Listening Assignment #6 - The Ballad of Jed Clampett

This song is written by Paul Henning, sung by Jerry Scoggins, and accompanied by Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, two of the earliest men in American bluegrass history, (that is after we actually labeled it “bluegrass” from Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys).  It was recorded in 1962.  Obviously Flatt and Scruggs's fame wasn't limited to a short period of time.  I didn’t realize they were the ones playing the Ballad of Jed Clampett on the Beverly Hillbillies television show that I’ve watched so many times. 

This song has a simple ABAB 32-bar form.  It is easy to follow, which is nice after the last couple of songs I have listened to.  The only twist, though, is that even though it is in 4/4 time, they tack on a 2/4 measure to each section of the chorus.  So every A section is still 8 measures; but if we were counting in 4/4 time we would come up with 7 and a half.  Each B section is the same but much shorter.  The Bs alternate between 3 measures in length and 4, so we get a chorus in the following pieces:  A- instrumental (8 measures), B- instrumental (3), A- singing added (8), B- talking added (4).  The very last B is extended into 6 measures to fit all the talking into the song.  So I get a 2/4 measure of intro then 3 choruses of ABAB and a short, fading section of A for the ending of the song. 

Other than voice (alternating between singing and talking), instruments included are banjo, guitar keeping the rhythm, and a fiddle that talks back a couple of times.  I thought that the banjo made sounds like a chicken in the B sections and the guitar strumming the rhythm sounds like a train moving down the tracks.  There is no improvisation in this song, it just repeats the same tune over and over in a moderately fast pace.  There is no stop time or solos, and the rhythm is explicitly followed; I see no indication of a swing element.