Evening prayer blues

**luckylarue** · Apr-08-2007, 10:12am

Yes, Compton's version from Stomp starts in A, a nod to the original from D. Baily, then switches to Monroe's take in G. #What a great mando tune, maybe my favorite.
Here's my attempt from listening to Stomp: #

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9KKxGeiNcs

Can't seem to get the link up. #Not sure why it won't link.

Nevermind.

**Kbone** · Apr-08-2007, 10:49am

Originally Posted by (luckylarue @ April 08 2007, 11:12)

Yes, Compton's version from Stomp starts in A, a nod to the original from D. Baily, then switches to Monroe's take in G. #What a great mando tune, maybe my favorite.
Here's my attempt from listening to Stomp: #

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9KKxGeiNcs

Can't seem to get the link up. #Not sure why it won't link.

Nevermind.

Real nice playing and a great sounding mando - what is your mando BTW.

**GTison** · Apr-08-2007, 5:29pm

That live version from Vancouver is VERY different in the timing. I don't understand why the phrases start "late".
The Master Of Bluegrass (MOB) version does have some of this timing, but not as much as this Vancouver Version. I also have a live version on VHS from Bean Blossom. It doesn't have any "late" phrasing ( that I remember anyway). I don't know whether to think Monroe was just jumping time and playing by his own clock, or if that is the way he "interpreted" the tune from Deford Bailey. That kind of thing just adds to things mysterious about Monroe's style to me. I went to a Compton workshop once and tried to form up a question about some of these things but we never really got around to these kind of things. Everyone else was still working on pickgrip, downstrokes, chordforms, and the like. So I didn't get to ask really deeper questions such as this. And by Mike's comments at the workshop, I'm not sure he really knew either about some of these things. He may know from his study in Blues styles.

**luckylarue** · Apr-08-2007, 9:45pm

Keith - It's a Pomeroy built by Don Paine.

**Spruce** · Apr-08-2007, 10:26pm

'I don't understand why the phrases start "late".'

It's Bill...

"I also have a live version on VHS from Bean Blossom."

Is this a legit release, bootleg, or ??...
Tell me more...!

**Steve G** · Apr-09-2007, 11:37am

Same tune as "Montgomery Belle?"

**sgarrity** · Apr-09-2007, 3:18pm

Very similar to Montgomery Bell but MB is in C and EPB is in G. (I think)

**Peter Hackman** · Apr-10-2007, 5:13am

Carlini and Baldassari put EPB and Coltrane's Spiritual together in one
piece. Not sure where one ends and the other starts.

**AlanN** · Apr-10-2007, 5:43am

Montgomery Bell is a good Aubrey tune, he has the right feel for it. It's in a good book that builder Skip Kelley put out of some not-done-to-death tunes. Look for it.

I have a tape of Tim O. doing EPB at a workshop. The line-up is Tony Williamson, Compton, Butchie, Thile, Jimmy Gaudreau, Emory Lester (!), Jody Stecher (!) and Tim. They go down the line, each picking a tune. Tim says something like "Is this Say and Play Time?" Then he picks EPB, fast. He gets the quirky rhythm of this number effectively.

Butchie follows Thile and says "Never follow an animal act or a kid", which I think he stole from W.C. Fields.

**StevenS** · Aug-12-2010, 7:46pm

I'm resurrecting this thread on Evening Prayer Blues Hoping for a hint on where I can find Tabs.
Thanks,
Steve

**sgarrity** · Aug-12-2010, 8:22pm

www.mandozine.com

**Mandolin Mick** · Aug-13-2010, 2:12am

There's also a nice tab in Mel Bay's "Monroe Instrumentals".

**StevenS** · Aug-13-2010, 8:15am

Thank you Shaun and Mick!
Steve

**grassrootphilosopher** · Aug-13-2010, 8:24am

I´d also like to "have the recordings from this thread back". The links are broken or the files have been removed. Sad. I guess they were worth visiting.

**John Gardinsky** · Aug-14-2010, 1:47pm

plum crooked

**evanreilly** · Aug-14-2010, 8:47pm

Here is DeFord's version:

**grassrootphilosopher** · Aug-16-2010, 3:37am

Thank´s a lot for reloading DeFord.

**Rick Albertson** · Aug-16-2010, 8:22am

Thanks, Evan! Have been looking for his version for sometime.

Rick

**GTison** · Aug-16-2010, 12:19pm

Quotes from previous threads: "Mike, to some degree, (h)as reinvented Monroe."
"the Compton "Stomp" version will be the gold standard."

I think the gold standard should be Monroe's own version on Master of Bluegrass. It has a bit of "free interpretation" of time. Why should a cover of Monroe be the standard. I agree with what Richter said above that " Compton has reinvented Monroe" in that much of what common Monroe style pickers currently understand has been filtered through the mind of Mike Compton. No slam on Mike Compton because he does have one of the best understandings of Monroe. He is able to teach it well. But Mike Compton is not a carbon copy of Bill Monroe (I don't think he wants to be either). Mike Compton has a very distinctive style WITHIN the Monroe Style.
The tune itself "Evening Prayer Blues" on Master of Bluegrass is great. It has at least 3 mandolins playing including Jessie McRenolds. It has different interpretations of the melody and the call and response more and more at the tune goes on until the last return to the basic melody. Most other recorded versions are much more regular and predictable.
AND
Counting for that tune is different for sure. Try it. The 3/2 (3 beats per measure)works well for the A parts to my way of counting. But the B part seems more like 4/4 time to me.

**Spruce** · Aug-16-2010, 12:27pm

Originally Posted by GTison

Why should a cover of Monroe be the standard?

Using that logic, Monroe's cover of Deford's original tune should make Deford's the standard....

**Jim Nollman** · Aug-16-2010, 3:56pm

Spruce's version gets my vote. No kidding.

The BM arrangement of the old Deford tune, suggests to me that, at the time, Monroe could possibly have been listening to Louis Armstrong's Hot Five and Bix Beiderbecke, with some part of Gus Cannon thrown in. Spruce's version slows it down a bit to make a grand use of the obvious trad jazz voicings. I also love the Compton version.