Forum - Banjo Ben Clark

Discuss the Banjo lesson: Old Joe Clark- Basic

https://banjobenclark.com/lessons/old-joe-clark-basic-banjo-beginner

Let me introduce you to my ol’ Uncle Joe! We’ll dissect the structure, internalize the basic melody, then learn a solo!

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Sounds good! The phrasing of the ending (measure 39) is giving me a hard time. I have done too many repetitions with slightly different phrases… I’ll get there

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And the reason it was giving me a hard time is that I heard it wrong. Playing things slow to learn them can be hard… it’s like I am talking and putting the emPHASis on the wrong sylLABle. Sometimes I just have to go count out what I am playing to see what I am supposed to be doing. There really is a big difference between an eighth and a quarter note. :crazy_face:
I like the arrangement!

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You’re literally giving away the secret sauce here Ben. I’ve been playing for years and worked with a variety of teachers and no one has shown me how to approach learning new songs this way. I’ve always learned by tab and it’s tedious, time consuming and locks you in to a very specific way of playing. I wish someone had shown me this approach years ago. I could have spent a lot more time playing, instead of wood shedding try to learn new material.

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I echo and AMEN real.estate.az!! Thank you again Ben for taking us beyond tab to a whole 'nuther level!!
It’s so much fun when I sit down and try to work out songs this way.

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Wow, this is a huge compliment!

Ben Clark, I have been working on your Old Joe Clark in G for several years now on and off and just picked it up again. It is very similar to this but a little different in spots. Did you remove it? my dog ate the tab and now I cannot find a Joe Clark in G. Ha my dog ate my homework I bet you have heard that before.

This is an updated version that I like better, yeah. I removed the old one to keep folks from being confused, but it may go the other way, lol

For your info I like the newer version a little better, it seems easier to play and I like how it sounds too. I was just wondering why I could not find the one in G. Old Joe Clark was the very first song I learned to flat pick on my guitar so many years ago.

Ahhh, yeah, mainly to match the other lessons b/c it’s traditionally played in A.

I can’t access the tabs. Is there a trick to it?

Hey Benjamin! Welcome! Try refreshing the page and trying again (the links can time out after a while). If that doesn’t work, I’ll PM the tabs to you,

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That totally worked. Thanks!

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