Old Man River

Old Man River

Author: Banjo Hangout Members September 2, 2012 Duration: 0:00
The iconic song from "Showboat", originally sung by Paul Robeson in the Broadway play and then covered by everyone from Djanjo Reinhardt to Frank Sinatra. (Frank Sinatra???) My version is an homage to both John Jorgenson -who first really turned me on to Jazz- and his then partner in crime Doug Mattocks -who showed me that you could play *anything* on the banjo if you only wanted to badly enough... And this is one of those wonderful tunes where you don't have to play things at high speed or with a lot of bells and whistles to make it sound good: just play the melody and let the music speak for itself. Recorded on my Vega Whyte Laydie in open G tuning.

Ever wondered what happens when a classic jazz standard meets the bright, rolling tones of a banjo? That's the curious and delightful space explored in Banjo Hangout Top 100 Jazz Songs. This isn't a professionally produced studio series, but something more authentic and community-driven. Each episode features a different performance pulled directly from the vast collection uploaded by the passionate players of the Banjo Hangout community. You'll hear their personal interpretations of timeless jazz compositions, from Gershwin to Brubeck, all reimagined through the unique voice of the banjo. The sound varies from piece to piece-some tracks are crisp home recordings, others have a live, roomy ambiance-but they all share a genuine love for both the instrument and the genre. Tuning into this podcast is like getting a backstage pass to a very niche and talented gathering, where the focus is purely on the music and the surprising versatility of the banjo. It's a celebration of player-chosen favorites, a rotating showcase of skill and style that offers a fresh perspective on a hundred jazz classics.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 74

Banjo Hangout Top 100 Jazz Songs
Podcast Episodes
''Emaline'' [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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traditional blues / jazz
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Les Feuilles Mortes
Limehouse Blues [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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jazz classic
The World is Waiting for the Sunrise [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Made famous by Les Paul and Mary Ford (check youtube), and brought into bluegrass in the 1970s by Walter Hensley (again, check youtube), this may be the first clawhammer--make that clawjazz--version of this fabulous tune…