I stopped my subscription to the hard-copy of American Songwriter magazine a few years back. The articles were getting way too politically left leaning. It was like the magazine was trying to compete with Rolling Stone.
A few weeks back, an online article popped up on my computer entitled “10 Bluegrass Songs Everyone Should Know” (https://americansongwriter.com/10-bluegrass-songs-everyone-should-know/). The article is written by Peter Burditt, who seems to be a regular contributor to the magazine and/or website. However, I highly doubt that he is a go-to person when it comes to bluegrass music. A Google search did not find any credible information on the man, unless he is also a financial consultant or a lacross player.
The article chooses the following as “must know” bluegrass songs:
- “Dueling Banjos” – Eric Weissberg
- “Man of Constant Sorrow” – Dick Burnett
- “Blue Moon of Kentucky” – Bill Monroe
- “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” – Ada R. Habershon & Charles H. Gabriel
- “Rocky Top” – The Osborne Brothers
- “Foggy Mountain Breakdown” – Flatt & Scruggs
- “Nine Pound Hammer” Unknown
- “With Body and Soul” – Bill Monroe
- “Tennessee 1949″ – Larry Sparks
- “Tortured Tangled Hearts” – The Chicks/The Dixie Chicks
OK, where do I start?
In the article, Burditt states that these are 10 bluegrass songs that you should know. As a writer? As a musician? As a band? As a listener of bluegrass? He never defines that. In all instances, he is off target. Speaking for myself as a fan, musician and writer of bluegrass music, I only see three songs that are “must-know” contenders: Numbers 2, 3, and 5. These have been standards in bluegrass bands for a number of years. I could even go to say that “Man of Constant Sorrow” has not been a contender until the release of the movie O Brother, Where Art Thou? back in 2000. It was popular with the Stanley Brothers back in the 1950s and 60s before Carter Stanley passed away, but rarely heard until the movie brought it back to life.
Numbers 1 and 6 are instrumental songs, but “Dueling Banjos” is rarely performed by any bluegrass band. It has become more of a novelty song with bluegrass bands, the musicians joking around when tuning up or between-song banter. There are a lot more popular instrumentals that that one, including “Shucking the Corn,” Orange Blossom Special,” and “Back Up and Push” to name a few.
Number 4: “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” is pretty much a folk standard, and yes, many bluegrass bands perform it. However, it is usually as an unexpected encore or when two or more bands get together on stage to perform. So yes, it is one that bluegrass performers should know, but it is not on a regular set list.
Number 7: “Nine Pound Hammer” is better known by its country-picking version from Merle Travis, and is rarely played among bluegrass bands on stage. Occasionally, you will hear it in jam sessions, so, yes, it is one that you should probably know. That is, if you are looking to do some parking lot jams. If that is the case, then there are a dozen or more jam standards that you should know that are not on this list. I recommend checking out Pete Wernick’s website, where he lists over 100 songs that one usually hears at bluegrass jams (https://wernickmethod.org/jam-favorites).
Number 8: “With Body and Soul” is one that I would consider on a secondary list, not necessarily a “must know.” A few bands do this song justice, and it has a unique chorus, if you can get your tenor singer to do some falsetto on the line That’s how she loves me. Because it is not as common as “Blue Moon of Kentucky,” it does make a nice change of pace when a band does a rendition.
Number 9: Larry Sparks is a modern legend in the bluegrass world. He performed with Ralph Stanley after Carter’s passing, went on his own in the late 1960s, and has been giving us great music ever since. Is “Tennessee 1949” a must-know bluegrass song? Again, probably secondary. Incidentally, this was written by Bill Emerson and Pete Goble, not Sparks. However, Sparks always had a good ear for good songs. When he originally released this song in 1987, it was a bluegrass smash hit, and yes, parking lot jammers started including it in their repertoire. A few bands cover it, but it is not as common as the article makes it out to be. This is a good example of the author trying to make out like he is “in the know” with bluegrass music.
Number 10: Really? REALLY? I have NEVER heard this song played on stage by any bluegrass band, nor have I ever heard it in my years of playing at or listening to multitudes of parking lot jams! Even when jamming with female bluegrass singers, they tend to go for tunes by Alison Krauss, Rhonda Vincent, or Hazel Dickens & Alice Gerrard. Way more common tunes include Dolly Parton’s “Coat of Many Colors” and “Jolene,” or Lucinda Williams’ “Can’t Let Go.” Again, Burditt is trying to look like he is “in the know,” while also being inclusive, which is popular with the Left these days. All that it tells me is that he has probably never attended a bluegrass festival.
So what songs would I include in a Top 10 list? Here are a few:
“Hard Hearted” – Jim & Jesse
“Sunny Side of the Mountain” – Jimmy Martin
“Freeborn Man” – Jimmy Martin
“Salty Dog Blues” – Flatt & Scruggs
“Doing My Time” – Flatt & Scruggs
“Rolling in My Sweet Baby’s Arms” – Flatt & Scruggs
“Thirty Years of Farming” – Fred Eaglesmith/James King
“Dooley” – The Dillards
“Angel Band” – The Stanley Brothers
“Dark Hollow” – Bill Browning/Mac Wiseman/Muleskinner
“East Virginia Blues” – The Carter Family
“Love Please Come Home” – Reno & Smiley
“In the Pines” – Bill Monroe
“Sitting on Top of the World” – Bill Monroe (among others)
“Wabash Cannonball” – Mac Wiseman (among others)
As for instrumentals, before “Dueling Banjos,” I would include standards such as “Bill Cheatham,” “Cripple Creek,” “Whiskey Before Breakfast,” and dozens of other old-time fiddle tunes, as well as the instrumental songs mentioned previously. I am also aware of a few Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, and Gordon Lightfoot songs that seem a lot more common with jammers than some of what is mentioned by Burditt.
I wrote a blog a few years back on bluegrass fake books (https://luegra.design.blog/2020/07/17/a-brief-look-at-bluegrass-fake-books/). I would recommend checking out Bluegrass Fakebook by Bert Casey for some “must know” bluegrass songs instead of going on the opinion of Peter Burditt. He truly seems like he did very little research on popular bluegrass songs and just googled his way through the article.
Chew on it and comment.
Luegra 