Annotation:Little Betty Brown (1)
X:1 T:Little Betty Brown [1] N:From the playing of Clark Kessinger (1896-1975, N:Lincoln County, W.Va.) M:C| L:1/8 N:Kessinger is a very inventive fiddler and varies each part N:of the tune every time he repeats it. D:Brunswick 580 (78 RPM), The Kessinger Bros. (1929) D:https://www.slippery-hill.com/recording/little-betty-brown-0 Z:Transcribed by Andrew Kuntz K:D f-|f2 fg fede|fd e2 d3(e|f)afe dABc|d6 z(e| f2)a2f2de|fd e2 d4|egfe dA B2|1 A6z:|2A6 ([FA][GA]|| [A2A2])Ad Bcdf|ed[d2f2][d4f4]|egfe dABc|d6 (B/c/B)| A2 Ad Bcde|fde2 (d2[d2f2])|egfe dABd|1A6 [FA]-[GA]:|2A6z||
LITTLE BETTY BROWN [1]. American, Reel (cut time). USA, West Virginia, Texas. D Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AA'BB'. See also the related melody "Angeline the Baker." An old pop song recorded on a 78 RPM by Kanawha County, West Virginia, fiddler Clark Kessinger (1896–1975) and his nephew Luches, in New York, June, 1929. The recording was released in Canada on the Minerva label with the performers listed as "The Oldtimers". A distanced version of the tune (the first strains are cognate) was recorded by Bob Wills, Milton Brown, and other Texas swing bands (for which see "Little Betty Brown (2)"). "Hawk Got a Chicken" has some similar melodic material, particularly at the end phrases, as does the similarly titled "Cousin Sally Brown (2)."
