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Lesson #17 – Freight Train Exercise

Smike — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 15:55:57 +0000

The Freight Train Exercise

This is another simple yet strong and beautiful melody. This time we’re playing in the key of C. The song was originally penned by Elizabeth Cotten when she was twelve years old around the year 1900, and has gone on to be recorded countless times by various artists. Elizabeth was a self taught guitarist who used a lot of unique open tunings. Being left handed she simply flipped the guitar over without restringing it. Her signature style became the alternating bass (also known as Cotton Bass). With the bass strings on the bottom she developed a method of playing where she used her thumb for the melody and her fingers to pick out the bass lines. Quite an incredible woman, I urge you to seek out some recordings of this American original. If you haven’t already, please read her biography here, and check out our Freight Train extravaganza here.

The Arrangement

This arrangement strays slightly from the original, we’ve used a few ‘Lenny Breau’ inspired chord and melody substitutions. In case you find these too difficult the standard chords have also been included where noted. In bar nine you have two choices to play the F note on the high E string; you can hit the note like you normally would by moving your index finger over, or you can continue to hold down the E major chord and quickly bar across the top strings with your index finger.

If you’re having trouble, try leaving out the hammer-ons and pull-offs until you get the hang of it. Try learning it both ways and see how much these subtle changes effect the general feel of the song.

A few notes on the substitutions:

1-Playing the melody this way gives it a nice ‘chimey’ effect, be sure to hold down the F (6th fret) until it moves down to the D (3rd Fret) to get the full effect.

2-Here we’ve substituted a D7 in place of the F. This helps to drive the ear back to the C, fills out the sound and the bass does a cool little walk-up.

3-Finally we replaced the C with a neat ragtime style G13. This allows the same melody to be played while opening up the chord and giving it more air.

Here’s the arrangment:

This is the simplified version:

Freight Train

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Elizabeth Cotten

Smike — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 22:04:52 +0000

Elizabeth Cotten
1895-1987

Elizabeth Cotten was born Elizabeth Nevills in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Born into a musical family, she began playing her brothers banjo at the age of eight, and soon moved on to the guitar. She taught herself how to play the instrument, but with no conventional knowledge of tunings or techniques she developed her own unique style known as ‘Cotton Style.’ She played the guitar left-handed, using her fingers to play alternating bass patterns and her thumb to pick out the melody. It’s basically Travis picking upside-down. She composed the timeless ‘Freight Train’ at age twelve when she saw a train pass her house, but it wasn’t recorded until 50 years later when she was working as a housekeeper for Pete Seeger who rediscovered her. She performed her first show at the age of 68.

“While working for a brief stint in a department store, Cotten helped a child wandering through the aisles find her mother. The child was Peggy Seeger, and the mother was Ruth Crawford Seeger of the Charles Seeger Family. Soon after this, Elizabeth again began working as a maid, caring for the Seeger’s children Mike, Pete, and Peggy. While working with the Seegers (a voraciously musical family) she remembered her own guitar playing from 40 years prior and picked up the instrument again to start from scratch.”(1)

During the later half of the 1950s, Mike Seeger began making bedroom reel to reel recordings of Cotten’s songs in her house. The culmination of these recordings would later go on the album Folksongs and Instrumentals with Guitar, which was released on Folkways Records. Since its release, her songs, especially her signature track, “Freight Train,” written when she was 11, have been covered by Peter, Paul, and Mary, Jerry Garcia, Bob Dylan, Matt Valentine, Laura Veirs, and Taj Mahal. Shortly afterwards, she began playing selected joint shows with Mike Seeger, the first of which was in 1960 at Swarthmore College. One of her songs, “Ain’t Got No Honey Baby Now,” was a Blind Boy Fuller song recorded under the title of “Lost Lover Blues” in 1940.”(2)

Click here to read our article Freight Train Derailed

Recommended Listening:

As with a lot of the musicians discussed here, its hard to identify any one album as ‘definitive,’ they all have something to offer, even if it’s alternate versions of songs you already know. Elizabeth Cotten’s case is no different, but to cut straight to the heart of her playing we feel these two albums cover everything you need. Completists need not worry, there is a plethora of material to collect.

Freight Train and Other North Carolina Folk Songs and Tunes

Recorded in her bedroom in 1957 by the Seeger’s, this album truly captures the spirit and feel of Elizabeth’s music and technique. A must have.

Shake Sugaree

This 26 track compilation of recordings from ’65-’66 contains 10 previously unreleased tracks and captures Elizabeth in her glory.

For Further Study:

The Guitar of Elizabeth Cotten

Sources:
(1)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Cotten
(2) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Cotten#Later_career_and_recordings

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Freight Train Derailed

Smike — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 16:15:30 +0000

Fingerstyle From Hell.

Five versions guaranteed to make you burn your guitar.

Elizabeth Cotton wrote the song Freight Train before she was 13 years old. She finally got around to recording it when she was in her 60’s and it became an instant sensation, launching the unsuspecting housekeeper to fame.

The song is still incredibly popular and has become a standard amongst fingerstyle guitarists. In fact, any picker worth their salt has an interpretation. It’s become the Stairway to Heaven of the acoustic guitar. People who should never even hold a guitar are now playing this song in public, its beautiful melody is slowly being beaten into the ground by overuse, twisted by abuse, and tortured by repetition. If you don’t believe us, type Freight Train into YouTube and grab some earplugs.

We feel its time to put this song back in its rightful place; either in the hands of an expert, or in the privacy of your own home.

That’s right, we’re taking it back.

For those of you who haven’t heard the original, here’s the lovely lady playing her composition.

Elizabeth Cotten:

(Take note of her unique playing style, aka: Cotten Picking, she holds the guitar upside down, plays the melody with her thumb and the bass with her fingers)

Next up is the Guitar Man himself, Chet Atkins. Stand back.

This is Twang-master Duane Eddy, here to distract you from what’s to come next with his rockabilly rendition.

Okay, take a seat and give your attention to the great Lenny Breau. Seriously, if you fancy yourself a guitar player you’ll need to sit down when hearing this for the first time.

This comes from the sadly OOP album The Legendary Lenny Brea…Now! A full transcription is available in Lenny Breau Fingerstyle Jazz.

Finally, former pupil of Lenny Breau and the inventor of the 17 string guitarp, Philip DeGruy. His version is a medley with I’ll See You In My Dreams. It owes a big tip of the hat not only to his former mentor, but also to whatever light bulb headed wino angels were perched on his shoulder while he was recording. If you’re already sitting down, you might want to lie on the floor. In the fetal position.

This comes from the mind bending Innuendo out the Other.

If you’ve gotten this far and still want to play the song, check back soon for a transcription and a new lesson based on it (we’ll even throw in a couple of Lenny’s tricks), as well as a full profiles on Elizabeth Cotten, Chet Aktins, Lenny Breau and Philip DeGruy.

For Further Listening:

Elizabeth Cotton

Freight Train and Other North Carolina Folk Songs and Tunes

The Essential Chet Atkins

Philip DeGruy – Innuendo Out the Other

Lenny Breau