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HOME > REVIEWS > STEVE JAMES Steve James As you search the audio archives of the music of the twenties and thirties it becomes clear that the string and jug bands ruled the bandstands of the deep South. These bands of traveling musicians were often lead by fiddlers who also played the mandolin, the fretted sister to the violin. And, considering the proliferation of instruments on the market by luthiers like the Gibson and Martin companies, mandolins were everywhere and thus appear on countless string band recordings. They also show up in many recordings of blues musicians, and though it was never considered a dominant instrument in the blues, the mandolin nonetheless has a place in its history and is preserved today by several players in the country, one of which is Steve James. This video opens with James playing mandolin accompanied by John Sebastian on guitar, as they weave through an instrumental rendition of Yank Rachell's Diving Duck Blues. Both players have a deep respect for the music and for the musicians who created it. James has also devoted part of his career to teaching workshops and sharing his knowledge and skills as a guitar and mandolin player. He adeptly takes you through each lesson by "taking it apart bar by bar." The high quality production of the video likewise facilitates the study of the music, as split screen images show both the right- and left-hand techniques at the same time. A booklet with the arrangements printed in standard and tab notations is included in the package. James begins his lesson with a demonstration of scales, picking them slowly while pointing out the blue notes and how they modify the major scale to create the blues scale. To give the lesson further authenticity he plays a 1923 Gibson A2, which has a great tone and voice for the blues. The first full song example is a reprise of Diving Duck Blues. He uses this example to demonstrate picking styles and tremolo, a key technique for all mandolinists. His study continues with a survey of chord voicings, what he calls "chord partials" that are useful in creating the sound of the seventh chords critical to blues harmony structure. He then introduces a walking "boogie" bass line and talks about his gear and strings. The third musical piece comes from the music of Charlie McCoy, The Lonesome Train That Carried My Gal Away. This ragtime-like fiddle tune with blues elements explores the key of D. To capture the jug band sound James plays the melody on a Vega Style K Banjolin, as Sebastian plays banjo guitar. Part of these lessons is his sharing of stories about the music and its players. He even demonstrates a lost style of tuning, where players re-strung the mandolin, pairing an A string with the G and an E with the D, creating an octave sound when these strings are plucked. They sound very much like strings on a twelve-string guitar. (Howard Armstrong once told me that they were strung this way to kill mosquitoes). The higher pitched octave sound does soar above the music of a band, giving the mandolin a special presence. The final pieces, Joe William's Juanita Stomp in the key of A, and James' own Saturday Night in Jail are filled with "fun-loving high-jinks," leaving James out of breath. For the last number Sebastian offers Yank Rachell's electric mandolin so the duo could perform an electric version of Rachell's Shotgun Blues. Sebastian acquired the mandolin when he produced a jug band album Gus's Ghost, which features Rachell's last recorded work. Considering both the lack of printed and video material that features blues on the mandolin, and the high quality of this production, this video is a must for any serious student of the mandolin and mandolin blues. Homespun Video |
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