[Dixielandjazz] Playing melody washboards

[Steve barbone]

Russ Guarino <russg at redshift.com> wrote:
 
> It may seem unlikely, but I noticed that some drummers can solo in such a
> way that you can thread the melody through the solo.  True for washboards?

Certainly. Any accomplished washboarder like Bill Gunter possess a plethora
of washboards all tuned differently, from Contra Bass to Ultra Soprino.

Thus by stroking differently pitched boards at the appropriate melodic time,
he is able to easily play Dixieland melodies and even the more complex tunes
like "Lush Life". LL takes a bit of running around so he usually does only
one chorus. 

Kind of like a soloist hand bell player.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone

PS. I believe he is working on "Giant Steps" as we speak.