Many a-time a tune grabs me and I’ll listen over and over. Richmond, the TOTW, as played by Adam Hurt on his newest release “Fine Times At Our House” is one of those tunes. It has a cheerful melody with a delightful, brief tweak of the double tonic note. Here’s a sample of Adam’s version: clawhammered Richmond
Researching Richmond sent me sleuthing and led me to some other great players. In my query to Adam I was referred to Bruce Molsky who’d recorded Richmond on his great CD “Contented Must Be.” His liner notes referred me to Andy Cahan, a banjo player who has been around for a long while but who I’d not heard of before. Andy had learned it from Roscoe Parish (1897 – 1984) in Coal Creek, Virginia, whose recordings are included in the Milliner-Koken American Fiddle Tunes book. Andy and Alice Gerrard had collected tunes from Roscoe in Coal Creek, Virginia in the 80’s.
Roscoe didn’t remember the name of this tune so Andy and Alice called it Cuckoo’s Nest due to its similarities. You can hear Alice on fiddle with BHO’s own Gail Gillespie on youtube: Alice Gerrard and Gail Gillespie playing Roscoe Parish's "Cuckoo's Nest"
I was surprised at Roscoe’s Cuckoo’s Nest being the same basic tune as Adam’s and Bruce’s Richmond and have since researched both tunes to tie them together, and further, to understand why the version of Cuckoo’s Nest I learned years ago sounds so different.
Furthermore, Richmond as played by Bruce and Adam is totally different from another Richmond, the popular breakdown played in the Blue Ridge Mountains, which modulates from the key of D to A and uses no double tonic, myxolydian scale. Gail Gillespie shared with me a recording of her band playing this breakdown as “Old Richmond” and you can hear it played by Otis Burris on the Slippery Hill website, a tune also included in Milliner-Koken’s book: #904,a different Richmond.
Here is the TOTW Richmond: Bruce and the Bee Catchers playing Richmond (with Tashina and Tristan Clarridge). Played in A, like Cuckoo’s Nest, it uses the flatted 7th note to produce that ear-catching, pleasant Celtic feel. Only played briefly as a single G note in the 6th measure of the A part and 3rd and 6th measure of the B part, it adds appeal.
At this point of my research I came to realize that Cuckoo’s Nest has much variation. There are two settings in O’Neill’s Music of Ireland (1903) and O’Neill claims the song goes back a written source in 1723. They’re slightly different from others who you can listen to on the Slippery Hill website: #s 307, 488, 489, 752--Roscoe Parish, Ed Haley, Dan White fiddling Cuckoo's Nest .
The Cuckoo’s Nest that I’ve recorded on BHO (similar to the many other BHO versions) doesn’t equate to any of the above, but sounds more like Bill Northcut on the Slippery Hill website: #753, Bill Northcut fiddling "Cuckoo's Nest". It has a prominent double tonic, myxolydian sound and it’s been a revelation to me that it’s not the same Cuckoo’s Nest prevalent in American fiddling.
In learning about Richmond, or Cuckoo’s Nest, I also learned more about Roscoe Parish. Andy Cahan and Alice Gerrard spent much time with him between 1981 and 1984, hearing and recording a huge repertoire of tunes and songs, often with his sister Leone, too. Andy and Alice produced an album in 1986 called “The Old Time Way” plus an extensive booklet Roscoe’s life, as well as Luther Davis. This booklet is a hard-to-find treasure, and contains information about Roscoe and his family history. The Parish’s valued education and hard work. They played music at home and for dances and community events. Roscoe and his sister, Leone, continued playing as the years went by, living on the family farm all their lives. Roscoe taught in the local one-room schoolhouse for a year; Leone taught for 35 years. He and his brother worked on automobile engines for a living.
Here are some memorable quotes from the booklet The Old Time Way, The music and times of Luther Davis, Roscoe Parish, Leone Parish by Andy Cahan and Alice Gerrard (1986):
Leone: Roscoe was often sick as a child, and the doctor wouldn’t let him work….The doctor found out Roscoe could pick a little tune on the banjo, and he’d just rare back and say, “If I could do that I’d never work another lick.”
Roscoe: I didn’t feel like buying a banjo, so I made me one, and I had the satisfaction of knowing I made it. I got a cat skin or a groundhog skin, and put it on. It’s not a bit of trouble to dress the hide. You’d better soak the blood out with burnt water first, and hang him up, and let him hang about an hour every day…Doctor Cox said that music was better than medicine. If you get down with the blues, you’re sick all over before you know it. But if you play the fiddle or the banjo and you enjoy it, you never get blue. And it will rest you more than anything…. Dad used to know a lot of them Scotch-Irish tunes….Now them old songs—young people was playing ‘em when I was a boy and they’re still good. That’s what makes ‘em better—if they’ll stand the hard work of time, they’re alright….
Soon after producing the album, Andy taught the tune to Bruce. Later Claire Milliner and Walt Koken learned it from Bruce’s version and include it in their “Just Tunes” CD. Alice is keeping it alive by playing it at old-time music camps and workshops, and Adam Hurt has recently recorded it, too.
Bruce mentions in his liner notes that this tune was played in the Ozarks as “Richmond” and mentioned Fate Morrison may have played it, but I couldn’t find a recording or information. Bruce’s liner notes mention other related tunes that came from Scotland. I’d credit Bruce with re-naming what Roscoe learned as Cuckoo’s Nest, though Bruce has a few different rhythmic passages in the A part. As Bruce puts it, “Apparently I’ve mixed up a few of the notes of that tune with another version from Fate Morrison of Arkansas.” The B part has an extra half-measure.
The most magnificent recording of Richmond I found is of Bruce Molsky with the Berklee World Strings, also featuring Daryl Anger and Bryce Milano: Berklee School of Music playing Richmond
Here’s John Lamancusa’s link to Richmond in the Old Time Reels section, as played by Claire Milliner and Walt Koken: Claire Milliner and Walt Koken playing Richmond. You can also see the helpful notated version on John’s website: John Lamancusa's site with notation and midi file
BHO’s John Walkenbach learned it from the “Just Tunes” CD: J-Walk's Richmond video
Richmond’s story is one more example of how fiddle tunes change and evolve, both in melody and title. Here’s my version and tab. Thanks to Alice Gerrard who graciously shared the photos of Roscoe and Leone. Hope you enjoy and give it a try!