The late John Hartford is best known as the writer of “Gentle on My Mind,” but he was also a master of the fiddle and banjo, and a prolific composer in the folk, country, and bluegrass idioms. It’s estimated that his original songs and fiddle tunes number in the thousands, many of them never recorded. Sharon Gilchrist was deeply involved in making Julia Belle: The John Hartford Fiddle Tune Project Volume 2, an album of 18 lovingly rendered interpretations of Hartford’s previously unrecorded music performed by an all-star ensemble. In this lesson, Sharon teaches “Spirit of the South,” a three-part tune in the key of G from that collection. Sharon shows you the A part in this video.
