Stuck on Hesitation Blues

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Just to show how a great song can survive amateurish mediocre hackery, here's my crude fingerpicking version. Didn't try to copy anyone, just went off chords and feel. Here's what came out:


Still want to learn the real thing, of course, but I'm curious what folks here think of this approach.

[Deliberate1]

Originally Posted by JonPR

There's a clue right there...

Jon, I am obliged for your deep dive into my latest infatuation. You unearthed some excellent material, including a fascinating Wiki with the history of the tune. Who would have thought that the first recorded version was performed by the Victor Military Band. I wonder if that was a creation of the Victor Talking Machine Co. And since then, according to Wiki, it has been recorded by at least 45 artists, from Ellington to Lena Horn to Janis Joplin. What is it about this ear worm of a tune?

Two of the recordings you link to will be very helpful for me - one a studio recorded solo instrumental by the Rev, and the other by Woody Mann. But the first comes as close to what I consider the DNA of the song as I have heard perhaps because it is an instrumental, rather than a vocal accompanyment. And so the guitar has to play all the parts to fill the space.
What I also find fascinating is that the lyrics appear to be as fungible as the guitar part. They are positively tame in the formal recording, and hilariously raunchy in the live recording I posted:

"Well. I ain't no wine-presser,
And I ain't no wine-presser's son.
But I could press out a little juice for ya
Till the wine-presser come."


BTW, that is the "riff" I was talking about when I said I would not attempt it out of fear of not doing it justice. Not that I do not love it. I do. It just strikes me as trying to somehow reproduce Ella Fitzgerald's scat singing. And, anyways, I'd rather come up with my own "blue" version, of which I am quite capable.

Jon, the shorter, instrumental studio version is the one I am going to focus on. That one, I believe, is of most interest to you as well. It seems to be the most decipherable and full-bodied. And "authentic," whatever that means. And should you go to the effort of tabbing that out, I'd be most grateful to have it. Since it has been "50 years" since you last played the tune, well time to become reacquainted.

Thanks again for your efforts.

Best regards,
David

[Deliberate1]

Originally Posted by Silly Moustache

Hi David,

I've just looked at my cheat sheet for this song, it is "similar" to Jorma's but not identical.

Andy, thank you for your post and vids. Seeing you count, on your fingers, the steps to the 3rd and 5th was particularly kind - perhaps done for my benefit? I confess to being a finger-counter at this point.

Tha vid of Toby had some great information, particularly how to find the third, minor third and fifth no matter where you are, relative to the root. I did not know that, though now that I do, it makes perfect sense.

Wish you well.
David

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Did I fart in church? Lol oops.

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by Deliberate1

Jon, I am obliged for your deep dive into my latest infatuation. You unearthed some excellent material, including a fascinating Wiki with the history of the tune.

Google - and youtube - are amazing, ain't they! Learned a lot I didn't know either....

Originally Posted by Deliberate1

Two of the recordings you link to will be very helpful for me - one a studio recorded solo instrumental by the Rev, and the other by Woody Mann. But the first comes as close to what I consider the DNA of the song as I have heard perhaps because it is an instrumental, rather than a vocal accompanyment. And so the guitar has to play all the parts to fill the space.
What I also find fascinating is that the lyrics appear to be as fungible as the guitar part. They are positively tame in the formal recording, and hilariously raunchy in the live recording I posted:

"Well. I ain't no wine-presser,
And I ain't no wine-presser's son.
But I could press out a little juice for ya
Till the wine-presser come."

There's a lot of verses that probably come from various old blues and folk songs. That's how the old "songsters" used to work. There's similar couplets in Wild About My Lovin': check around 1:35: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOA_djL5yoE
(That's another original I only just discovered: I first heard it by Jim Kweskin's Jug Band back in the mid 60s....

Originally Posted by Deliberate1

BTW, that is the "riff" I was talking about when I said I would not attempt it out of fear of not doing it justice. Not that I do not love it. I do. It just strikes me as trying to somehow reproduce Ella Fitzgerald's scat singing. And, anyways, I'd rather come up with my own "blue" version, of which I am quite capable.

Right! I agree.

After hearing those various versions - before starting any transcription - I found myself jamming my own version. Seems that a lot of the licks in that tune are things I've been playing for decades, so I had no trouble putting together something like it. However...

Originally Posted by Deliberate1

Jon, the shorter, instrumental studio version is the one I am going to focus on. That one, I believe, is of most interest to you as well.

You guess right . I've just finished getting that one down, but it's in notation only at the moment. I'll copy it into tab tomorrow (I always work that way round).
I will also check the Woody Mann one.
What's interesting is that there's only two verses, and a handful of licks, which he varies constantly all the way through. So you get the feeling he has a strong sense of what the basic riffs are, and he's just enjoying playing them in slightly different ways each time.

The other thing I find remarkable is that although it often seems as if he is losing the beat - it was common for solo performers to deviate from 12 bars according to how they felt a phrase ought to fit - every verse is exactly 12 bars. I.e., even though he sometimes displaces a lick, beginning in a different place in the bar, he knows exactly where he is in the form all the time. (I'm not sure that's the case in the vocal versions.)

Originally Posted by Deliberate1

It seems to be the most decipherable and full-bodied. And "authentic," whatever that means. And should you go to the effort of tabbing that out, I'd be most grateful to have it. Since it has been "50 years" since you last played the tune, well time to become reacquainted.

Indeed! I should say it's not quite as straightforward as I anticipated. Getting the gist of it is easy enough, but there's a few moments where it seems like he chose some unusual fingering...

But I'm with you, in that I won't be seeking to play it the exact same way he did. I believe in getting an original down in every detail as far as humanly possible, but only in order to get to the bottom of the style, the technical tricks; once that's done, it becomes a jumping off point for my own arrangement. I'm not going to BE Rev Gary Davis...

[mcmars]

Skip the tab and go back to the Reverend. I would just listen and focus on his timing and syncopation, as that what makes this song work. Don't get tripped up on the variations, figure out the basic chording and the syncopation. The variations are how it works with this song and makes the blues interesting. Get the basic chording, timing and simplify it to what works for you, at your level. Then work on complicating and personalizing it for how you hear it as you continue to practice it.

I learned from a gal who mentored me in the 80's who took lessons from RGDJ back in Greenwich Village days when Jorma and Roy Bookbinder and others were doing the same. I do not think what I learned from her is the same as how the Rev played it and I know my version is not exactly what she showed me.

I think what makes the song interesting is how it goes from accenting the 1 and 3 in the first 3 measures when chording the Am to E and then it switches to the 2 and 4, so the rhythm is what really makes this song. Get that part down with your thumb and a strong foot tap, then add the syncopated melody lines with all the variants.

I know when I play it, I do it one way when I am singing, but then if I do an instrumental verse, I play a totally different part, same timing, but I have a couple different parts I can plug in. But no way can I sing over any of those instrumental parts, so I don't even try. I think it is the beauty of this song, it has so much potential for creativity that makes it interesting for the breaks and for personalizing it.

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by mcmars

Skip the tab and go back to the Reverend. I would just listen and focus on his timing and syncopation, as that what makes this song work. Don't get tripped up on the variations, figure out the basic chording and the syncopation. The variations are how it works with this song and makes the blues interesting. Get the basic chording, timing and simplify it to what works for you, at your level. Then work on complicating and personalizing it for how you hear it as you continue to practice it.

This, exactly!

When I first taught myself fingerstyle, I did it all by ear from records (slowing them down with a 2-speed tape deck), hardly ever wrote anything down. (It was in notation then, when I did. I never saw tab in those days.) You can't beat that process of repetition, embedding the patterns in your ears and fingers at the same time.

Now, because of all the easy assistance out there (cheap transcription and notation/tab software) I always write things out as I learn them. But I have to remember that "transcription" is not "learning"! There are tunes where I
I've written them all down faithfully, but never got round to actually committing them to finger memory for performing them But most of the tunes I learned 50 years ago (and didn't write down) I can still play today, even if I haven't played them for years. (They won't necessarily be note-for-note accurate to the originals but - like you say - that's not the point.)

[Deliberate1]

Originally Posted by mcmars

Skip the tab and go back to the Reverend. I would just listen and focus on his timing and syncopation, as that what makes this song work.

Solid advice. I agree with that approach, and am doing my best with it.
But the challenge I face is the gap between my expectations and skillset. I have been playing for about three years now. Unlike my horns, which I have been playing for more than 55 years, and know "initimately," the guitar remains a musical mystery for me much of the time. I am not yet able to listen to something and determine what the chord is at any particular moment. That is where the chorded tabs have been the most helpful for me. Once I know what the chord is, and can hear what is happening, I can usually decipher the phrase melodically, and reproduce it or make something of my own.

Your point regarding the change in emphasis on the downbeat from 1 and 3 to 2 and 4 is an element I had not picked up on. And a good one. I find that the effect of accenting the upbeat to emphasize the syncopation is what drives the train for me. Jon also made the following observation above:

"The other thing I find remarkable is that although it often seems as if he is losing the beat - it was common for solo performers to deviate from 12 bars according to how they felt a phrase ought to fit - every verse is exactly 12 bars. I.e., even though he sometimes displaces a lick, beginning in a different place in the bar, he knows exactly where he is in the form all the time. (I'm not sure that's the case in the vocal versions.)"

That too. And dead on. I will be listening to the tune with that strong downbeat, and suddenly it seems to shift gears and I lose contact with it for a moment. I think that is what Jon is describing. Very cool. This tune is a veritable onion. With the miracle of Youtube (and the slowdown function) I plan to peel away at it.

Thanks for the input.

David

[TBman]

A lot of times when there is something I want to learn and the original artist version differs from the tab/notation I have I'll find someone on youtube that covered the tune using the tab I have. At least then you have a decent example to follow and use to learn the tune.

[Malcolm Kindnes]

Originally Posted by Jaxon

Pianist Cedar Walton said "if you gonna do someone else's song you best put a new dress on it" ...play a tune like you feel it

Absolutely, this is not classical music, it doesn't need to be played note for note. It's a simple tune with many variations and good lyrics. Besides, I hate tabs generally, I just don't understand music that way.

[yaharadelta]

I think that this would be worth a look. I've only been into the guitar for about 5 or 6 years, and this is where I was first exposed to the song. I picked up a DVD set from Stefan Grossman's Guitar Workshop site, Blues Guitar of Rev. Gary Davis taught by Ernie Hawkins. Here's a link to a single song lesson from that DVD.

https://www.guitarworkshop.digital/
From there you need to search for Hesitation Blues. The trailer on that lesson page has a nice clip of Ernie playing the HB in the Rev's style. You could glean a lot from just watching the clip, lot of good views of the fret board and the changes. The lesson itself is very worthwhile, not neccessarily a "be all and end all" version, there's a bit of "sometimes the Reverend would do this, or he could play this with different variations." I'm not sure if the single lesson includes tabs, I think the DVD does. (I'm not much of a tab guy)

On a side note, here's a link to something that Acoustic Guitar did with Ernie Hawkins on "Play Like Reverend Gary Davis" . The Hesitation Blues isn't included in this, but there's insight into how the Rev did things, Very interesting on his efficiency and various chord shapes that were in the Rev's bag.

https://acousticguitar.com/video-les...nd-gary-davis/

[mcmars]

Rag time can be pretty tough and Gary Davis was the master of it, lots of syncopations and chord substitutions and infinite variations with all kinds of chromatic runs and complicated stuff. But like someone described, peel the layers off and find the basic theme that is happening, with the chords, the verses and the beat.

One thing about playing Rev Davis songs is he did many songs in C and always wrapped his thumb at the 1st fret for the 4 chord/F chord so he could then be able to use his left fingers for the melody lines and to make the F/4 chord an F7th with the left pinky. That is virtually impossible if you do a traditional barred F chord without fretting 2 strings with one fat finger. So getting comfortable with wrapping the thumb to get the first fret on the low E string is kind of important for playing most of Gary Davis's songs. He also used that form of F as a slide-able chord up the neck for other keys. If you have not done it before, it will feel weird, but keep it up and then it gets easier. You don't have to get a clear tone, in fact you can even fake it and get on top of the fret or even in front of the 1st fret if you can't quite reach behind the fret as the bass line is normally dampened anyway by your right wrist. The sound is a muffled one, so anything close works. Like a monotonic bass, it is the timing that is important, more than the actual note.

Once you get the F thumb wrap, then work on the thumb wrap for a D chord at the 2nd fret and that is great for playing in Key of A and going to the 4 chord/D chord, maybe not for Gary davis songs, but it makes fingerstyle blues sound right. And to make that 4 chord/D sound even better, play it as a D7th by doing the 2nd fret thumb wrap (F#) on low E string, skip fingering the high E string at the 2nd fret and just leave that high E open, and then G string 2nd fret and B string on 1st fret (C) which you can hammer and pull off for a down and dirty blues sound. This would be for a song like walkin blues in key of A. I learned that from John Jackson, he called it "Delta D".

I found this DVD set from Ernie Hawkins and it is listed as Beginner-intermediate, so I am thinking this might be toned down and a good DVD for learning Gary Davis. I have not heard it, but Ernie is such a great teacher and he knows Gary Davis really well.

https://www.melbay.com/Products/GW97...ary-davis.aspx

[Deliberate1]

Great stuff, mcmars. Much obliged for it. I took fingerstyle lessons for about 8 months, with a focus on learning through tune playing. From the start, my teacher emphasized the F thumb-over. And so I have been using it a great deal, as it is a faster get than the barre chord for me. And I use it with Hesitation Blues as well.
I would say that I am accurate with it about 75% of the time. Often, I'll end up thumb wrapping too low, and will hit an F#. I also tend to wrap my palm under the neck, with the effect of constricting finger movement. But yesterday I discovered that if I pivot my hand slightly towards me, it frees up the fingers some.
I thank you for the alternative chord voicing, and for taking the time to respond. Lots of really good stuff in your posts.
David

[urbanfarmer]

Originally Posted by Deliberate1

I really want to learn this song. I am well less than a year into my fingerstyle journey, and recently disconnected from my teacher.

I got tabs for what is represented as Jorma's version. So I have watched several vids of him performing the tune. and I try to follow along with the tabs. The problem (for me, not for him) is that he plays it great evey time, but differently every time. So it is nigh impossible for me to drill down into a basic version of the tune, if there is such a thing. The tabs are helpful in providing the chords and "notes." But, often I just cannot figure out the rhythm. I have watched a few lessons, but everyone plays it differently, so they are interesting, but of limited help.

I have also listened many times to the Rev do it, and his version (the original) bears little resemblance tp the tabs I am looking at.This is the first time i have run into this issue. Usually, I can find a vid of a tune that is darn close, if not identical to the tabs (Ex: Van Ronk's Green. Green Rocky Road).

So, I am wondering if it is time to take the training wheels off and just spend more time with the changes rather than trying to learn a note by note version of the tune, as I have in the past. I have a decent musical imagination from decades as lead tenor in an 18 piece jazz band, and other ensembes where I improvise. I know what sounds good, even if I do not know why. So I can, within my limited skillset, riff over the chords to a certain extent. But, doing that takes me away from the original, or at least a faithful interpretaion of the orginal, like Jorma's. I do not want to create "variations" on Hesitation Blues. I want a faithful recreation.

I acknowledge that I may be biting off more than I can handle, something that I do to myself. Sometimes, it works out for the best. Sometimes it's crash and burn time. Where it ends up is where the mystery lives.

Appreciate any guidance, as always.
David

Hey,

Check out Toby Walker's Hot Tuna lessons--he has one on Hesitation Blues:

https://www.tobywalkerslessons.com/b...urbo-tuna.html

[Deliberate1]

OP here. Obliged for the link to Toby's vid.
David