Um, Adam, I think you meant aural stimulation. I think Clinton was a fan of the oral kind, thus making the closing sentence even funnier than intended... :)
Of course, all of this correcting is moot if you were brushing your teeth with one of the banjos, or playing Jimi Hendrix style. Mark On Thu, Feb 19, 2009 at 10:57 AM, Mando Chef <saltydogli...@gmail.com>wrote: > > My inlaws think that my liking bluegrass makes me a fan of the > banjo.... so they invited me to a Banjo Jamboree at the Grand Opry > House in Galveston, TX last year and it was mostly Dixie Jazz and a > couple classical and of course a few bob wills classics. All were > tenor and for some songs half broke out in Mandolins then half of them > broke out in Mandolas. It was interesting to say the least. It made > me think of "How do you keep two banjo players in time with each > other?" "shoot one". I was ready to use that lone bullet on myself > by the end. That was a tremendous amount of oral stimulation. I > guess being married, one could overdose on oral stimulation rather > quicker than the single folks. > Later... > > On Feb 18, 5:02 pm, mistertaterbug <taterbugmu...@gmail.com> wrote: > > Oh, and I forgot to mention, if one ingests enough collards, you will > > definitely move... > > Taters and Greens > > > > On Feb 18, 4:23 pm, mistertaterbug <taterbugmu...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > > > Aha, now I get it. Sorry, but it's hard for me to think about more > > > than one thing at a time like you young college whippersnappers. So, > > > New Jersey was a mecca for banjo enthusiasts in the early days? Cool. > > > Thanks for taking up for banjo players and trying to keep the > > > bubbatooth syndrome in check.You've got at least one "attaboy" for > > > that. I get as much mileage out of banjo jokes as the next guy, but I > > > know the reality is there's a lot of very complicated music played on > > > banjos, and not just by classical players. I reckon if anybody could > > > bring respectability to banjo culture it would've been guys like > > > Ossman and Van Eps (Aren't Fred Van Eps' recordings supposed to have > > > been one of Earl Scruggs influences?). But beings this comes up, I > > > wonder if so much minstrel and classical banjo music came from the > > > northeast because of business opportunities (publishing/printing/ > > > licensing) due to the number of people and venues closer together, or > > > was it due to the most prominent players of the instrument in that day > > > being located there, which obviously would attract more prominent > > > writers/players? I know that there were a number of banjo > > > manufacturers located in the Northeast. Why would the North feel so > > > compelled to write romantic musical scenes about the South, however > > > unrealistic? How romantic was it for the blacks and the dirt-poor > > > whites? I doubt it had anything to do with climate. > > > > > I do find it funny that you brought up the NJ connection considering > > > Hartford said one time that "you gotta be Jewish and from NJ to play > > > oldtime music these days". I think he was kidding, but still the > > > reality of it may not be too far off base. > > > > > Val, where could a copy of "The Secret Lives of Banjos" be obtained? > > > And yes, I do think that 27 banjos in one place is way over the legal > > > limit. There's probably an ordinance against it someplace. > > > > > puhtater > > > > > On Feb 18, 12:18 pm, Val Mindel <vmin...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > > > > Mike H, if you ever get a chance to catch "The secret lives of > > > > banjos," you should. It's a show put together by Jody Stecher and > Bill > > > > Evans and includes a great story about Arctic explorations, banjos > and > > > > penguins ... It also shows the broad reach of the instrument. They > use > > > > something Iike 27 banjos in their show and demonstrate convincingly > > > > that the banjo has a wild and well-traveled history. > > > > > > Meanwhile, for my $.02, I think we can play outside our immediate > > > > zones, just as we listen outside those zones, given sufficient will > > > > and passion/obsession. It's a matter of relating to the underlying > > > > emotion. Music really is generated from just a few main themes -- > > > > love, death, god, events, work -- mixed and matched as appropriate, > > > > and we can relate to these themes, even if the specifics (collard > > > > greens) are foreign. Granted there is music that is outside my ken > > > > (Chinese opera, for example), but I suspect that if I wanted to and > > > > had a spare lifetime to mess around with it, I could tackle anything > > > > that moved me. But being moved by it is the key. Just look at some of > > > > our Japanese old-time musician friends who play great, with > scrupulous > > > > regard for the channels the music has come through. Of course, the > > > > farther you are from the source, the harder it is to pick up the > > > > nuances, rhythmic and otherwise, but I don't buy the you-gotta-have- > > > > been-born-there notion, nor do I think the music died with some past > > > > generation. Many young people are playing it well, with great > > > > attention to detail and history, and not-so-young people like me are > > > > still working at playing it, and that's a good thing, I think. But > > > > then I've spent much of my life in zones where the frost-free date > > > > skated to the end of June (or where other climatic realities > dominate) > > > > so I'm hardly any sort of argument for regional authenticity. best, > > > > val > > > > > > On Feb 18, 11:19 am, Mike Hoffmann <mikehoffma...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > > > > > Tater tater tater tater tate- > > > > > Your post was about ethnic groups and then there was a sentence > about > > > > > Chicago. I drank a cup of coffee and read a big chunk of a book > (Making the > > > > > second ghetto - race and housing in chicago 1940-1960) that I > really should > > > > > have already finished yesterday before working on music. The > chapter I left > > > > > half finished was on white ethnic neighborhoods in Chicago. Then > the coffee > > > > > actually started working and I picked up my mandolin and was > playing and > > > > > listening to stuff on my computer whence I should have been doing > homwork. > > > > > That lead to reading this mailing list and thus your post, > reminding me > > > > > about white ethnic groups and Chicago and that I should be reading > that > > > > > book. I guess I should have just left the response in my head! > Sorry for > > > > > leading us off track. > > > > > > > On another note, I was once told that NJ was a hotbed of classical > banjo > > > > > activity. I also just read an account of a North Pole expedition > that > > > > > mentioned banjos AND accordions playing home sweet home while in > the arctic. > > > > > I think banjos were everywhere. Fred Van Eps and Vess Ossman both > lived > > > > > here and played extensively in Asbury Park, but certainly not > old-time > > > > > music. My dad always calls our local area banjo land because he > gets > > > > > frustrated at the inability to think liberally at school board > meetings and > > > > > such. I always get mad and remind him that it takes a large mind > to play a > > > > > banjo. The banjo gets pigeonholed as a rural, southern thing. > Even a lot > > > > > of the minstrel stuff was written in NYC, and it certainly > romanticized the > > > > > south. There is something about fantasizing about the South for us > > > > > Northerners. Even Dixie was written up North. Maybe that is why > old-time > > > > > music is so popular up North in New England, MN, and Wisconsin > specifically. > > > > > It's cold and in the south it is so warm. I get jealous when I > listen to > > > > > Charlie McCoy sing, "in the wintertime I'm doing mighty well, but > in the > > > > > summertime its a burning hell" because in the wintertime here it is > cold! > > > > > > > On a side note, I am watching Dora the Explorer with my niece right > now and > > > > > a flower is lost in the snow and they are trying to find their way > back to > > > > > warmer climates. Perhaps that is the same as us Northern flowers > listening > > > > > mournfully to southbound trains. Also, in the background I could > swear they > > > > > keep playing little brown jug. > > > > > > > need to organize my thoughts better > > > > > Mike H > > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Taterbugmando" group. 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