These are some of the lyrics of “Rye Whiskey”, a well-known song in circles of “old-time” music aficionados and sung by the late, legendary fiddler of Western North Carolina, Tommy Jarrell. “Old-time” describes the sound of rural music that came out of the Southern Appalachian Mountain region, a result of the rich mixture between traditional music of the European immigrants and that of the African-Americans. The banjo, brought to America by the slaves, became acquainted with the fiddle and a unique musical style was born out of that union in the South.
In rural America of the 18th and 19th centuries and before the advent of radio and phonographs, people had to create their own entertainment and social life. Any event in the community was cause to gather and socialize, usually in the form of a house dance. Musicians, primarily a fiddler and banjo player, held a respected place in the evening frolic that would continue well into the night and sometimes for days afterwards. Furniture would be moved to another room, or even put out into the yard to make space for dancing. Oftentimes, dancers would move from house to house each night, in a boisterous and spirited mood after long and hard working days of subsistence agriculture.
Fiddlers were mostly self-taught, learning tunes and songs from the aural tradition passed down from previous generations. Because of the unschooled nature of the music, a roughness and expressive wildness were part of the sound. Rural communities were fairly isolated and travel was difficult, and the result was a nurturing of distinct styles of playing that were quite varied between geographical areas. But the main purpose of the music was to provide a hard-driving rhythmic accompaniment for the dancers. This was something to participate in, and not just to listen to passively in a concert atmosphere where the audience was separate and distant from the musicians.
Of course, some folks of a more Puritanical nature looked down on fiddling, and music and dance in general, calling the fiddle the “devil’s box” and condemning the pleasure that such activities brought as sinful and willful violation of moral principle. This music was associated with drinking, carousing and disreputable behavior and many a guilt-ridden player put their instruments down to raise a family and follow the more straight and narrow confines of the day, not to be tempted by carefree frivolity and questionable leisure activities. Here is a verse found in an old-time recording from Kentucky fiddler Buddy Thomas:
“Jacky, come give me your fiddle, if ever you mean to thrive.
Nay I’ll not give my fiddle to any man alive.
If I should give my fiddle, they’ll think that I’m gone mad,
For many a joyful day my fiddle and I have had.”
After what was known as the Golden Age of recording during the 1920’s and 1930’s, when many string bands were recorded, “old-time” music almost died out in the mid-twentieth century, smothered more and more by the mass media popular culture that grew to dominate the country. “Old-time” spawned the popular Bluegrass and Country & Western musical styles, which began to displace the older forms of fiddle music. Elvis Presley and the era of rock-and-roll forced fiddle music further into oblivion. But then, during the folk revival of the 1960’s and 1970’s, there was renewed interest in “old-time” music and traditional fiddling and younger people began to play this music and seek out the older players to learn from them. Community dances were organized in many parts of the country, giving the musicians a chance to play and hone their styles, along with callers, in front of a mostly grateful and forgiving crowd of dancers.
These days, “old-time” music and dance has shifted from the rural areas of the past to mostly urban centers, and recent movies like “Oh Brother, Where Art Thou” and “Cold Mountain” have increased awareness of our rich musical heritage. Once again, groups of musicians are exchanging tunes and songs in lively playing sessions held in homes, pubs, coffee shops, markets and other welcoming and informal spots. There is an infectious, spontaneous spirit inherent in “old-time” music jams and a generous nature of participation and sharing.
If you would like to attend a traditional dance here in Atlanta, there is an avid group, the Chattahoochee Country Dancers, who organize a dance every Friday night and have some of the best callers and musicians working today. And it’s all for the mere price of a movie. Checkout their website at: http://www.contradance.org/
The Tune Dogs are one of Atlanta’s most popular local bands who play old-time music and perform regularly for dances here and around the Southeast. If you would like to organize a dance or enjoy this style of music for any event,
visit our website at: http://www.thetunedogs.com/
or contact Jan at: fiddlesmith@bellsouth.net (404-377-3540)
or John at: bassbox@comcast.net
