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Whiskey Before Breakfast

by Alan Munde

This is from the newly released Great Picking Tunes for Banjo by Alan Munde, Mel Bay MB20595BCD. When arranging tunes commonly associated with the .ddle for the banjo, I sometimes listen to recordings and try to capture the exactness of the .ddle players view of the tune. To further capture the tune, I sometimes use standard musical notated transcriptions of a particular players take on a tune.

Other times as in this arrangement of Whiskey Before Breakfast, I listen and try to capture the essence of the tune without trying to replicate any particular players version. As a result, this is like no other's arrangement and in fact could be said to depart from the melody too much although as you listen to it I believe you will unmistakably recognize it for the tune that it is. Such is life in the folk process.

It is a tricky but playable and, I think, beautiful arrangement of a tricky and beautiful tune.

Click for an mp3.