Skip to main content

The Year of Ward Jarvis

Ward Jarvis at his home
in Athens County, Ohio,
c. 1977. (Photo by Kerry
 Blech. Source: Slippery-Hill)
As mentioned last time around, my new focus for old-time music is the Ohio River Valley, primarily Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia. Musicians such as Ed Haley, John Salyer, Burl Hammons and many others. As an Ohio boy, born and raised, my natural inclination is to start with some Ohio fiddlers, like Lonnie Seymour, Arnold Sharp, Jimmy Wheeler and Jeff Goehring. But first up is Ward Jarvis.

Jarvis was born in West Virginia in 1894 and is said to have been influenced by Ed Haley. Jarvis then moved to Ohio for work in the 1940s, settling in Athens County. He was recorded by a few different people, including Jeff Goehring, Davis Brose and Ray Alden. His music appears on a release of Goehring's tapes by Field Recorders' Collective (FRC402), two LPs produced by Brose, "Traditional Music From Central Ohio" and "Rats Won't Stay Where There's Music," and one produced by Alden, "Visits."

My goal for the next year is to track down copies of those last three albums and other available recordings.

Jarvis died in 1982 and served as a mentor to more than a few old-time musicians still active today. He is the main source for tunes such as "Icy Mountain" and "Banjo Tramp." He provided an old-time rendition of Tommy Jackson's "Tomahawk."

For my purposes, I've decided to focus on six tunes to learn this year, as I try to pick up a little of the magic in Jarvis's fiddling. They are:

  1. Head of the Creek
  2. Icy Mountain
  3. Tomahawk
  4. Three Forks of Reedy
  5. Pretty Little Indian
  6. Cattle in the Cane
I'll be using the FRC album as my main source, working with slowdown software for all of the tunes and getting help from the Milliner-Koken book where possible. Anyone with additional resources, please chime in down below in the comments. I'd love to hear from fellow Jarvis fans.

Comments

  1. Looking 4 info..on the Jarvis,s in Athens Ohio.went to one family reunion and played with them all one time before my dad died.looking 4 there music.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Look into the Poston Lake Bluegrass Festival on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/PostonLakeBluegrass). Ward Jarvis's son, I believe, is involved with organizing the event.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Ultimate Banjo Joke Compendium

This post is dedicated to my friend Joel Specht. Ever since the Olitsky & Moskovitz concert last month, my son has been obsessed with banjo jokes. During one of the MANY tuning breaks, they asked the crowd to fill the time by telling their favorite quips about the old five-string. Joel told many that night. I've been trying to remember them, along with best ones I've heard over the years for when my son asks again, so I thought I'd make this list. Question: What's the difference between a banjo and an onion? Answer: Nobody cries when you cut up a banjo. Question: How do you know if the floor is level? Answer: The banjo player is drooling out of both sides of his mouth. Question: What's the difference between a banjo and trampoline? Answer: You take your shoes off to jump on a trampoline. Question: What's the definition of perfect pitch? Answer: When you can throw a banjo into a dumpster without hitting the sides. Question: How do yo

Clawhammer Picks and You: A Review

Clawhammer picks are a useful tool for increasing volume or to overcome fingernail challenges, such as broken, too short or weak nails. There are all sorts of commercial and homemade solutions available for banjo players, but it can be difficult to decide which options to choose. Thankfully, I've already done some of the work for you. Just to be clear, I prefer my natural fingernail for frailing. However, there was a time when I experimented with regularly using a pick, and there are instances now where I find that a pick is necessary. Today, I'll take you through the five options I've tried. These are all available online at prices ranging from about $1 to $13. Reversed/Reshaped Dunlop Pick ($0.75) This was the most common suggestion before other companies started addressing the gap in the clawhammer pick market. Take a bluegrass pick, flatten it out and wear it backwards. The problem is that it's hard to get the fit right. While Dunlop picks are cheap and r

Summer Blockbusters: Top 10 Banjo Movies

We’re nearing the end of the summer movie season, which this year has included blockbusters like Avengers: Infinity War , Solo: A Star Wars Story , Incredibles 2 and other movies, including some that weren’t produced by Disney. However, none of these films showcases a banjo in any way. It's not like the banjo hasn't been featured on the silver screen throughout film history. The five-string has starred in numerous movies, sometimes in its proper context as a musical instrument and other times as a comedic prop. Whether making a cameo or starring in the hands of the main character, it's well past time to present my Top 10 Banjo Blockbusters: O Brother Where Art Thou? (2000) Written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, this movie sucked me into the realm of old-time , bluegrass and country music in general. The banjo is featured in a number of songs on the soundtrack and shows up on screen a few times throughout the movie. Top Banjo Moment: Delmar picks the banjo b