagers. We can't keep up with them!! The Cherryholmes family is a great example - they are a family with 4 children - all superb instrumentalists - who travel around in a huge bus and perform 300 days a year. They headline many of the festivals now.

Getting back to John Hartford - I wandered just now into You Tubeland and listened to his version of Leather Britches which is one of my favorites. I hadn't heard it before. Thanks!!!

 

[chinaco]

Hadn't heard of him before. I listened... very enjoyable. I like wide variety of musical styles. Thanks


YouTube - John Hartford & Glen Campbell-Gentle On My Mind (revisited)

 

[ERD50]

You mean the amplified sheet of plywood?

I saw him at Poor David's Pub in Dallas in the late 80s; he had half a sheet of plywood, sprinkled with salt, with a transducer of some sort to amplify the sound. He would play banjo or fiddle, and do a soft-shoe shuffle on the plywood for rhythm accompaniment. Saw him again in 2001, about three weeks before his passing...

Saw Doc and Merle Watson there, too. Great pickers!

He had that amplified plywood when I saw him... (late 70's, early 80's?) at the old Amazing Grace coffee house in Evanston, IL. He was quite a showman and a great talent. Amazing knowledge of the 'old' music, fiddle tunes, river stories.

Those youtube videos are great. I have to keep reminding myself what a great song that 'Gentle on my Mind' is - it was a pop hit, and seems a bit trite after it is overplayed, but the construction and the way the words flow is just amazing!

I still might run in silence, tears of joy might stain my face and summer sun might burn me till I'm blind,

But not to where I cannot see you walkin' on the back roads, by the rivers flowing gentle on my mind.

-ERD50