Desert Rat Blues (Ragtime Ralph cover) by rhabarberkompott

What an amazing cover! And there's more, go to this youtube page now! 

Just in case you don't know who Ragtime Ralph is, go HERE. There is a lot of Ralph's music available on this blog, all authorized by Ralph. 

Blind Brand X and Dixie X Live at Groundswell Cafe

Ralph Johnston aka Blind Brand X

Vancouver, BC, Canada, April 13th, 2016


Peter Gunn variations

A little humor my dear Zilkov, always with a little humor / The internationally renowned Takoma Park, Maryland academy of Taoist tap dancing rag

Delta slider blues

Ghost train to Valhalla

The January 2015 american primitive guitar tour of Spokane, Portland and Seattle rag

The Fonotone waltz

Peavine blues

Has anybody seen my ghoul?

A tearful Stephen King carries the body of the recently deceased clayton peacock to a pet semetary just down the road

Rags don’t rattle rag

d/l

Hi all, here's a great set by Ralph Johnston from way back in 2016. Huge thanks to Alex for recording this show. I had the pleasure of meeting Alex and Ralph at the 1000 Incarnations of the Rose fest last year and I'm so glad. Great guys!!

The Interpretation of Blind Joe Death

Well here we are at the end of the week and it's Fahey's b-day and you get the gifts.  Hope you all liked the TAB book, quite hard to come by I believe.
And today I'm very fortunate to be able to make a few songs available for download.  Fahey songs by the faithful followers of the Takoma school of pickin' and grinin'.
I call it The Interpretation of BJD.  The following people contributed to this effort, please visit their sites and give them a listen.  The d/l link for this is at the bottom.

Jim Wilson plays fiddle and banjo with a southend-on-sea based band called The Lucky Strikes. Jim was more than happy to contribute an effort to the tribute, he lays down multiple instruments here on When the Catfish is in Bloom.


Pat O’Connell’s contribution is called America Medley.
Pat says: I decided to record a medley of tunes from my favorite Fahey album, America. One of the things I love about America is the consistent tone and mood throughout the entire work. It's almost as if it was all recorded in one sitting (maybe it was?) Like America the country, this album is a melting pot of influences from Country Blues to Classical to Appalachian Folk all tied together with one unified voice. The notes ring out with expansiveness reminiscent of the American landscape.
Fahey explores the classic open G tuning (DGDGBD) to the max on this album. I strung together all the pieces in this tuning and was surprised at how well they all seemed to complement one another, despite their different origins and time signatures.
Starting with the Classical-influenced "Dvorak".
Then into the spiritual blues "Jesus is a Dying Bedmaker" (yes that's spelled Bedmaker. Who better to make a pallet than Christ himself?)
Then into "Special Rider Blues".
Then into "Finale".
Then "Amazing Grace".
And finally, the upbeat "Song #3", which ends with the final chord from "Special Rider" (had to sneak that in!)
I've never played these tunes as a medley before. This was something I came up with just for Fahey Week.

Ragtime Ralph did a great version of Poor Boy Long Ways From Home that I just had to put on here.  This is from The Backporch Drifters release.

J Scott Moore – That’s me. Here’s a version of Sunflower River Blues.

John Amidei’s myspace page is full of Fahey tunes that he very graciously sent to me for this tribute.
About John- I grew up in the mountains around Durango and Silverton, here in Colorado. In my early years I attended many Ute and Navajo Pow-Wows and dance events and love the music of the deserts- the music of winds and strings make me feel at home. I studied Music Composition and conducting in Denver at Metro State College but I settled on Bluegrass Music for my social music, African, Indian, and Indonesian music for inspiration, the intricate Fingerstylings of the Blues- (John Fahey and others) for my personal meditations and health.
I have been a professional Interior Space Designer for many years but recently threw my past away to experience my life in a completely new profession as an entrepreneur. I guess, after all, I work for the same reason that I play--To communicate, to learn more about myself and others, and to grow more involved with people and more in love with life every day.


Thanks to ALL who helped out this week! Hope you all enjoyed it.

So d/l this thing and give it a listen!
 

Ralph Johnston - Delta Slider Blues

Now seriously, who gets a song dedicated to their blog?...I do! Ha! It's really an honor to have Ralph do this song and name it Delta Slider Blues. So cool. The tuning is EBBEBD

Thanks Ralph!

Ralph Johnston - The Lost Rose of Kyrah... Guitar Tab

The tuning is EBBEBBb (6th to 1st)

A good fan has tabbed this out and sent it to me, enjoy.

Guitar Tab PDF

Guitar Tab GPX

     

Ragtime Ralph - Guitar Tabs

Today I've got a few more guitar tabs for y'all.  The mysterious (or maybe not so...) Paul sent these to me recently.  A small collection of Ragtime Ralph tabs.  Enjoy.


Texas Tomatoes

Late Train Blues

In Memory of Sam McGee

Ghost Rider Blues

         

Ralph Johnston - Poor Boy

A Poem & a Song by RC Johnston

The Screaming Turtle
                        by RC Johnston

I heard a turtle screaming
Inside its tarnished shell
Sounds of bombs and gunfire
From the bottom of a well
It did not sound like music
More like inner agony
Which, is itself, like music
Mixed with reality

I heard a turtle screaming
A most unearthly wail
Those sounds, they echoed in my ears
My heart and breath did fail
But yet, they were familiar
'Twas like I knew them too
The screaming of that turtle
Did chill me through and through

I heard a turtle screaming
Beneath the sunbaked ground
A quiet hillside bathed in warmth
With bronze plaques all around
Each grave held a spirit
That shared a tale or two
And, the screaming of that turtle
Was the soundtrack to that view

Composed on what would have been John's 74th birthday, February 28, 2013...

I visited John's grave the day after I played at Lightbar, in Portland, Oregon, September 19, 2013...I had Dix with me and I played "Death of the Clayton Peacock" while sitting at John's grave...Cheers!!! Ralph.

Ralph also recorded a new song this week. Inspired by his recollections of this visit he brings us "A Tearful Stephen King Carries the Body of the Late, Great Clayton Peacock To a Pet Sematary Just Down the Road" It's a cool lo-fi recording: to listen click HERE or to d/l it just right click and select 'save link as...'.

Ralph says the tuning is D-A-A-D-A-C
"I play it with my bone slide on my little finger, but it can also be played lapstyle, as I fret no notes with my fingers..."
   

An Evening of American Primitive Guitar featuring Glenn Jones, RC Johnston, and Ryan Leaf

The Bing

This excellent poster will be for sale at the shows.

And yet another Evening of American Primitive Guitar!!!!!

Friday, January 16th, 8.00 PM

EmptySea Studios, Seattle's Home for Acoustic Music

Glenn Jones

RC Johnston

Ryan Leaf

   Portland show TBA!

Aloha, Mahalo - RC Johnston

Aloha my friends. It's time for another release from RC Johnston. This is a live recording of Ralph from 2012 in Vancouver. Ralph had recently returned from a trip to Hawaii and was keen to play all his recent slack key style songs. This music was originally released over at Ryan Leaf's site along with some other performances that took place that night.  I recommend you check them out. The wave files for Ralph's show are there too if you would rather have those than the MP3s offered here.

Ralph offers up a healthy helping of Hawaiian style songs, almost all original and gives you a little background for each one. It's like sitting at the show yourself!

We're talking two sets, 15 songs and a whole lotta entertainment all for the usual low price imposed by Ralph. Nothing. Nada, zip.

All you gotta do is sit back and enjoy.  Oh, and you might want to let Ralph know you enjoyed the music.

Mahalo!!

Download it HERE
   

The Surfdusters - Save the Waves

     
Any regular reader of this blog will know that Ragtime Ralph is a staple here at the Delta-Slider.  Posting his fingerpickin' goodies for all to hear has been a pleasure for me.  Ralph loves sharing his music.  Ralph also has a very diverse taste in music and in his playing history.  Surf music for instance, is a part of his musical history.
So I thought I would post a little of it here.  This is a great collection, here's the blurb from CDBABY:

The Surfdusters, Canada's primo west coast surf band, presents their CD 'Save The Waves' on Fireball 008. What you get here is reverbed up Fender guitars, drivin' Farfisa organ and piano, rumblin' bass, crashin' drums with grindin' sax added to the mix on 27 rockin' instrumentals written by the band - including all 11 tunes featured in the world's #1 cartoon 'Spongebob Squarepants'. Liner notes give you the story behind these tunes from The Surfdusters 'Raincoast Rumble' and 'Surf After Dark' CDs; out of print vinyl, cassette and compilation CDs, and unreleased cuts.
During the 1990s and into the 21st century, Vancouver, B.C.'s The Surfdusters played the west coast of North America - including sharing the stage with legendary Dick Dale and The Ventures - and were the only Canadian band featured on Rhino's 'Surf Box' compilation with their signature 'Save The Waves' instro included on this CD.

Get a TWENTY SEVEN song collection from Amazon for only $8.99 on MP3
CDBABY has the CD for a good price, compared to Amazon, and you get all the liner notes mentioned above.
 

American Primitive Concert in Vancouver, BC

RC Johnston has organized an acoustic guitar concert at Cottage Bistro, 4470 Main Street, Vancouver, BC, 7-11 PM, Sunday, September 16th...featured guitarists: Ryan Leaf, Paul Schutz, Dibson T Hoffweiler and RC Johnston...(aka Ragtime Ralph).
I thought this a good time to introduce a few of these guys here on the blog.
If you've around here a bit you should be familiar with Ralph, if not click on the tab above for lots of Ralph info.

Ryan Leaf, by all accounts is a fine and talented guitarist, but I don't have too much to share with you.

 

Ryan has been working hard to get some recording done so I hope that goes well and we all get to hear some more from him soon. Till then head over to his site, These Paths We Tread where you will find some great content and if you look hard, even some his own playing!

Paul Schultz is from Portland OR. and he's been working on a bunch of stuff this spring and thought he'd share. He is actively seeking gigs in Portland and beyond, so if you know of anything please let him know!

 
Paul also organized a Fahey Tribute concert this year featuring Sean Smith and Ragtime Ralph.

Dibson T Hoffweiler has just released the following work and I for one find it to be just fantastic.  His version of Red Pony is excellent.  Check it out.

      Email or RSS feed not displaying?  Head on over to the blog for all the content.

RC Johnston - The Fahey Project

Greetings Delta-Slider readers.  I’m proud to say that today’s post is the official release of the new RC Johnston effort, The Fahey Project.  Ralph has decided to go with a digital release for his latest and Delta-Slider is the place to get it!  I’m thrilled!  But the same rules apply here as to all of Ralph’s generous releases: feel free to share this far and wide, he wants the music shared.

                        

So without further ado, here is Ralph to tell you all about it.

The Fahey Project:

Hiowdy, and welcome to "The Fahey Project", a dream of mine for over forty years.  If I had recorded "the project" back then, you would have heard poorly played approximations of John's compositions and covers, whereas today you are listening to adequately rendered interpretations, tempered of course by time and experience.

The song selection process was easy: play the stuff that most moves me, even if it takes several versions of a song for me to reach Valhalla.

Hearing John's music for the first time was a definite shock to my shriveled suburban nervous system, but the greatest shock of all was when I heard the orange label version of "Voice of the Turtle".  That edition featured "Bean Vine Blues” with Fahey and (?) on guitars and Joe Bussard and Fahey on vocals.  Along with "Night Train to Valhalla", "Bean Vine Blues" is my ultimate favorite Fahey cut.

Other favorites included are renditions of "Poor Boy", "Tell Her to Come Back Home", "John Henry" and "Farther Along" (John's "duet" with Laura Weber on Laura's PBS TV program "Guitar, Guitar" back in 1969-70).

John influenced my picking style in so many ways by introducing me to the licks of such greats as Charlie Patton, Sam McGee, Bukka White, Frank Hutchison, Weaver and Beasley and a multitude of lesser known but nonetheless great musicians.

I also learned the art of open tunings from John, and the tunings I use on this recording are a testament to that fact:

FADDAD: #s 1, 2, 6

DADDAD: #s 3, 5, 12, 13

DAD: #4

GGDGBD: #7

DGDGCD: #8

DGDGBD: #s 9, 10, 11

Fahey’s music buoyed my spirits as I reached out to explore other musical realms such as surf music, Savage Republic and Quonset’s ethno/industrial sand doomed journeys.

I think about Fahey every day.  He lauded me, he insulted me, but in the end it was all worth it.  John’s music has stood the test of time.  He is a modern classic: ignored by most, but beloved by the few.

My choice of guitars to play on these recordings was a no brainer: Dixie X appears on all cuts except “Night Train to Land O’ Lakes”.  On that song I played Gator X, a 3 stringed cigar box resonator built by Jim Mitchell of Land O’ Lakes, Florida.

Thanks to one and all for your support over the years.  Forty six minutes of music that took over forty years to see the light of day!

Cheers!  Ralph.

You can d/l this as 320-MP3
All artwork you see here, and a little more is included.

 

MP3-109MB

Please come on back and leave a comment about the music!

 Tracklist:

1. Pea Vine Apocalypse Then
2. Variations on John Henry Variations
3. Edgar Allan Poe Boy
4. Night Train to Land O’ Lakes
5. Blind Thomas’s Blues
6. Pea Vine Apocalypse Now
7. Night Train to Great Neck
8. On the Shady Side of the Desert
9. Takoma Two Step
10. The Wonderful Waltz I Heard on That Day
11. Jolly Joe’s Fonotone Blues #2
12. Tel Her to Go Back Home
13. I Love My Blind Joe Death Steam Engine Tattoo

           

Bob Hadley - "Raven," a review by Ragtime Ralph

After John Fahey and before Ragtime Ralph there was Bob Hadley, finger picker extraordinaire, high school classmate of Leo Kottke and now Vancouver, BC resident.

Hadley was second acoustic guitar instrumentalist to capture the eager ears of Vancouver guitar picker, RC Johnston.

“I first heard Bob’s “Raven” album on a local radio station back in 1973” says Johnston. “Wreck of the Last Steam Engine Train,” an out of control , thrill packed slide ride in open G tuning was my introduction to Hadley’s guitar artistry, and to me, Bob’s album is a classic that stands equally alongside William Ackerman’s first album “In Search of the Turtle’s Navel,” the Takoma guitar catalog and the many Kicking Mule releases.” Bob later joined the Kicking Mule artists’ roster, releasing “Raven” and releasing two other stellar albums over the years.

If you get the chance to hear “Raven” and Bob’s other albums, “Tunes From the Well” and “On the Trail of the Questing Beast,” you will experience another guitar great worthy of your consideration.

Bob Hadley has contributed songs to several guitar compilations in recent years...so I must ask…when will his next full length recording see the light of day?

Cheers! Ralph

Amazon

iTunes

A Hard Road to Travel: A Tribute to John Fahey

Mississippi Studios, Portland, OR
Tuesday, February 28, 2012 7:30pm

Solo guitar performances from
Tinh Mahoney
Rick Ruskin
RC Johnston
Sean Smith
plus others.
$13 advance, $15 day of show.


Located in North Portland's Historic Mississippi District: the acclaimed former neighborhood Baptist church turned recording studio turned music venue and home of the best burgers. The venue's three properties can also be rented for private events and recording sessions. Tickets to all Mississippi Studios shows are available at the main bar and online through Ticketbiscuit at: www.mississippistudios.com (there are NO service charges for tickets purchased in person at our bar box)
View event on facebook

WFMU's Annual Record Fair

WFMU's annual Record Fair approacheth once again; 200+ dealers and a wide variety of tables to shop at, collectables, cheapo records...Of special mention: a panel being presented on Sunday in the A/V lounge entitled "Your Past Comes Back To Haunt You", which will feature Joe Bussard, Claudio Guerrieri, Glenn Jones, Ragtime Ralph and Charlie Schmidt talking about the late great acoustic guitar legend John Fahey...

Podcast - Christmas Music & Jack Rose Tribute

In this first episode I play some tracks from the new Sean Smith Christmas release as well as tracks by Mike Fekete and Ragtime Ralph. The second part of the show is a tribute to Jack Rose where I play a wide variety of his music.

DOWNLOAD the show.

Show Notes

00:53 – Sean Smith – Christmas Time is Here, a Meditation from “Christmas”

03:14 – Mike Fekete – Silent Night, KAOS 89.3 Olympia WA broadcast

09:58 – Ragtime Ralph – White Christmas from “Vol. 4”

14:23 - Sean Smith – Christmas Morning (Improvisation I) from “Christmas”

15:32 - Sean Smith - Christmas Eve (Improvisation II) from “Christmas”

17:03 - Part Two – Jack Rose

18:20 – Jack Rose – Tex from BBC Maida Vale

31:55 - Jack Rose – Dark was the Night, Cold was the Ground from BBC Maida Vale

36:01 - Jack Rose – Kensington Blues from Peel Sessions

39:16 – Jack Rose – Buckdancer’s Choice from split 7” on Funeral Folk (same cut as Dr. Ragtime CDr)

41:40 – Jack Rose – How Green was my Valley from split 7” on Funeral Folk

43:53 – Jack Rose – Knoxville Blues from Dr. Ragtime CDr



Credits, etcetera…
Thanks to Tompkins Square, Mike Fekete and Ragtime Ralph for permission to play selected cuts.
Jack Rose cuts are bootlegs or out of print.
Thanks to James “Tapeleg” Gralian for the voice over introduction.
Into and outro bumper music by Ragtime Ralph
Produced by J Scott Moore

Thanks for listening.

Ragtime Ralph - Concert Ephemera & More

Today we have some very cool stuff sent to me by Ragtime Ralph.  This is a collection of ephemera that was recently discovered and returned to him.  Enjoy!

A painting/collage done by Ralph's youngest brother. 
Ralph on the moon playing an early 1930's Dobro purchased in San Francisco in the early 1980's

From the first(?) release of Ragtime Ralph Vol. 4

Original poster for the first time Ralph opened for Fahey.
The photo was taken by a friend of Ralph's, Malcolm Kurtin at a previous show.

Ralph played the La Quena a lot, nearly as often as the Soft Rock Cafe.

The photo on the Guitar Night poster was taken at the
Camp Alexandra Folk Festival in Crescent Beach BC,
just down the road from White Rock.

Ralph did a lot of shows with Tracy Moore.
They opened for Fahey a couple times in Seattle
where Ralph was also the MC of the show.

Ralph's dad did this sketch.  It was to be the cover of his first LP

but only 2 songs got released.

Released as Ralph Cameron Johnston was "Harbinger"
and "Half a Prayer Won't get You There."
Ralph had these pressed as a 7" 45 on his own River Records. 
They were pressed off center and he was so
devastated that he dumped them in a dumpster. 
But somehow copies got out as a friend of his found one way up
on Vancouver Island.

More Soft Rock Cafe!

Tracy Moore still lives in Seattle and still releases recordings.

  

More art by Ralph's dad.

An actual review in the local paper.

Yet more Soft Rock Cafe.

A fun night with the Backporch Drifters.

"Broken Hearts and Dirty Windows: The Songs of John Prine" - Guest Review by Ragtime Ralph

Well, I'm very happy to present to you a review by Ralph Johnston.  Better known as Ragtime Ralph and also as Blind Brand X here at Delta-Slider.  Ralph is a big fan of John Prine so I thought I would see if he was interested in doing a review of this tribute CD.  He was, so here it is!

There are certain musical artists in this world whose songs are so basic and vital and "tell it like is" that countless covers and variations of their themes will never dilute the hidden truth and beauty behind the song titles and lyrics...to my mind John Prine is my favorite example...his bittersweet tales of the human condition (tempered by ironic exasperation) have echoed in my mind for over thirty years.


This CD brought back many pleasant memories of John Prine and (the late, great) Steve Goodman at the Queen Elizabeth Theater in Vancouver, BC, Canada...a simple acoustic stage setup was all Prine needed to impress upon us his visions of life, love and the absurd little moments we all encounter.


It seems to me it would be meaningless to review each contributors versions of Prine's songs (although...I was broiling a rack of lamb during Lambchops version of "6 O' Clock News!") because each and every contributor has (to me anyways) nailed each song on the head and drove it appropriately home!


John Prine is a treasure trove of emotion, humor and truth in the cold, calculating, disappointing world we all live in...and this CD finds all the contributors in fine fettle!
   - Review by Ralph Johnston


Track List/Artist
1. Justin Vernon of Bon Iver - "Bruised Orange (Chain Of Sorrow)"
2. Conor Oberst And The Mystic Valley Band - "Wedding Day In Funeralville"
3. My Morning Jacket - "All The Best"
4. Josh Ritter - "Mexican Home"
5. Lambchop - "Six O'Clock News"
6. Justin Townes Earle - "Far From Me"
7. The Avett Brothers - "Spanish Pipedream"
8. Old Crow Medicine Show - "Angel From Montgomery"
9. Sara Watkins - "The Late John Garfield Blues"
10. Drive-By Truckers - "Daddy's Little Pumpkin"
11. Deer Tick featuring Liz Isenberg - "Unwed Fathers"
12. Those Darlins - "Let's Talk Dirty In Hawaiian"

More info

Quonset - Excursions in the Career of Ragtime Ralph

Ragtime Ralph recently sent me a recording of one of his other musical efforts.  Quonset was a bass/scrap metal percussion duo based on Savage Republic.


Here's what Ralph said about this recording. 

Quonset is my personal favorite of anything I've done: acoustic or electric...it's me on 3 string drone bass and Ed Frey on drums and scrap metal percussion...similar to very early Savage Republic...in fact we do a Savage Republic cover (Exodus)...performing rights graciously worked out with Savage Republics lawyer before release...and all it cost me were 6 copies of the CD!  I'm planning on re-releasing this CD (with extra cuts) on Empty Square at some point in the future.

So this obviously is not the kind of stuff I normally post but since Ralph's music has been prominent in this blog I think it is relevant to present his other work.  I think it is one of those things that remind me that all of us are very multi-faceted individuals and it is easy to form perceptions about artists when you know them for only one aspect of their artistry. 


I know there is a strong connection between the American Primitive audience and the experimental genres.  So many of you may find this interesting.  I hope so.  


Thanks again Ralph!


Download Quonset