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After his interview with Thomas Goldsmith, Bill turns to Earl’s banjo-and-fiddle duet accompaniment style, analyzing “Grey Eagle” from a 1950s radio broadcast with fiddler Benny Martin and “Fiddle and Banjo (Stoney Point)” with fiddler Paul Warren, from Flatt and Scruggs’s December 1962 Carnegie Hall concert. Bill also takes a look at “Across the Blue Ridge Mountains” (also known as “My Home’s Across the Blue Ridge Mountains”) from Flatt and Scruggs’s 1963 Vanderbilt University concert in Nashville, discussing Earl’s solo and analyzing the different backup approaches Earl uses throughout the song.
| SESSION 6: Boogie-Woogie Earl: Foggy Mt. Special & Six White Horses |
| Session 6: Boogie-Woogie Earl: Foggy Mt. Special & Six White Horses |
In this session, Bill looks at Earl’s “boogie-woogie” style, exploring the jazzy licks and techniques used in the classic tunes “Foggy Mt. Special,” “Six White Horses,” and more. Bill explores some of the most challenging aspects of these songs, discussing right- and left-hand fingerings, rhythmic approach, back-up and more, expanding upon many of the ideas introduced in Sessions 2 and 3 on the songs “Down the Road” and “Doing My Time.”
Listening & Viewing Assignment
For this Session, we have two YouTube videos to watch that clearly show many of Earl’s fingering choices:
YouTube videos from WSM television performances:
“Foggy Mountain Special”
“Six White Horses” 1960
Also, check out the recorded versions for additional variations:
“Foggy Mountain Special,” recorded May 19, 1954
“Six White Horses,” recorded January 27, 1957
Reading Assignment
Chapter 11, “The Beverly Hillbillies Welcomes the Banjo,” from Earl Scruggs and Foggy Mountain Breakdown: The Making of an American Icon by Thomas Goldsmith. Thomas will be Bill’s guest for Session 7. Feel free to complete the rest of the book in preparation for this next session.
| "Foggy Mountain Special" WSM Live Notation/Tab (Available to subscribers) |
| Boogie Woogie Earl Notation/Tab (Available to subscribers) |
| “Six White Horses” Notation/Tab (Available to subscribers) |
| "Foggy Mountain Special," 1954 Recorded Version, Tab (Available to subscribers) |
