"John Henry" Banjo Lesson (Clifton Hicks version) gCGCC

Banjo Heritage 👉 / cliftonhicks
"John Henry" Banjo Lesson (Clifton Hicks version). The tuning is gCGCC, but my banjo there is drop-tuned to the neighborhood of fB♭FB♭B♭. I learned the tuning from George Gibson of Knott County, Kentucky, who learned it from his father. B.F. Shelton used the same tuning on his famous recording of "Darlin Cora."
When John Henry was a baby boy
Sitting on his mamma's knee,
Said that Oak Mountain Tunnel on the Georgia Road
Gonna be the death of me (x2)
John Henry said to the captain
A man ain't nothing but a man,
If I can't beat this steam drill down
I'll die with my hammer in my hand (x2)
John Henry hammered on that mountainside
Til his hammer was a striking fire,
The rocks was so tall poor Johnny was so small
He laid down his hammer and he died (x2)
They carried him off of the railroad track
They burried him down in the sand,
Every locomotive what came a roaring by
Cried yonder lies a steel driving man (x2)
Some people say he came from Tennessee
Some people say from Alabam,
I don't give a damn where that poor boy was from
You know he was a steel driving man (x2)
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Oldtime banjo close ups and demonstrations of overhand, clawhammer, two finger, thumb lead, 2 finger, frailing and stroke styles plus traditional southern Appalachian mountain hoedown and early minstrel show techniques. History, anthropology, folklore, research and musicology including breakdowns, blues, waltz pieces, tin pan alley, some Afro-Caribbean and West African history, occasional Cajun and zydeco references, also Métis, Creole, Melungeon and indigenous North American music traditions. Mountain music, southern culture. George Gibson, Ernie Williams, Cousin Emmy, Dock Boggs, Rufus Crisp, Virgil Anderson, Lily May Ledford, Roscoe Holcomb, Tab Ward, Frank Proffitt, Tommy Jarrell, Kyle Creed, Lee Sexton, Morgan Sexton, Lead Belly, Pete Steele, Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie, JD Crowe, Clarence Ashley, Fred Cockerham, Dwight Diller, Gaither Carlton, John Snipes, Dink Roberts, Clifford Essex, Joe Sweeney, Archibald Ferguson, Dan Emmett, John Hartford, Picayune Butler, Gus Cannon, Art Rosenbaum, Grandpa Jones, Snuffy Jenkins, Buell Kazee, Bascam Lamar Lunsford, Uncle Dave Macon, Tommy Makem, Luke Kelly, Charlie Poole, Ola Belle Reed, BF Shelton, Hobart Smith, Samantha Bumgarner, Peggy Seeger, Mike Seeger, Jean Ritchie, Ralph Stanley, Odell Thompson, Wade Ward, Hedy West, Fred McDowell, Uncle Homer Walker, Mississippi John Hurt old time, folk, trad roots pickers songsters. #banjo #oldtimemusic #history Riley Baugus, Dirk Powell, Gillian Welch, Maybelle Carter Family. Morgan Sexton, Black Banjo Songsters, Lee Sexton, Clyde Troxell, Blanche Coldiron, Banjo Bill Cornett.

[@TheGreatMoonFrog]

"oops, everyone messes up." Got some Bob Ross vibes right there. Nice lesson man.

[@isaacribeiro1317]

His lessons are east to follow I got the lady and death down and I almost have John Henry now

[@mondocain]

I always enjoy your lessons so much Clifton. I love the folklore and story of John Henry.

[@nvdawahyaify]

I'm currently missing my high d string and I have my banjo tuned l The same way you do. It's my default tuning when I break my high d string. I wrote a couple of songs that would be really hard in a different tuning. Thank you for sharing this. It helped me realize that others use this tuning.

[@TotallyNotLoki]

Same here. Somehow it broke when I was tuning down from standard to gCGCC to play Darling Corey and now I'm stuck in gCGC. It's good practice for when I make a 4 string cookie tin banjo though.

[@longhaulpaulmusic4028]

That banjo has killed before and will kill again.

[@rjfpace]

Awesome! Thanks for the generosity sharing.

[@etcllc3519]

I have been “fiddling” with the banjo for 15 years. Lol. Get it? Aside from the pun, I’d love to have some “true” lessons from an old timer like you. Everyone else wants to teach clawhammer pick style; which I’m not interested in. I live in Mosheim, TN. Would you be willing to give lessons or do you know anyone in the area?

[@TurkishKB]

Thats a great hat too. Nice playin

[@johnschneider4160]

Where you been hiding this video, boy?! It's a good one. Thanks!

[@victordecaria8015]

I learned Pete Seeger's version which was somewhat difficult because of the standard C tuning he uses. The gCGCC tuning is very intriguing and it seems to impart the necessary sadness to the song (I think Pete's version is too happy even though it's good), and this seems much simpler to play.

[@reddustdiecastmodelrail1499]

Good lesson ! Thanks ! martin

[@Flopthelot58]

What tuning is that in please?

[@CliftonHicksbanjo]

The tuning is gCGCC, but my banjo there is drop-tuned to the neighborhood of fB♭FB♭B♭. I learned the tuning from George Gibson of Knott County, Kentucky, who learned it from his father. B.F. Shelton used the same tuning on his famous recording of "Darlin Cora."

[@JohnyG29]

👍👍