I’m at this awkward stage. I’m learning simple songs (which is fine) but many of the other songs that I see in my books are unfamiliar to me. Last night my memories of taking guitar lessons in the fifth grade came roaring back. My teacher had me practice a bunch of old unfamiliar songs - when I just wanted to rock!
Can you see where this is going?
It occurred to me last night that I’m a lifelong fan of Bob Dylan (among others) so why shouldn’t I learn something that I’m at least familiar with, as I work my way towards those elusive and lovely “Celtic destinations?”
Any suggestions?
Do I just find the sheet music somewhere?
(We’ll leave Aerosmith for another day)
‘Sarah’. Even I did that one by ear; a nice tune, but quickly becomes monotonous (as in boring, rather than literally single noted). Let me know if you want hints. I think you can play along on a D whistle (the elders may correct me there though…).
‘The times they are a changing’, ‘Mr Tambourine Man’, ‘Blowin’ in the wind’. I managed those by ear and memory, so well are they ingrained in my subconscious. I am sure there are more.
Yep, there are: ‘North Country Blues’ (I think this is a trad song with the numbers filed off - reminds a lot of ‘The Yew Tree’), ‘With God on Our Sides’. ‘Walls of West Wing’. Again learnt by ear…
Thanks for making me think of those - I know more tunes than I realised!
Do you like Lindisfarne? They do some easy-learn tunes too. Try ‘Meet Me On The Corner’. Someone did that really well at the session last month.
The trouble with songs, as opposed to tunes, is that they oft times have simpler, less testing melodies and rely on the words to make them interesting. The good thing is that they are easier to learn (in my humble beginners opinion).
A lot of Dylan’s early stuff, on his first two albums at least, was based on “traditional” (or at least pre-existing) tunes … ‘Walls of West Wing’ (should be " … Red Wing" ) is aka “Sweet Carlough Bay” … I don’t remember him (officially) recording that one … but check out Joan Baez et al from that era for other arrangements of Dylan songs … they can sound a little more melodic with a female voice
It’s a great idea to pick out and play songs by ear that you are familiar with. Bob Dylan has a broad portfolio too. You may find that Mr. Dylan does, in part, get you to those “Celtic destinations” sooner than you might think. He, like many of his folkie predecessors, used familiar melodies as the basis for his songs. Take “Lay Down Your Weary Tune” as an example. It is said to be based on the melody of a Welsh hymn. Sorry, I forget which one although The Water Is Wide does come to mind. So some of the melodies to his early work especially may be close to those of traditional songs. At any rate, the skill of picking things up by ear is a good one to develop.
Uh oh, cross post.
Lindisfarne? Oh… you must mean Linda’s Farm! I wasn’t “Born at the Right Time”, I suppose. Liked 'em in the early days, like 'em even more these days.
I’m not a fan of yer man Bob, but we used to do one of his songs in our band with fiddle, flute, guitar, whistle and bodhran.
The song was ‘Wallflower’ and we would splice it with ‘Southwind’ in the main part and as the intro, then we’d use ‘Planxty Irwin’ as a bridge and outro.
Slightly off topic, but not wildly so…
One of the things I enjoy doing with my whistles (no, not that ya weirdo, i mean this other thing I’m about to tell you …now shut up and listen) is to take a song I know …I lean more towards Shindell and Gorka than Dylan these days… and try to figure out how to make it land within the context of the key of the whistle I’m playing. Coming from several decades + of guitar playing, I’m still not entirely comfortable with the limitations that a whistle imposes but I feel that exercise helps a bit in that regard.
Yes, he did.
BTW, another fine singer whose songs sit nicely on the end of a whistle is Kate Rusby …well worth the effort of checking out if you don’t know her already.
I concur, wholeheartedly. And the tune named for her by the Battlefield Band, while not a song, has an absolutely gorgeous, very easy, (low) whistle melody. The Pogues are a gift Laura Cantrell, if you want someone from an entirely different tradition. Brassens! the list is probably endless. But anything you know well enough to sing is a good start. Preferably without too many accidentals
Laura Cantrell, if you want someone from an entirely different tradition. Brassens! the list is probably endless. But anything you know well enough to sing is a good start. Preferably without too many accidentals