Annotation:Briarpicker Brown

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BRIARPICKER BROWN. Old-Time, Breakdown. USA; Ky., Ohio. D Major. Standard or ADae tunings (fiddle). AABB. Presumably one picks briars as a consequence of hunting; either from oneself, or from any canines involved. It should be noted that 'briar' and 'briar-hopper' were a derogatory terms for whites from Kentucky and West Virginia (from the briar bushes found in Appalachian states) who came to look for work in the factories of Ohio. The melody is known as a Kentucky tune in modern times, largely due to an influential recording by fiddler Buddy Thomas (who died at age 39 in the mid-1970's). Thomas had the tune from an elderly Portsmouth, Ohio, fiddler named Morris Allen. The tune structurally resembles West Virginia fiddler Clark Kessinger's "Everyone to the Puncheon," and Allen was in fact a friend of Kessinger. Jeff Titon (2001) points out the low part of the tune is the same as that of the English country dance melody "Rose Tree (The)."

Additional notes

Source for notated version: - Norman Blake (Ga.) [Brody]; Bill Christopherson (Conn.) [Phillips]; Buddy Thomas (Emerson, Lewis County, Ky.), 1974 [Titon].

Printed sources : - Brody (Fiddler's Fakebook), 1983; p. 56. Phillips (Traditional American Fiddle Tunes, vol. 1), 1994; p. 36. Silberberg (Tunes I Leaned at Tractor Tavern), 2002; p. 16. Songer (Portland Collection), 1997; pg. 41. Titon (Old-Time Kentucky Fiddle Tunes), 2001; No. 16, p. 49.

Recorded sources: - Flying Fish FF 266, Malcolm Dalglish & Grey Larsen- "Thunderhead" (1982). Rounder 0032, Buddy Thomas (Northeastern Ky.) - "Kitty Puss - Old Time Fiddle Music From Kentucky" (1976). Rounder 0122, Norman Blake- "The Rising Fawn String Ensemble." Rounder 0172, Bob Carlin - "Where Did You Get That Hat?" (1982).

See also listing at:
Jane Keefer's Folk Music Index: An Index to Recorded Sources [1].