Shady Grove (song)

"Shady Grove" is an 18th-century folk song popular in the United States. It is a standard in the repertoires of folk, Celtic and bluegrass musicians. In most traditional versions, the melody is in the dorian mode such as the version in A dorian below;[1] however, Bill Monroe's and some subsequent bluegrass versions use a major-key variation.

Many verses exist, most of them describing the speaker's love for a woman called Shady Grove. There are also various choruses, which refer to the speaker traveling somewhere (to Harlan, to a place called Shady Grove, or simply "away"). Some have said there have been over 300 stanzas written and added as variations. One of the most recognized cover versions belongs to Charlene Darling and the Darling boys on an episode of The Andy Griffith Show (Divorce, Mountain Style (1964)), portrayed by Maggie Peterson and The Dillards.

The melody is similar to, and possibly based on, that of an old English ballad, "Matty Groves".

Score

<< \new ChordNames \chordmode { \set chordChanges = ##t a4:m a4:m |%1 g4 g4 |%2 a4:m a4:m |%3 a4:m a4:m |%4 a4:m a4:m |%5 g4 g4 |%6 a4:m g4 |%7 a4:m a4:m |%8 } \new Staff \relative c''{ \key a \dorian \time 2/4 \repeat volta 2 { %start repeat a8 a16 a a8 a16 a |%1 b8 a g4 |%2 a8 a16 a c8 d |%3 e4 e4 |%4 g8. g16 e8 e |%5 d8 b16 a g4 |%6 a8 b8 d8 b8 |%7 a4 a4 |%8 } %end repeat } >>

[2] [3]

Recordings

Well over 100 artists have recorded this song, notably:

In popular culture

References

  1. ↑ "List of Common Tunes for Fiddle Hell". Retrieved 3 February 2014.
  2. ↑ "mudcat.org lyrics: SHADY GROVE (E minor)". Retrieved 3 February 2014.
  3. ↑ George, Vincent. "Shady Grove Chords". Folk & Bluegrass Chord Book. Retrieved 3 February 2014.
  4. ↑ "Take This Hammer Music".

External links