Banjo Books

With this volume, the reader is pleasantly surprised with two books in one- Section One by Alec Slater, and Section Two by Lisa Schmitz. Alec's portion is intended as a guide for the clawhammer or frailing banjo player with some previous experience in this style. He stresses the fact that this style of music can be fully learned only from within the oral tradition in which it grew. The instruction included here is meant to provide a review, and not to take the place of qualified teacher.

14 Dylan classics arranged specifically for clawhammer-style 5-string Banjo, written in TAB, including: All Along the Watchtower, Blowin' in the Wind, Hurricane, It Ain't Me Babe, Knockin' on Heaven's Door, Lay Lady Lay, Like a Rolling Stone, Mr. Tambourine Man, Positively 4th Street, Shelter from the Storm, Tangled up in Blue, The Times They Are A-Changin', You Ain't Goin' Nowhere and Don't Think Twice, It's All Right.

This collection contains tab for Earl's banjo breaks, intros and tags, plus complete banjo instrumental transcriptions for over 80 tunes spanning his recording career. It also includes recording references and tuning and capo infofor each piece.

Fred Cockerham & Tommy Jarrell: Clawhammer Banjo Masters is a collection of 23 clawhammer banjo solos written in tablature. The pieces are transcribed as played by Fred Cockerham and Tommy Jarrell by Bob Carlin. Also included are modern interpretations by Dan Levenson. This is the third book in a series of transcribed tunes from the old masters. Previous books are Kyle Creed - Clawhammer Banjo Master and Wade Ward - Clawhammer Banjo Master. Fred Cockerham and Tommy Jarrell both gave unique definition to the style of old-time clawhammer banjo playing. The repertoire, presented in tablature, is intended to be a starting point for your journey through the old-time music world. Eachpiece is presented in multiple arrangements, both on the page and in the online audio. Most of the recordings are played at learning tempos and correspond to the tablature.

The Banjo Play-Along Series will help you play your favorite songs quickly and easily. Just follow the banjo tab, listen to the audio to hear how the banjo should sound, and then play along using the separate backing tracks. The book includes access to audio tracks online for download or streaming featuring Playback+, a multi-functional audio player that allows you to slow down the audio without changing pitch, set loop points, change keys, and pan left or right. This volume includes: Billy in the Low Ground · Cluck Old Hen · Devil's Dream · Fisher's Hornpipe · Little Maggie · Over the Waterfall · The Red Haired Boy · Soldier's Joy.

O'Carolan's best-loved harp tunes are notated in a contemporary style that makes them accessible to all instrumentalists. This ideal collection with accompanying audio lays bare 20 classic Irish compositions for melody and backing players using standard notation and chords. For all 5-string banjo players, fretting and picking-hand fingerings are included in the transcriptions which match the play-along tracks. This is Hanway's fourth collection demonstrating Celtic fingerstyle banjo in G tuning. It is part of a Celtic 5-string series that includes Mel Bay's Easy Irish and Celtic Tunes for 5-String Banjo: Best-Loved Jigs and Reels (2012) and Mel Bay's Easy Irish andCeltic Melodies for 5-String Banjo: Best-Loved Airs and Session Tunes (2013). Tom Hanway's pioneering work, Mel Bay's Complete Book of Irish & Celtic 5-String Banjo (1998), was acclaimed by Bluegrass Unlimited magazine (1999) "as 'the bible' for any 5-string player with an interest in this joyous music." The current collection breathes life into the Gaelic classical melodies of Ireland. Access to online audio download.

If you've ever felt compelled to play Flight of the Bumblebee on the 5-string banjo, this is the book for you!Challenging banjo transcriptions of classical masterpieces may seem like a humorous anachronism to some, but not for Italian master Claudio Parravicini, a conservatory graduate who, while majoring in French horn, always believed that the banjo was 'a virtuoso instrument capable of enriching any musical genre. In the author's words, 'I chose the classical pieces in this book on the basis of how they might advance right and left-hand banjo technique and even refine the player's musical sensibility ¦ Some pieces, like Flight of the Bumblebee will challenge yourability to play rapidly, while others like Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, are much slower, but will test your musical abilities in other ways.  The other pieces in the book are: Prelude No. 2 in C minor and Inventions No. 4 and No. 6 by J. S. Bach, Flight of the Bumblebee by Korsakov, Perpetual Motion and Carnival of Venice by Paganini, and Toccata for Piano or Harpsichord by Paradisi. Classical Masterpieces for Banjo is written in tablature only in standard G tuning [gDGBD] using three-finger banjo technique in the traditional, melodic and single-string style. Each selection is guaranteed to further your technique and delight your audience, or simply expand your vision of what is possible on the 5-string banjo.

A Clawhammer Christmas by Dan Levenson is a collection of 30 of the most loved Christmas songs transcribed in tablature for the 5-string banjo in the clawhammer style with chords provided for accompaniment instruments. Written in his clear and traditional style, Dan has finally made these holiday favorites accessible to all clawhammer banjo players with good basic skills. All songs have been written in one of the three basic old-time banjo tunings of G, double-C or G modal. This will allow you to find the tune in a fingering you know and easily capo to your preferred singing key. Build your skills as you entertain family and friends and maybe even yourself! Ring in the holiday season with the joyful sound of the 5-string banjo played clawhammer style and have a double-thumb, drop-thumb Clawhammer Christmas!

Five-string banjo enthusiasts who play in the stroke, clawhammer or guitar styles will enjoy these 50 melodic, tab-only arrangements. The collection is unique in that it includes reels, polkas, jigs, hornpipes, minstrel songs, ballads, light classics, and a Christmas tune—nearly all in C tuning with the fourth string a step lower than the typical 5-string G tuning. Well-known classical and popular composers: Beethoven, Foster, and Vivaldi, plus collector/historian-authors: Converse, Emmett, Howe, Kerr, O’Neill, and Ryan—are all represented in this book.With the exception of two Twiss originals, the music was chosen from sources available circa 1840 – 1890. Some of these settings can be used as accompaniment to unison singing; all are designed to lie well on the 5-string fretboard for optimal playability. Using a custom-built fretted, nylon-string banjo, the author has provided online recordings of every tune for ease of learning.

Early American Banjo by Tim Twiss provides complete banjo tablature transcriptions of the instrumental solos that first appeared in standard notation in Buckley's Banjo Guide of 1868. This modern tablature edition of over 100 mid-19th century jigs, waltzes, polkas, hornpipes and reels provides insight to the transition between the African down-stroke technique, which preceded claw-hammer style and the newer, more refined plucking technique. James Buckley (1803 ' 1872), sometimes referred to as the 'Father of the Classical Banjo,  was one of the most prolific transcribers of early banjo music. His compositions and arrangements were performed on the minstrel stage, andhis scholarly discipline produced a lasting record of banjo music of his era. This repertoire collection includes easy tunes as well as more complex pieces suited for the concert stage. The player will delight in discovering how fresh and unusual some of this music sounds, even today 'all in modern banjo tab. While best experienced on a period reproduction, gut-string fretless banjo in a lower tuning, any 5-string banjo in C tuning (gCGBD) may be used to interpret this collection. Includes access to online audio.

This book provides beginning banjo players with easy streamlined arrangements of 40 popular songs. Learn the basics of clawhammer style, strum and sing along, or pick the melody lines. Arrangements are a combo of tab, standard notation, chord grids and lyrics selected and prepared by renowned banjo guru, Fred Sokolow. Songs include: Ballad of Jed Clampett (Flatt & Scruggs) · Blue Moon of Kentucky (Bill Monroe) · Cold Rain and Snow (Grateful Dead)· Folsom Prison Blues (Johnny Cash) · Freight Train (Elizabeth Cotten) · Friend of the Devil (Grateful Dead) · Gentle on My Mind (Glen Campbell) · Ho Hey (The Lumineers) · I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow (Soggy Bottom Boys) · I Saw the Light (Traditional) · I Walk the Line (Johnny Cash) · Jambalaya (On the Bayou) (Hank Williams) · The Long Black Veil (Lefty Frizzell) · Mama Tried (Merle Haggard) · The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down (The Band) · Puff the Magic Dragon (Peter Paul & Mary) · (Ghost) Riders in the Sky (A Cowboy Legend) (Stan Jones) · Rocky Top (Osbourne Brothers) · Roll in My Sweet Baby's Arms (Flatt & Scruggs) · Sweet Baby James (James Taylor) · Teach Your Children (Crosby Stills Nash & Young) · This Land Is Your Land (Woody Guthrie) · Tom Dooley (Kingston Trio) · The Weight (The Band) · Where Have All the Flowers Gone? (Pete Seeger) · Will the Circle Be Unbroken (The Carter Family) · You Are My Sunshine (Traditional) · and more.

Kyle Creed Clawhammer Banjo Master is a collection of clawhammer banjo tablature as played by Kyle Creed, with modern interpretations by Bob Carlin and Dan Levenson. This book is the first in a series of transcriptions of tunes from the old masters 'in this case, Kyle Creed 'who gave definition to our style of old time clawhammer banjo playing. The repertoire, presented in tablature, is intended to be a starting point for your journey through the old time music world. As such, each piece is presented in multiple arrangements, both on the page and through the online audio. Includes access to online audio recordings that are for the most part played at a learning tempo and are close to the written notation but not exact in all cases.

Play 47 Irish selections on the tenor banjo with this collection of reels, jigs, slip jigs, hornpipes, polkas & slides. The tunes are presented in multiple keys (both traditional and modal), and are presented in both standard notation and tablature with chord names and large diagrams. Songs include: Bag of Spuds · Cherish the Ladies · Drowsy Maggie · Farewell to Whiskey · Lark in the Morning · Rocky Road to Dublin · The Tempest · and more. Audio tracks are available for learning and listening with pitch and speed control for download or streaming online. Also features traditional Irish GDAE tuning with a chart of basic chords.

Tenor Banjo Chord Book contains all of the Tenor Banjo chords you'll ever need.
Suitable for beginners to intermediate players, Tenor Banjo Chord Book includes all of the essential chords in all 12 keys for the Tenor Banjo in C-G-D-A tuning.
This narrow format book fits neatly into your case so you can take it everywhere.

Complete with full lyrics and easy-to-read chord boxes, this songbook allows Banjo players to pick and sing along to 30 of Dylan's greatest hits, including All Along The Watchtower, Blowin' In The Wind, Like A Rolling Stone, The Times They Are A-Changin' and more.

The Banjo Playlist: Blue Book is a fantastic selection of over 30 classic songs to play and sing, specially arranger for the beginner banjo player. Contains classics from Jonny Cash, Woody Guthrie and Bill Monroe, with a handful of more recent hits from Amy McDonald, Paolo Nutini and The Proclaimers. Includes full lyrics, strumming patterns and banjo chord diagrams. Suitable for 5 string banjo.

Centerstream Publishing is proud to present Todd Taylor's incredible arrangements in notes & banjo tab of classics including: Dust in the Wind • El Cumbachero • Freebird • How Great Thou Art • I Can't Stop Loving You • Norwegian Wood • Rocket Man • Wayfaring Stranger • Yakety Sax • and more, plus some of Todd's terrific originals. The book includes a bonus CD of Todd's masterful playing on six searing tracks. An absolute must for all banjo players!

Old Time String Band Banjo Styles introduces the traditional, rural string band Banjo styles as played in the southern mountains of the eastern United States, which were used to “second” Vocal songs and Fiddle tunes during the Golden Age of recorded String band music, from the early 1920s through to the early 1930s.

Renowned instructor and Grammy nominee Bob Carlin is one of the best-known banjoists performing today. This book, an update of his 1983 classic with the welcome addition of a CD, teaches readers how to play 32 best-loved pieces from his first two solo recordings: Fiddle Tunes for Clawhammer Banjo and Where Did You Get That Hat?. Includes fantastic photos from throughout Bob's career.

Fiddle Tunes for Banjo Made Easy is a collection of must-know, easy-to-learn bluegrass instrumental standards. Ross records each song at three speeds and also includes a rhythm backup track. The slow speed is ideal for hearing the notes clearly and being able to play along in rhythm; the medium speed is a perfect goal for the beginning and intermediate student while the faster speed demonstrates what the song can sound like with a hard, driving push. The tablature is large for ease of reading and includes accent marks for melody notes where needed. Ross also provides tips and suggestions for each song to save you valuable practice time. These are tips on the more challenging spots that Ross has learned firsthand from teaching these privately for many years.

This book approaches the five-string banjo as a musical instrument freed from the prison of specific musical genres. Old-time music, clawhammer, bluegrass and many eclectic adaptations of the banjo are utilized to demonstrate a variety of musical styles.

This Book & CD pack provides the intermediate clawhammer (5-string) banjo player with a fresh repertoire of 21 traditional and 5 original tunes as played by the author with the Boiled Buzzards Old Time String Band. The book briefly addresses clawhammer basics with a few pages of exercises and scales before presenting the tunes.

A complete tutor for the Intermediate and Advanced Player: a clawhammer encyclopedia for players of all levels. One of the world's top players addresses nearly every aspect of the popular 5-string banjo style known as clawhammer or frailing. Online Audio included.

Featuring 28 well-known Christmas songs arranged for tenor banjo with chord symbols for an accompaniment instrument. Book contains chord diagrams for tenor banjo and guitar as well as common strum patterns to use for rhythm backup. All songs are arranged in standard notation and tablature for tenor banjo. Difficulty Level: Beginning