Spice up your Backup with These Three Licks - Bluegrass Banjo

Here's an expansion pack with three handy-dandy licks for your backup playing.
Here is a tab for the three licks:
docs.google.com/document/d/1h...
/ jimpankey
I'm playing my Recording King M5
Strings: amzn.to/34phGv2
Finger Picks: amzn.to/2OoKxKs
A Thumb Pick: amzn.to/2LarEZI
Tuner: amzn.to/35Gl2ds

[@bobfrombc5441]

Ive been learning these licks on top of the 10 basic lessons plus Cripple Creek Expansion pack as well as the 7 back up lessons and it is unbelievable how much material a new player can put together in their foundation skill set. 30 years ago I tried banjo from a well know methodology book and got to grade 3. In the 3 months or so Ive been doing this I am so far ahead of that its amazing. Jim you make it really fun to learn but your style gets results for learners like me. Love it and thanks from us "visual " learners!

[@JimPankey]

So glad I can help!

[@braddobmeier1991]

Thank you so much Jim. I truly appreciate these videos

[@JimPankey]

Glad you like them. :)

[@marksmith5811]

Fantastic. Thanks Jim, for doing this expansion pack. These scale runs will fit anywhere you have room for them. Thanks also for showing the demo of them with the vamping. This is a great companion to Bill Evans Licks-ercises! You have my work cut out for me now!

[@JimPankey]

Glad to help! Thanks for the kind words.

[@Daves5wire]

Thanks Jim for the effort you put into these videos. For me,The more back up stuff you can do the better Thanks again Ive had a lot of fun with your videos

[@JimPankey]

You're welcome! Keep picking. :)

[@brazilhead]

And yet another great lesson Jim. Thanks so much!

[@JimPankey]

My pleasure!

[@Knappist]

Many thanks Jim I have been working on the white horses lick for a long time, you have made it a lot easier to play for me👍

[@JimPankey]

Glad I could help 😀

[@LoneRevD]

Good stuff, thank you been looking for those licks. My favorite part of Scruggs was his backup stuff, be bop backup dittie licks. Thanks for that, appreciate ya.

[@JimPankey]

Glad you enjoyed them. :)

[@adamlevinson7739]

Such seemingly complicated stuff but the video makes it super clear and simple! Thanks for your teaching videos!

[@JimPankey]

Glad it was helpful!

[@micahearnest5734]

Thank you for this video! Really enjoyed it!

[@JimPankey]

Glad you liked it!

[@billduffey7756]

I appreciates you Jim, I started with the first ten lessons, pushed thru the fingertip discomfort & now on to some other lessons. Someday maybe we can share a cold drink or two, my treat. Thx!!

[@JimPankey]

Keep picking! :)

[@RD-pf5uv]

This is great information and presentation. Thank you!

[@JimPankey]

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed.

[@daveandrews6670]

Thanks Jim for more Scruggs & other licks.i,v always herd them but didn't no what they were.these are beauties your the best your a real character mate.you crack me up some times.i,m a relearner tuart myself at 11 to 13 years old.now at 54 have picked it up again.for good this time I hope.exscise my spelling.

[@JimPankey]

Hey there! Thanks for watching and letting me help you learn. Keep me posted on your progress. :)

[@marcosmalueobanjo1199]

thanks for making the tab available. This helps a lot, especially me who don't understand anything in English

[@JimPankey]

Maybe someday I can get someone to help me with subtitles.

[@marcosmalueobanjo1199]

But it's great. Tabs are already much easier. Thank you for your effort and dedication.

[@Beacharon1]

Thanks, Jim. I'm a long-time banjo player who still benefitted from your three links. The second one is real handy in playing Fairwell Blues in C up the neck. I plan to use it. Great instruction and easy to understand. All that's needed is practice and that's the way it needs to be. Don't think I can make my thumb fret that fifth string, but that's my problem. Thanks again.

[@Beacharon1]

Make that "licks" not "links". Thumb not working for that either . . .

[@JimPankey]

Keep picking! You’ll get that thumb under control before you know it.

[@stevepawluk4129]

These are great fun! I'm probably annoying my wife and neighbors by practicing them so much, but they are quite handy and wonderful practice. I'm also finding that, if one plays the first two licks a bit slower, and adjusts the timing just a little bit, one can play several blues tunes on the banjo as well. Excellent bonus! Thanks!!

[@JimPankey]

Glad to help! :)

[@rataylor558]

Jim could you do a video of you playing back up to someone using these techniques? I would find that very informative. Thanks for all these lessons. I have learned A TON from you.

[@JimPankey]

I demonstrated those licks in context in the very beginning

[@tomference4618]

Those are great!

[@JimPankey]

Thanks!

[@jonos138]

Another great tutorial Jim, loved the live stream last night too. 👍 Bet ya never had so many people over at your place at one time! Well at least we didn't eat and drink ya outta house and home. 😉😁

[@JimPankey]

It was such fun! Y’all will have to come back soon. :)

[@5stringPimp]

Good job! I like your Nick lucus pattern neck too..

[@JimPankey]

Thanks 😊

[@ToolsAreToys]

Working on this one in my lunch breaks. Wish I could click like twice, but I can't, so I'm putting two comments instead (plus I just bought one of your tab books) Really awesome lesson, Thanks so much Jim!

[@JimPankey]

Thanks 😊

[@kunk24]

Hi Jim- thanks much! You are turning a git-tar player into a banjo player.

[@JimPankey]

You can do it. :)

[@sambsialia]

Best yet!

[@JimPankey]

Thanks. :)

[@tobypritchard6095]

This is awesome!

[@JimPankey]

Thanks!

[@lonesomelenny7606]

Hi: I play pedal steel and guitar, bought a Deering Eagle II seven years ago, brought it home and left it in the case until October 2023. Viewed you video and thought maybe I would set it up and give it a go. Better late than never I guess.

[@JimPankey]

You can do it!

[@ToolsAreToys]

Thanks Jim!

[@JimPankey]

Welcome!

[@leepilkington3648]

Brilliant. Thankyou.

[@JimPankey]

Welcome. :)

[@athertonequine]

Thank you sir. Best regards

[@JimPankey]

You're welcome. :)

[@astro781]

Might there be a small, short video on "teardrop backup" someday?....the plinkety plinkety stuff? Cheers, Jim---thanks for all you do!

[@JimPankey]

I covered teardrop in my backup series....

[@Isaiah_46_4-5]

Thank you Sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much! Your Amazing!

[@JimPankey]

You're welcome!

[@severinneukom]

Wow thats amazing! Wish you a good day!

[@JimPankey]

Thanks!

[@severinneukom]

Sorry have another question.. 🤪 are there banjo players playing for notes? I can hardly imagine that.. an accordion player does not believe me its bettet not to play the notes.. i cant read notes.. thanks !

[@JimPankey]

Severin Neukom sure... there are people that just play from sheet music. To me it’s really kinda sad. Imagine not being able to create your own music.

[@astro781]

That's some spicy stuff, alright....been looking forward to this lesson--glad you did it...they are those classic licks that you hear Scruggs and Crowe and others do all the time. This is going to take some practice to get smooth and fast, but I cannot wait to include it in my playing. I missed the AMA the other day...how do we stay up to date on when the next one will be?...do you announce them ahead of time? For those of you like me, just starting this stuff, check out videos on the Foggy Mountain Boys on the Opry...there are several videos out there...you get to see Earl do this all the time. Thanks Jim!

[@JimPankey]

I posted about the AMA on my Community Tab and on my Facebook page. I hope I can figure out a better way to get the word out. KZbin has a way I can schedule a stream, but I'm working from my phone, so I'm pretty limited on what I can do. You could go ahead and click the bell on my page and get notifications. You'd get a ding when something like that happens. The stream was 2+ hours, so folks came and went at their leisure.

[@astro781]

@@JimPankey Thanks Jim. For those of us who have quit facebook due to moral and ethical reasons, maybe some computer wiz out there can find an alternate method. Been working on those spicy licks...the one with the fretted fifth string is a tough one, but, like the up-the-neck Cumberland Gap thing, I'll get it with practice.

[@bomark2002]

Dude you are right up our alley, West Virginia, it don’t git any hillbillyer than that

[@JimPankey]

Thanks. WV is a beautiful state. 😊

[@Bascomblodge]

Jim, not to sound unappreciative or picky, but, just so you know because you might use it later for a class. your tab of the moving lick in G shows the 2nd note played to be 2nd string at fret 8. I think it should be 2nd string at fret 4 with a slide to 8. Thanks again for all you do.

[@JimPankey]

That slide happens (for me) as a product of heading to that 8th fret. Which is why I tabbed it like that. In the past, when I’ve written it out with the slide, more folks get hung up than not. But yeah, there’s a slide there and if you hear it there no need for the tab. :)

[@Bascomblodge]

Any other place this system on a dvd would be $35!. very generous and nice Mr. Pankey.

[@JimPankey]

I figure this is more helpful to more folks this way. :)

[@banjomark9900]

Hi Jim, I piggybacked this question onto a comment from another of your viewers Jeff Barlow ( I make a lot of mistakes) so I’ll ask it here in case it got buried . How does one go about finding local jam sessions for inexperienced pickers? Thanks to your helpful videos I could be ready ?!

[@JimPankey]

Google is my first thought when looking for local jams. Most have a Facebook page these days. Local music store will often have a clue too. You’re not too far from Everett’s Music Barn...

[@oilartworks9124]

Thanks man. I'm interested in why Bela Fleck mentions doing alternate finger picking or possibly never doing same finger twice to start a new lead. I think he said that? I'm an advanced player and I'm working on one of Jerry Garcia's Breakdowns with Old and in the Way. It's the one that begins in a G F C G chord repeat on guitar with several banjo notes. Working by ear, I have the whole song nearly complete, yet several moments, the pattern begins with a middle finger ending and lead beginning as it sounds. After listening to Bela, I got confused, same as I did with the difficulty of the song. However, it is possible. I'm just interested. If you could do a cover, I would love that man. Jerry's Breakdown is on either the first or second album with Old and in the Way. Don't confuse it with the Breakdown he does on the G F repeat which is easy for an advanced player. If you can cover, I'd appreciate it!!! I don't think anyone has covered it yet.

[@JimPankey]

There are always instances where you'll find it more practical to use the same finger more than once in a row. Earl does it pretty often. As far as what Bela was talking about, I think he was referring to single string work where it's often most practical to alternate fingers.

[@oilartworks9124]

@@JimPankey Gotcha! 👍Single String is getting to be quite popular. I hear it works well for Classical music on the banjo.

[@asgernordstrm1439]

Can you make a tutorial on sweet home alabama?

[@JimPankey]

That certainly never comes up in any bluegrass jam I've ever attended. Obviously, it can be done... I'll probably never make an official instruction video for this, but here are some lesson notes. kzbin.info/www/bejne/a4CoaYd8qLmmmbM -- Please be sure to like/subscribe and maybe grab something from www.sellfy.com/wildjimbo

[@asgernordstrm1439]

@@JimPankey thanks a lot, love your videos (from Denmark)

[@rudyjackson2253]

What banjo are you playing here? Thanks

[@JimPankey]

That’s my Recording King M5

[@thebitterrootbluegrassboys7002]

I need tab for the first lick

[@JimPankey]

There's a link in the description

[@thebitterrootbluegrassboys7002]

Thanks Jim

[@jackwant1566]

Is that a blue chip thumb pick you're using?

[@JimPankey]

Yup

[@jackwant1566]

Thanks for the reply Jim appreciate it. Looked into them after watching your live vid and they intrigued me. But a bit pricey for a beginner like me. But maybe one day haha.

[@JimPankey]

I wound up using them due to their durability. Love the feel of them too, but a regular celluloid puck is just fine.

[@susanmiller9596]

Tab?

[@JimPankey]

Did you look in the Video Description?

[@surrebua]

i get there..... :-)

[@JimPankey]

You've got this. :)

[@booboobangbang6685]

Hey there! I’m legally blind and can’t see the video really, so question: when saying “thumb”, is he actually using his thumb , or does he call his ring finger a thumb? I understand holding the 5th string to bar but the other is confusing me.

[@JimPankey]

I’m actually using my thumb. I reach over the top of the neck to fret the 5th.

[@booboobangbang6685]

Jim Pankey I swore I thought I heard you say put your thumb on the third during that first g lick. Am I crazy? Lol

[@booboobangbang6685]

Also, thank you! Your the best!

[@JimPankey]

TNblind 1796 that’d be the right hand thumb....

[@booboobangbang6685]

Jim Pankey Ya! I’m a dope. Thank you sir!

[@royliquor3315]

marry me jim

[@JimPankey]

Thanks for the kind offer, but I’m already spoken for. 😊