ROCKY PALLET. AKA and see "Peas and Cornbread," "Possum and Taters," "Rocky Palace." Old-Time, Breakdown. USA; north Georgia, North Carolina. C Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABBA'A"BB (Phillips): AA'BB (Kaufman). The tune is sometimes played with a third strain, sometimes as a two-part tune. Most modern versions stem from the north Georgia band The Skillet Lickers’ 78 RPM record, recorded in Atlanta for Columbia records just before Halloween, on Oct. 19th, 1927. The Skillet Lickers also recorded the tune as part of their "Possum Hunt on Stump House Mountain", where "Rocky Pallet" is introduced as "Possum and Taters" ("Whoo," exclaims fiddler Gid Tanner, "do I love possum and taters!" as he leads the others on the hunt). The Skillet Lickers
“Rocky Palace” is north Georgia fiddler Earl Johnson’s [1] (1886-1965) somewhat distanced version of the tune, recorded in November, 1927, just a couple of weeks after the Skillet Lickers recorded their version. "Rocky Pallet" is similar to the "Billy in the Lowground (1)" family of tunes, and see also the related "Wild John" and "Rattlesnake Bit the Baby."
Additional notes
Source for notated version: - the Skillet Lickers (Ga.) and Manco Snead (N.C.) [Phillips].
Printed sources : - Kaufman (Beginning Old Time Fiddle), 1977; p. 70. Phillips (Traditional American Fiddle Tunes, vol. 1), 1994; p. 202.
Recorded sources: - Bee Balm 302, “The Corndrinkers.” Columbia 15516-D (78 RPM), The Skillet Lickers (1929). County 526, "The Skillet Lickers: Old Time Fiddle Tunes and Songs from North Georgia vol. 2" (1973. Reissue). Document CD DOCD 8059, "The Skillet Lickers, vol. 4." Document CD DOCD 8006, "Earl Johnson vol. 2 1927-1931" (1997. As "Rocky Palace"). Victor 40304 (78 RPM), Earl Johnson's Dixie Entertainers (Nov., 1927).
See also listing at:
Jane Keefer's Folk Music Index: An Index to Recorded Sources [2]
Hear the Skillet Licker's recording on youtube.com [3] and at Slippery Hill [4]
See John Lamancusa's standard notation transcription [5]
