20 Tunes that will Rock the Jam

There's nothing more fun than getting into a jam with a bunch of trapezoids! In between Ken Kolodner's instruction and M.J.'s food there was plenty of time to play music with friends at the Sandbridge Dulcimer Workshop last week. It was great to have a variety of instruments to enhance the experience ... guitar, mando, banjo, fiddle, piano, a shaker or two. Over a crabby dinner at Margie and Ray's last Friday night a group of us at the end of the table brainstormed our favorite jammin' tunes. As one might expect, there's some overlap with the list I generated myself and posted last March, "Today's Top 20 Favorite Jam Tunes." Looking to enhance your own play list? These tunes are hard to beat!

1. Bill Cheatham
2. Booth Shot Lincoln
3. Granny, Does Your Dog Bite?
4. Hangman's Reel
5. John Brown's March
6. John Ryan's Polka (dum dum)
7. John Stenson's #2
8. Leather Britches
9. MacDonald's Reel
10. Missouri
11. Nail that Catfish to a Tree
12. Oklahoma Rooster
13. Rock the Cradle, Joe
14. Roscoe
15. Sandy Boys
16. Sandy River Belle
17. Shenandoah Falls
18. Snake River Reel
19. Waynesboro
20. Willafjord

I bet we missed a "few" good ones. Don't see YOUR favorite here? Add it in the "Comment" section below!

CTO ... Late Night Jam

Check This Out ... A few of us gathered at the Lowry's home for a little night music at the close of the Winston Salem Dulcimer Festival. Hammered dulcimers, a bowed dulcimer, penny whistle, fiddles, etc ... even a harp! Sure was fun sharing some of our favorite tunes.

CTO ... Tune List from April 5 - 7 Jam Sessions

15 trapezoids gathered for all or part of the weekend of April 5-7 on top of a mountain near Roaring Gap, NC, for Martha's Dulcimer Day on the Mountain. We worked hard all day that Saturday, practicing chord patterns and rhythms to back up common fiddle tunes. We entertained the neighbors Saturday night. We ate and laughed, shared ideas and played tunes.

Check This Out ... Viola kept notes! Here's a list of tunes in the order they were played during the jam sessions. While some of the "favorites" might have been played several times during the weekend, they are listed here only once. It's a pretty good list ... but there are plenty of great tunes missing! What would YOU have called for next?

Forvantan
Whiskey Before breakfast
Lady of the Lake (Can you play the bass line back up?)
Nail that Catfish to the Tree
Frosty Morning (NOT Cold Frosty Morning)
Midnight on the Water
Ash Grove
Missouri
Waynesboro
Ruth sang The Rooster Song
and Seven Nights Drunk
Willafjord
Little Red Wing
Rights of Man
Black Nag
South Wind
Oklahoma Rooster
John Ryan's Polka
Soldier's Joy
Shepherd's Wife's Waltz
Hangman's Reel
Spotted Pony
NC Breakdown
Smash the Windows
Planxty Fanny Poer
Blackberry Blossom
Ashokan Farewell
Lovers' Waltz

Today's Top 20 Favorite Jam Tunes

These are my favorite jam tunes, in alphabetical order, in this moment:

1. Bill Cheatham
2. Coleman's March
3. The Gale
4. Golden Slippers
5. Hangman's Reel
6. Lady of the Lake
7. Leather Britches
8. Liberty
9. MacDonald's Reel
10. Midnight on the Water
11. Missouri
12. Oklahoma Rooster
13. Over the Waterfall
14. Rock the Cradle, Joe
15. Sandy Boys
16. Shenandoah Falls
17. St. Anne's Reel
18. Waynesboro
19. Whiskey Before Breakfast
20. Willafjord

I admit, some of these are not the most common tunes, but in the right circles there's enough critical mass to make it fun!

Here's a link to Randy Marchany's Top 40.

What do you think? Additions? Corrections? Comments?
What's on your "favorites" list?