Description
Kerry Blech loved to play fiddle tunes, but just as much, he loved to “study them and find out where they came from, and talk about them.” Throughout the years, Kerry generously shared his vast knowledge of old time fiddle tunes and their sources. This album provides an example of the kind of deep look into old time music that Kerry particularly liked to share. It captures a presentation recorded at the Appalachian String Band Music Festival (Clifftop) in 2004, where Kerry received recognition as an Appalachian Master. For his presentation, he selected and fiddled 26 obscure pieces from a variety of sources that included field recordings (both old and more recent) and commercial 78s from the ‘20s and ‘30s. The music ranges from Ohio and Pennsylvania to Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Oklahoma. Kerry is backed by John Schwab on guitar, Kevin Enoch on bass, and Bill Schmidt on banjo. He gives each tune a brief but pertinent introduction, sharing information about the source fiddler or band, and sometimes about how he himself came upon the recording.
It’s hard to recall a time when I have enjoyed listening to a set of fiddle tunes as much as I have enjoyed listening to this. I feel as if Kerry has broadened my horizons. Most of the tunes were new to me, yet they are filled with those familiar moments of arresting beauty so often found in great old time music done in the old ways. (Two of my favorites are the soaring B part of John Hannah’s “Sally in the Green Corn” and the aching, seemingly unresolved note in both parts of Murphy Gribble’s “Johnson’s Girl.”) You can be sure that Kerry and company lovingly keep true to every idiosyncrasy found in the source recordings. Kerry fiddles with both clearcut authority and grace, and John, Kevin, and Bill provide perfect backup.
But almost as much as the music, I enjoyed Kerry’s low-key, personable introductions, which give interesting information but also display his humility, humor, and appreciation of fellow musicians and collectors. As he puts it in his introduction to “Johnson’s Girl,” “…We’ll try to tantalize you with a couple things from their repertoire.” Tantalize us – that is, into wanting to explore further, because for Kerry, this presentation was all about exposing us to sources and musicians we might have missed. To this end, Kerry leads us down some lovely and enchanting backroads of old time fiddling.— Joe LaRose
Kerry Blech (fiddle & talk): All tracks.
John Schwab (guitar): All music tracks except 38 & 40.
Bill Schmidt (banjo): Tracks 2, 4, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 34, 46, 47, 49, 51.
Kevin Enoch (bass): Tracks 2, 18, 20, 22, 24.
Kerry Blech Obituary
Remembering Kerry Blech by Ron Andrico
Kerry Blech – Notes on the Tunes by Mark Wilson
Courtesy of Old Time Herald Fall 2001
