The Amazing Jethro Burns, Mandolinist Extraordinaire

[Howard Emerson]

Originally Posted by Charmed Life Picks

I had completely forgotten myself. It's long, but when and if you have the time time, read that article I attached from MC. It's every single one of our current greatest mando players, and they all say the same thing -- the first time they heard Jethro's playing, he was so advanced they didn't even know what he was doing.

Also, if you don't know about these guys (I assume you probably do), the closest players you would want to listen to would be Django Reinhardt and Stephan Grappelli (sp?). They were about thirty years before Jethro, but are considered the first jazz guitar and fiddle players.

I love this stuff. Hope you do too.

sm

Django was only 10 years older than Jethro, but of course Django died at a very young age.

Here's Jethro, with Homer, and bassist Anita Carter backing up Chet Atkins in 1949. It demonstrates very clearly the grasp they all had on jazz, but Jethro is over the top already at the age of 29!



Enjoy!

Howard Emerson

[Fogducker]

Chet and Jethro were married to a set of twin sisters so they probably played more than a little bit together before.

Fog

[Charmed Life Picks]

Originally Posted by Fogducker

Chet and Jethro were married to a set of twin sisters so they probably played more than a little bit together before.

Fog

Fog, wow, I never knew that. No wonder they jammed together a lot.

sm

[815C]

Back in the late 1970's I was at a Leon Redbone concert in Dallas, TX at the Palladium. After the show I was talking to Leon's tuba player, Jonathan Dorn, at the bar. We hit it off and he asked if I'd like to meet Leon. "Sure!" I said.

He took me back to the green room and there sat Leon with a couple other guys. Jonathan introduced me, "this is Dave, he is studying jazz guitar just up the road at North Texas."

As he reached out to shake hands, Leon - in his deep slow drawl said, "Ooohh, you'll have to show me a couple of chords."

The Steve [Goodman] (who wrote City of New Orleans) shook hands and said, "Hey man, I'm Steve."

Then the last guy, an old guy, shook my hand and said, "Good to meet ya Dave, I'm Jethro." Then it clicked with me! "Are you Jethro Burns?" I asked. He smiled and answered "Well, everybody is somebody and that is who I am."

I hung out talking with them for about 20 minutes. In retrospect they were extremely kind to spend that time with a punk a 21 year old wanna be guitar player.

It was a night I'll never forget. It was so cool to cross paths with Jethro Burns in that setting.

[Br1ck]

I've had the pleasure of dining with the principal violinist of three or four major Symphonies. My wife hired them for an anual fundraiser and to do worshops for the youth symphony she managed. They were the nicest people. It was the second tier piano soloists that were a total PITA. The real deals were comfortable with who they were and had nothing to prove.

I saw Chet once at about ten feet, and when he launched into Yankee Doodle Dixie, my mind just blew up.

[Darby]

I discovered Jethro after seeing his name mentioned several times on Mandolin Cafe. Then I discovered what for me are his very best recordings:

Two CDs with Don Stiernberg (also a fabulous jazz mandolinist) backing Jethro up on guitar: Swing Low Sweet Mandolin in 1995 and Bye Bye Blues in 1997).
They are really fabulous.

Some of his simpler tunes are transcribed at the Mandozine site, and David Grisman's site had some of the more complicated ones written out on his site many years back.

[leew3]

Thanks for starting this great thread Scott. Jethro and others are among those that encourage me to conclude that no, I don't really play mandolin! It's clear that they're having such fun just doing what they do and to that we should all aspire.

[Charmed Life Picks]

Originally Posted by leew3

Thanks for starting this great thread Scott. Jethro and others are among those that encourage me to conclude that no, I don't really play mandolin! It's clear that they're having such fun just doing what they do and to that we should all aspire.

Lee, hi, thanks for adding to the convo.

Funny, when I read your comment the first thing that came to mind was something analogous but totally unrelated.

When the great golfer Jack Nichlaus first saw Tiger Woods as a young phenom doing things no one had ever done in golf, he said, "He plays a game with which I am unfamiliar." I am paraphrasing, but I believe I have the story correct.

So yeah, Jethro had it all -- and then some.

Thanks Again,
Scott

[Charmed Life Picks]

Originally Posted by 815C

Back in the late 1970's I was at a Leon Redbone concert in Dallas, TX at the Palladium. After the show I was talking to Leon's tuba player, Jonathan Dorn, at the bar. We hit it off and he asked if I'd like to meet Leon. "Sure!" I said.

He took me back to the green room and there sat Leon with a couple other guys. Jonathan introduced me, "this is Dave, he is studying jazz guitar just up the road at North Texas."

As he reached out to shake hands, Leon - in his deep slow drawl said, "Ooohh, you'll have to show me a couple of chords."

The Steve [Goodman] (who wrote City of New Orleans) shook hands and said, "Hey man, I'm Steve."

Then the last guy, an old guy, shook my hand and said, "Good to meet ya Dave, I'm Jethro." Then it clicked with me! "Are you Jethro Burns?" I asked. He smiled and answered "Well, everybody is somebody and that is who I am."

I hung out talking with them for about 20 minutes. In retrospect they were extremely kind to spend that time with a punk a 21 year old wanna be guitar player.

It was a night I'll never forget. It was so cool to cross paths with Jethro Burns in that setting.

815, such a great story. Thanks for sharing it.

Steve Goodman is my guitar god hero. I first saw him in concert more than 40 years ago and was immediately smitten. No one owned a stage better than Goodman. The consummate entertainer.

Take Care,
Scott Memmer