[Harp-L] Re: Bluegrass harmonica

["Dave Payne Sr." <payneoutdoors@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hard Drive is one of the hottest local bluegrass acts around here and they have a full-time harmonica player.
  I play a lot of bluegrass and as far as I know, there are only three blugrass harmonica players around here. People either love them or hate them. Cara is right about Bluegrass having so much blues in it, especially Bill Monroe... a lot of the bluegrass standards got their start as a blues standard and came into the genre via Monroe. Here's some more: Blue Yodel No. 7, No. 5, No. 8 (Muleskinner Blues) No. 4, Brakeman's Blues, are all 12-bar blues standards that came into bluegrass via Monroe and are now standards. 
  A lot of bluegrass players, it seems, the ones who don't like harmonica players don't realize the close ties between blues and bluegrass. They don't hit the blue notes like Monroe did, Monroe could hit a flat five that puts chills in my spine. Bluegrass without blue notes, I think, is often boring.  I should also mention that Monroe had DeFord Bailey as an opening act and there's some old Flatt and Scruggs with harmonica in it. ''Nashville Cats" is one. 
  Everybody thinks in genres, but music is music. Looking back to Monroe's "Rocky Road Blues" from 1945 and you've got argueably (I argue it) the first Rock N' Roll song. 
   
  I think part of problem might be harmonica players tend to overpower if they aren't experienced. String guys hate that. I play mandolin, too, and my harmonica rhythm is like a mandolin's, chop chords accented on 2 and 4. 


__________________________________________________________________
Dave Payne Sr. 
Journalist and writer
1114 Charles St. 
Parkersburg, WV 26101
       
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