Spent Money Blues Bar 55 ??

[crisp]

I have spent an enormous amount of time learning to play The Spent Money Blues - love the song, and lots of good licks that can be used anywhere. I actually play it with a pick on acoustic. I am now down to polishing off the last details playing along with your slow audio track.

But bar 55 is confusing the way it is written, and I don't think you are playing it as written: quarter note, eighth note, 2 quarter notes, 2 eighth notes and a triplet. Am I wrong?

 

[Paleo]

Counts as written?

1st quarter = 1 +
8th = uh
quarter = 2 +
quarter = uh 3
2 eights = + uh
triplet = 4 + uh

Not the "preferred" way to write this measure.

May be a software thing?

 

[crisp]

And not the way Griff plays it on the video - I believe

 

[Paleo]

How 'bout if it was written and counted like this:

1st quarter = 1 +
8th = uh
quarter = 2 +
8th = uh
quarter = 3 +
8th = uh
triplet = 4 + uh

And played like this:

1 uh 2 uh 3 uh 4 + uh

 

[mountain man]

If you look at the key signature you will see the song is written in 12/8 time. So the song is in triplet counting. 1 & a, 2 & a 3 & a 4 & a. I've been playing this song for a while now and I just play this measure the way I feel it in 4 triplet beats and not necessarily exactly how it's written. So I just counted it out and it's written correctly if you can play it as written. Coming off the nut to the ninth fret accurately takes a little time to get my dexterity correct so I play it as best as I can. The key here is in starting the counting the first 1/4 note "1 &", the 1/8 note "a" the 1/4 note "2 &" the next quarter note "a 3" the next two 1/8th notes "&" "a" followed with the triplet "4 & a". I play this song hybrid style using a pick and my middle in ring fingers. The hardest part of playing this song for me is remembering it and all of the changes. I can play it while looking at the music. I can't remember it without the music in front of me. Any tips?

 

[crisp]

Thank you for all your help. It is kind of staccato. The notes are

Listening to Griff's audio I don't think the 3rd hammer-on is played.

Yes, this song takes a while to remember, and it is easy to get off the beat with all the subtle details. But then again, you can just jam away on any shuffle blues if you get lost, and then return when the licks hit your mind. That is the beauty of it.

 

[mountain man]

A true staccato would have a dot on top (or below) of the written note. It might feel like a staccato because of the hammer-on but they are played for the full length of the count.

 

[Paleo]

He plays all the hammer-ons during the walk through, but you're right that he doesn't play the third one on the play-alongs.

If that's what you meant by he doesn't play it as written, that doesn't affect the count since the hammer-ons are grace notes.

I thought you meant he doesn't play the note values that are written.

 

[BrianWinslow]

I just posted on another thread a very similar comment. On the walk thru I definitely don’t think Griff plays it as written. But I’m still kind of on the newer side of things, been playing for 4 years... Bar 55 makes me stumble hard... I felt like maybe it was the second hammer on that wasn’t being played in the slow walk thru? Love the song and can’t wait to have it all committed to memory. I played the first 48 bars for a friend who has been playing for 20 plus years and he was blown away.

 

[JffKnt]

The hardest part of playing this song for me is remembering it and all of the changes. I can play it while looking at the music. I can't remember it without the music in front of me.

LMFAO...welcome to my world.