'Sally in the Garden' — Crockett's Kentucky Mountaineers' 1929 modal tune

'Sally in the Garden' — Crockett's Kentucky Mountaineers' 1929 modal tune

Chance McCoy traces 'Sally in the Garden' to the Crockett Family Mountaineers' 1929 Brunswick 78 (Brunswick 291), a West Virginia fiddling family that drove a Model T to California and became 'California's first country stars'. A minor modal oddity among breakdowns, related to the Ozark 'Hog-Eye Man' tunes and Marion Sumner's driving version.

• Connects to Cecil Sharp's Ozark 'Hog-Eye Man' collections • Modal minor tunes stand out in old-time dance repertoire • Source recordings: Brunswick 291 and Marion Sumner's field recording

(no tools tagged) modal fiddle tunes

This 100-year-old tune was originally recorded in 1929 by a historic family string band called Crockett’s Kentucky Mountaineers. In a twist of fate, they became known as “California’s first country-music stars,” despite their authentic Appalachian roots. • John Harvey Crockett (1877-1972) was born into a fiddling family in West Virginia. He traveled by horseback and buggy through the mountains, teaching shape-note singing, banjo, and fiddle. • Around 1918, Dad Crockett packed his family into a Model T Ford (top speed: 40 mph!) and drove 2,300 miles from Sharpsburg, KY, to Fowler, CA. He worked as an auto mechanic until show business finally lured him away in 1927. • Once settled, John’s sons began performing on local radio. Johnny, known as a “cowboy balladist,” convinced his brothers and …