Week #269 ~ Sopping the Gravy (AKA Little Betty Brown)

  1. Barbara Shultz
    Barbara Shultz
    This week's winner is Sopping the Gravy AKA Little Betty Brown, which was submitted as an old time tune.

    Here's a link to Vi Wickam's lesson on the tune (for the fiddle)

    I am back at home, so I can actually post this winner, and hopefully a new poll, but I'm going to need help coming up with more info for this tune!
  2. Marcelyn
    Marcelyn
    I jumped the gun and looked into this one when it was last week's frontrunner. Here's what I could find.
    Here's a site with fiddle transcription, chords, midi, and an MP3 recording...
    http://www.drfiddle.com/show_tune.php?id=535

    Ezra, who demos lots of Old Wave mandolins seems to like this tune. Here's one on mandolin and one on octave...


    Here's a great version from Alison Krauss...

    For variety, here's a high-energy, down-south version from Stuart Duncan...


    And here's an early recording from Clark Kessinger...
    http://slippery-hill.com/M-K/GDAE/D/SoppinGravy.mp3

    For anyone who likes to work out their own backing tracks, I found some interesting information on Texas-style swing chord progressions from Scott Tichenor and Pete Martin here...
    http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/ar...hp/t-6070.html
    http://www.mandolincafe.com/petemartin.html

    Along with many other great tunes, there's a version of Soppin' the Gravy you can download in Tony Ludiker's Hoedown ebook for free...
    http://www.fiddle.net/
  3. Barbara Shultz
    Barbara Shultz
    Marcelyn! Thanks so much for all that info!!!
  4. jonny250
    jonny250
    Thanks Marcy for posting the info i have had a listen and a go at this tune - i can get the chords, but the melody seems buried. tricky!
    looking forward to seeing what people come up with...
  5. jonny250
    jonny250
    ok, so hopefully people are just a bit slow with this one..?
    here is my effort - its very rough!
  6. Marcelyn
    Marcelyn
    That's great, Johnny! In two octaves, too! I'm so glad someone tackled this one. I'm looking forward to trying it out when I get home from vacation.
  7. GKWilson
    GKWilson
    Nice Jonny. Made me hungry for some biscuits and gravy.
    Gary
  8. Michael Romkey
    Michael Romkey
    I've working on a contest fiddle version of Soppin the Gravy, but this is the basic tune.

  9. Christian DP
    Christian DP
    Very authentic sounding, Michael! Great!
  10. Frithjof
    Frithjof
    Your basic tune version sounds gorgeous, Mike.
  11. Michael Romkey
    Michael Romkey
    Still working on this, but here's a version with a variation after playing through the basic tune on the first pass. I'm adjusting to using the Dawg pick for a more pleasant, rounder tone after a long spell with a Blue Chip CT. The Dawg seems to need more motion with the wrist to articulate the notes from the rounded pick with a correspondingly lighter grip with the thumb and finger to keep the attack from being brittle.

  12. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Fine picking there and a fine sound. The new pick seems to be working for you, Mike.
  13. Frithjof
    Frithjof
    Another great version, Mike.
    But to be honest – Dawg or not Dawg - I still like the sound of the Jan-02 recording a little more.
  14. Gelsenbury
    Gelsenbury
    Both versions sound like first-class picking to my ears. On "Lost Indian", I preferred the Dawg. On this tune here, I have no preference between the two. The Blue Chip (at least I assume that's what it is, after what you wrote) brings out more treble and separates the notes more clearly from each other. The Dawg sounds especially good on the double stops, where it glides over several strings.

    You certainly seem to have found a way to make this pick work for you. I can't seem to get a tune out of rounded picks. I guess more pick click and a slightly more staccato sound is the price I pay for that. It's very interesting what you say about the lighter grip and more wrist motion.
Results 1 to 14 of 14