This has to be one of the most aesthetically delightful and flawlessly executed clawhammer version of these two timeless melodies. Played to absolute perfection. Thanks, Steve.
It's always so interesting to see the paths people take, especially when they have more than one option. I think Steve could just as easily have made it in Nashville as he did in Hollywood, and it's nice to see him getting more recognition these days for his amazing playing.
Steve said that there's no happier sound than a banjo.. And he sure does make people happy playing it. Kudos to you for posting this. I knew he was awesome, but I had no clue this good solo..
I've always thought Steve Martin was a talented comedian. But his skill with the banjo impresses me more. He must've put in a lot of practice over the years. His recent tours playing the banjo, and his work with Earl Scruggs, have made him very well-respected in the country music world.
Every generation has a handful personalities that define its humor, feeling, mood and meaning. Among the comedians / actors / entertainers from the mid-'70s to the present day, Steve Martin will always be remembered as a staple of comedy and culture during a time that so desperately needed him. He is unique.
I always wondered if it was an original or not. One thing's for sure, he definitely is multi-talented! He says he learned to play the banjo by listening to old bluegrass albums on slow speed and gradually increasing until he could do it at full speed.
+Ed Greene The only Grammy that really matters is the Lifetime Achievement Award. There are some who have multiple Grammy's when they shouldn't have one and there are some who have no Grammy's when they should have multiple.
So lovely, so lovely...... It seems that those who are aware of Steve's banjo playing are tuned into his bluegrass work.....as amazing as that is, this little clawhammer example is simply stunning. His right-hand technique is the star of the show here, folks..... LOVE how he forms the left-hand chords even if he's not striking those particular strings. I SO wish he'd release an album of all-clawhammer...!!
As I sit here and watch and listen to a genius a real one who started his career at Disneyland I can only think he is one the types of genius that his brain works in different magical ways. Damn son you are gifted and I am envious. I wish I could do what you do.
Steve Martin has got to be one of the most wonderfully multi-talented people on earth. He is so gifted in so many ways. (He's not exactly hard to look at, either!). I just LOVE him!
SImple gifts is a nice touch and lots of depth with chordal subtext washed in all kinds of places is a wonderful surprise .Glad to see he is such a very wonderful clawhammer GUY .. All the best Guy (wolff)
You know, I really think it's great that such a famous person promotes our instrument. Funny stuff included, he really shows it off every chance he gets! Good on ya boy! Don't ya rock on daddy-o!!!
I grew up on his comedy. He'd hit the scene when I was a teenager and was the hottest and most cutting edge of his day. A good part of his repetoire was, of course, his banjo playing. But I've never heard him play a number as sweet as in this vid. Thanks very much for the upload.
We all love this and NEED to know how to play it. Well Steve understands the needs of banjo players and,together with Tony Trishka, has tabbed out the whole of his new album 'The Crow'. One of the tunes on that - Clawhammer melody', is essentially the same as this (but with a different ordering of the tunes). Take a look on Amazon for the tab book and enjoy! This is the first time I have tuned my frailing banjo to open D (aDF#AD) and I just love it - I want to play everyting in this tuning now!
a lot of the sound comes from the fingerboard too,combining the flatpicking,clawhammer picking with fingerboard pulloffs,having tried it it's extremely hard to do,takes a lot of practice.phoenix you're right,clawhammer does originate from africa but folk music's what it is,nothing I've heard compares to it,complicated yet a sound you never forget.Nothing today compares at all with it.
As serious as you see him concentrating on his Banjo playing here, that is the level of concentration and control he has an all aspects of his act, he really takes comedy and performance seriously. It's a testament to how good he is that it seems like he's making it up on the spot.
In regular clawhammer playing, you strike the strings with the back of the fingernails, which gives the characteristic "door knocking" motion, and the thumb alternates between the the high G and the low D string. In frailing, the thumb only strikes the high G string.
I take him seriously.. he’s a beast in the music world .. I was a big fan of the steep canyon rangers .. then he hooked up with them and now tickets are through the roof.. but it’s a great show..
I remember the white suit tour when he'd pull out his banjo, everyone would be waiting for the joke that never comes, until you'd realize that you'd just been treated to some of the best banjo on the planet. "The Crow" is a must have.
Steve is just awesome, blows me away when hes playing serious. Im no musician but that is one of the classiest banjo numbers ive ever heard-!! Maybe this isnt correct for the banjo, but it truly does ROCK-!!
At 1:24 he starts playing an arrangement of the shaker hymm 'simple gifts' which is also used as the main theme for Aaron Copland's 'Appalachian Spring' and it's of my favorite tunes. Beautiful rendition.
It isn't very old in itself, but it's roots are in traditional folk music, which is a very old tradition. The tune Steve is playing is an old Scottish folk tune for instance. Bluegrass's roots is in folks sitting around playing music with simple instruments for enjoyment & camaraderie. And that aspect of music is timeless.
'The Steve Martin Brothers', 1981, was an LP with one side of nothing but his banjo playing (with others, of course). It didn't get nearly enough attention. Well worth checking out!
Steve is a brilliant banjo player.He plays the same clawhammer Appalachain style that came from the scottish highlands hundreds of years ago;anyone notice that U2 uses the same clawhammer style,just with an electric instead of a banjo...still nothing beats clawhammer bluegrass,I grew up with it here in New England.
A more flawless of the claw hammer you will never see this short of Heaven. I hope Steve makes and plays his banjo in front of those to the hereafter and I can only I hope I make it there too.
Steve Martin is a Great Banjo Player. Plays both Scruggs and Clawhammer, and wrote the tunes on his CD "The Crow", which as someone already mentioned, is a Must Have. Check it out.
I have this whole show on tape... it is magnificent. So good. Steve Martin you were so good, we forgive you for all the rubbish you've made recently. We will always love you for this!
Awesome post...I didn't know Steve played Clawhammer too! He's pretty darn accomplished at it!!! I wonder if Steve would show up at some of the 150th Celebrations for the C.W.! Steve, we have a pot of coffee for you at the 15th Arkansas Camp, Battle of Carthage, Missouri, a sesquicentennial Event!
I hear a lot of stuff in this..more notably Legend of the Johnson Boys, and of course Loch Lomond and Sally Anne. But those are the three main ones I hear. He is a great banjo player! 5 stars
@Myrnir It's in the title. ;) It's a medley of "Loch Lomond" and "Sally Anne," played in the drop-thumb/clawhammer style. It appears on Steve's third album "Comedy Is Not Pretty."
Just like the two people before me said, he got really serious. If you look at his bluegrass video, he's not serious at all. That's what, I think, is really special about old-time music. It's a whole different world.
Banjo genius is not so much being able to play it, but to find reasons to among other people. For this, Steve Martin's genius continues to reign supreme. OK, so being able to play it a good start...
Steve Martin seems to be a true Renaissance Man. He's a comedian, an actor, an author, a musician, and the acknowledged creator of his particular method of banjo playing. Is there anything this man can't do, and do well??? (Besides bear a child, I mean. LOL )
