Tunes you can listen to!
These are the tunes from our demo CD. They are MP3 files which
means that to listen to them, you need some MP3 player on your computer
desktop, like WinAmp or RealPlayer.
You can download the free
version of WinAmp here.
Buffalo Girls comes from John Hatcher of Tishomingo County, Mississippi.
This is the fiddle tune, not the song, though it may be a relative of the
more familiar "Buffalo Gals won't you come out tonight."
It is known to old-time fiddlers all over the country, sometimes with
different locales substituted for "Buffalo," as in "Round
Town Gals" or "Alabama Gals." Bayard (Hill Country Tunes, No. 1) cites several Continental sets which suggest that the tune originated in
Germany!
"Hannah, oh Hannah, won't you open that door? This is old
Bill Johnson, don't you love me no more?"
Hannah was recorded by Sam and Kirk McGee in 1927. Sam was the first solo guitarist in country music, and with his younger brother Kirk recorded a number of great tunes. They also recorded old ballads and sentimental songs learned from their mother and family, although whether Hannah can be considered a 'sentimental song' is open to judgment!
Another traditional fiddle tune. Its origins are hidden in the
mists of Appalachia, because as yet we haven't been able to track down
where it ultimately came from! Keith and Kate got it from Charlie
Martin. Dave Brown says that he's known it for years. (Dave
and Charlie are other local musicians whom we know.)
"It will help us every day, it will brighten all our way, if we
keep on the sunny side of life" -- a Carter Family song.
The Carter Family is one of the most famous recording groups to emerge from the American Country Music scene of the 1920s. Their career lasted only fourteen years (1927-1941) but they produced over 250 recordings in that time. "Keep on the Sunny Side" is one of their better known songs with an upbeat message!
