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Topic: 'Grassers and the key of B |
Jerry Overstreet
From:
Louisville Ky
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Posted 18 May 2021 5:01 pm |
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I notice a lot of bluegrass vocalists use the key of B a lot. No question, just an observation.
I play dobro, but only out a half dozen times. I do have and use a capo as needed so I don't have any problems playing in this key. It just seems more prevalent in bluegrass bands.
As I said, a curiosity as I think I can count on one hand the country songs I ever played on pedal steel in that key. |
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D Schubert
From:
Columbia, MO, USA
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Posted 18 May 2021 8:32 pm
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Lots of male vocal trios in the bluegrass repertoire. Depending on the guys and how they're feeling at the moment the same song might be done in A one night, Bb the next, and B the night after that. Keeps the mandolin and fiddle player on their toes, too.
Last edited by D Schubert on 19 May 2021 12:57 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Ken Pippus
From:
Langford, BC, Canada
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Posted 18 May 2021 9:39 pm
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B is the highest and lonesomest you can get using G chord forms and a capo without running into the 5th string peg.
It’s certainly not because fiddles and mandolins love 5 sharps! |
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Clyde Mattocks
From:
Kinston, North Carolina, USA
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Posted 19 May 2021 8:42 am
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The key of B has its own unique aura. My perception is it is not cluttered with a lot of overtones. I couldn't imagine The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald working in another key. Bluegrassers, of which I am one, think of it as A on steroids. Quite a number of people associate certain keys with colors.
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LeGrande II, Nash. 112, Harlow Dobro |
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Doug Earnest
From:
Branson, MO USA
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Posted 19 May 2021 2:41 pm
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| It's because B is so close to where the universe vibrates. |
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Brooks Montgomery
From:
Idaho, USA
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Posted 19 May 2021 7:11 pm
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I guess that’s why Jerry Garcia played Sugaree in B. 😎
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A banjo, like a pet monkey, seems like a good idea at first. |
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Doug Taylor
From:
Shelbyville, Kentucky, USA
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Posted 19 May 2021 7:16 pm
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| As a long time bluegrass, most of the guys want to sing as high as they can. Bill Monroe sang high in the beginning and I think folks want to continue the tradition. B is the roughest key there is on upright bass, but that's where the singers want to sing! |
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