Muss i Denn

  1. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Been wanting to share this one for ages with you guys!
    I actually inherited a banjo so I thought this would be an ideal opportunity to learn how to play it…


    https://youtu.be/d7klWFVTWsY
  2. Frithjof
    Frithjof
    My favorite version of this German Volkslied now.
  3. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Nice one, Simon. That baby banjo is surprisingly gentle in its sound - must be the nylon strings?

    I am so old that I can well remember Elvis singing this in the film G I Blues away back in 1960. The film was actually released on my birthday - November 4th. I had just become 16! He called it Wooden Heart and he also sang the chorus in German. Those of my fellow students who were studying German in school insisted on singing the song at every opportunity. I still have the vinyl album of GI Blues here at home.

    Thanks for reviving this great memory, Simon.
  4. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    X:1
    T:Muss i denn
    M:4/4
    L:1/8
    K:Gmaj
    GA | B2 Bd c2 ce | d>e dc B4 | d>e dc B2 Bd | c2 cB A2 d2 | B6 GA |
    B2 Bd c2 ce | d>e dc B4 | d>e dc B2 Bd | c2 cB A2 d2 | G6 ||
    B2 | A3 B c2 A2 | B3 c d2 dd | e2 ef g2 fe | d6 GA |
    B2 Bd c2 ce | d>e dc B4 | d>e dc B2 Bd | c2 cB A2 d2 | G6 || X:474
    T:Octave Below
    G,A, | B,2 B,D C2 CE | D>E DC B,4 | D>E DC B,2 B,D | C2 CB, A,2 D2 | B,6 G,A, |
    B,2 B,D C2 CE | D>E DC B,4 | D>E DC B,2 B,D | C2 CB, A,2 D2 | G,6 ||
    B,2 | A,3 B, C2 A,2 | B,3 C D2 DD | E2 EF G2 FE | D6 G,A, |
    B,2 B,D C2 CE | D>E DC B,4 | D>E DC B,2 B,D | C2 CB, A,2 D2 | G,6 ||
  5. Ginny Aitchison
    Ginny Aitchison
    A the risk of sounding like a teenage girl...that is sooo cute !! And it doesn't even stick outside the window. Nice add to the octave. Maybe John can sing the song along with you?
  6. Christian DP
    Christian DP
    Is that a sopano uke in mando tuning? Anyway, you gave me an idea, what to play next. Great version, Simon!
  7. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Thanks Frithjof and John, Ginny and Christian, yes I have lovely memories of that time (near Dusseldorf) too, though I was a bit younger.

    But that baby banjo is a Keech (!) and not easy to play!
    Have to go gentle all the way.
    It’s strung with Aquila nylon U30’s in fifths. I use the same pick 1.5mm Dunlop as the octave, the difference is that I deliberately try to play as quietly as possible which means small up and down movements, and with very light fingers pinching the pick. The pick only just grazes the top of each string. Notice a couple of times I miss the string altogether but I like to think that if I miss notes it gives the melody a sort of wistful, fragmented-memory feeling.

    The tone does stand out quite well amongst the bass instruments, sweet tone even (!) though I imagine it would only take a couple of notes just off the beat to get some hackles up! Grrrr!


    AND another thing: I found that because it’s so small, if I wear shirts with sleeves that slip, like polartec, nylon, instead of cotton then it’s much harder to play.
  8. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    I should add that I believe it was King Edward VII of England who learned to play a Keech banjo.
    (This was before Bill Monroe).

    -and it is of course possible that King Edward VII played this actual banjo. Which makes it a very valuable instrument indeed.
  9. Frankdolin
    Frankdolin
    Love it Simon! Your such a rebel !
  10. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Simon, as a Scot I always find myself laughing when I read about Keech Banjos. We Scots have the word "keech" in our dialect, one of several words we have to describe those human excretions of the solid variety which are an essential part of our digestive processes. The "ch" is pronounced as we use it in words like "loch" - unpronouncable to many who are not Scots. I have always felt it is such a good word to apply to many banjos I have heard (and I actually own a Vega Tenor myself). Your neat little banjo with its nylon strings does not come into this category, I hasten to add!
  11. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    ‘Your neat little banjo with its nylon strings does not come into this category, I hasten to add!’
    -phew!

    But I assure you John, the Keech banjo is a noble, expensive instrument.
  12. Sherry Cadenhead
    Sherry Cadenhead
    Simon, is it supposed to sound like that? Just kidding! I enjoyed listening. And I appreciate anyone who, unlike me, plays more than one instrument.
  13. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Thanks Sherry, it’s supposed to sound the way you’ve already played whatever you want to play

    Personally I love gut or nylon stringed bass sounding OldTime banjos.
  14. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Thanks Frank, yes at more than one time the banjo variants were rebel instruments!
  15. gortnamona
    gortnamona
    like John, this takes back to the Elvis song
  16. Christian DP
    Christian DP
    I wanted to record it, since I first heard Simon's version, and on today's Toussaint holiday, I finally found the time:
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