Clifton Hicks

Easy Hand Stretch & Exercise

In response to all the hand injuries some of us have suffered over the years, here are two simple and beneficial exercises I learned years ago and swear by to this day. One of these I learned from a professional classical guitar player and the other from an old yoga instructor (who happened to be my mom!).

Three Questions from Curtis!

 Curtis asks three great questions about playing fretted vs. fretless, how and when to use "embellishments" in your playing style and how to decide which style to use for a given song (i.e. thumb-lead vs. up-picking vs. overhand). 

Basic Two-Finger Picking

Let's break down the basics of two-finger "thumb lead" banjo picking. This is the easiest, most intuitive way to play the five string banjo (best approach for beginners).

Easy Song List

Will Coppage suggested that we compile "a list of more singable tunes." Here's a few that should be (when tuned a half or whole step lower than standard pitch) relatively easy for most male voices. 

I have mentioned in another video that standard G tuning is a bit too high for me to comfortably sing and that I normally tune somewhat lower than standard pitch. The sound of the strings in rel...

"Pretty Polly" Lesson 1

Introduction to playing "Pretty Polly" in gDGCD. In this video I'll break down how to play the basic bones of this great early banjo song.

PS having a copy of Gibson's album "Last Possum Up the Tree" will help: https://juneappalrecordings.bandcamp.com/album/last-possum-up-the-tree 2018-02-22 03:01:27 +0000 UTC View Post

Old Banjos: Where to Buy & How Much to Spend

Further discussion of Tim's question about where to find quality antique banjos. We'll touch on guitar shows, repair shops and a few other places to start looking for a good vintage instrument.

Questions from Milwaukee & Tim

Milwaukee asks about head tension and "tap tuning" and Tim wants to know about what to look for in an antique banjo. We will definitely have to discuss antique banjo shopping in more detail and hopefully some of our more knowledgeable members will contribute their own advice on this subject.

"Pretty Polly" Performance & Full Lyrics

Tuning is one full step below gDGCD, two-finger, thumb-lead playing style. George R. Gibson recorded this song (track #20 "Last Possum Up the Tree" 1999 June Appal Recordings) on a six-string guitar banjo tuned to DADGAD. Gibson uses his own folk-derived, three-finger picking style when playing this piece on the six-string.

I play the song using a relatively simple two-finger, thumb-lead picking...

George R. Gibson on Banjo History

(from a current discussion at https://www.banjohangout.org/topic/338798/)

'My family farm is in east Kentucky. Gas well fracking and coal mining  have destroyed 80% or more of the water table in the area; my neighbors  serve visitors with water in plastic bottles. Although the EPA only  recently de...

"LIttle Birdie" Slowed Down & Up Close

Here's a quick close-in shot of the hands playing "Little Birdie" eCGAD, relative tuning.

Open-String Pull-Offs in "Little Birdie"

In this video we'll take a look at how I play "Little Birdie." The standard tuning for this classic song is eCGAD (my tuning here is dropped to dA#FGC).

I am using an up-picking technique that is slightly modified from what I would call standard up-picking which involves more emphasis on strumming the strings and almost no percussive "tapping" of the banjo head.

This less brushy/more percu...

Q&A from Keshava, Jeff & Ian

Over this morning's coffee let's answer a few questions from Keshava Zerr, Jeff Jackson and Ian Keane:

Keshava Zerr"Hey there. I’m loving all the uploads so far and am excited for whats to come. I’ve got several content suggestions but I imagine things just starting you probably have a good amount of ideas for top...

Two Questions from Brandon

A couple of great questions from Brandon about steel vs. nylon strings and when to "Capo Up!"

Announcing our 100th Patron! (and a great question from Adam Segar)

Today we surpassed our big goal of signing up 100 patrons! As promised, I've now invested in some badly needed new equipment; my hope is that we'll now be able to upload more and better videos and, hopefully, be able to accomplish a live broadcast/Q&A session.

After the announcement I'll answer a great question from Adam Segar about solo vs. group playing. 

Banjo Show & Tell!

We could not figure out how to make my Linux computer run a live stream on YouTube, so instead I recorded a new video for yall using questions that have already been posted here on our Patreon.com/cliftonhicks site. 

I hope this video is good enough to get us going in the right direction. In our next "not live" Q&A I will discuss how I set up these banjos (i.e. what type of strings, bri...

1st Live Stream Q&A with Clifton Hicks

1. Banjos & Set-Up?

2. Traditional Tunings & Tuning By Ear?

3. Up-Stroke & Up-Picking?

4. Two-Finger & Thumb-Lead?

"Morphine" Slowed Down & Up Close 2

Here's another view, this time of the left hand. Tuning is gDGBD, relative. 

Thanks everyone for your generous support! 

--Clifton

(filmed by Robyn Latham)

"Morphine" Slowed Down & Up Close

Here's a more detailed, hand-held camera view of Clifton playing "Morphine," slowed down and with some extra emphasis on those repetitive open-string pull-offs. Note that the right-hand style being used here is a straight overhand method. Tuning is fCFAC.

Most of us today in 2018 probably think of this style as "clawhammer," but a century ago (especially in Kentucky) this would most l...

Open String Pull-Off | Lesson

Over the years one of my most asked-about banjo techniques is what might  easily be called the "Knott County Lick" or "Knott County Roll."  Although probably once a more widespread technique, this sound was  preserved and passed down mostly through the prolific playing of George  R. Gibson of Knott County, Kentucky. Gibson learned the banjo in the  1940s by watching and li...

Announcing Exclusive Patreon Service

After years of performing, selling CDs and building my own banjos I now feel compelled to offer online music lessons via Patreon. My intention is to provide simple and authentic instructional videos, live Q&As, step-by-step tutorials and much more as the project progresses and adapts to meet the demands of my patrons. Member feedback/criticism will be vital to this undertaking.