{"id":490,"date":"2016-01-09T09:48:29","date_gmt":"2016-01-09T15:48:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/simplymandolin.com\/?p=490"},"modified":"2023-01-30T22:12:10","modified_gmt":"2023-01-31T04:12:10","slug":"mississippi-sawyer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/simplymandolin.com\/flekd\/mississippi-sawyer\/","title":{"rendered":"Mississippi Sawyer"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n
\n
\"Picture
A Mississippi River Landing, Memphis, Tenn.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

What\u2019s in a name?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I always thought that the fiddle tune ‘Mississippi Sawyer’<\/strong> was inspired by Mark Twain’s great novel ‘Tom Sawyer’. Much to my surprise, I find out that may not be the case<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I found an article about this very tune from the Folk Life Center<\/strong> at the Library of Congress website<\/a>. That article suggests a different origin for the name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Newsletter<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n

The article explains how trees or logs will sometimes get stuck in the river bottom<\/strong>, with the other end bobbing just above, or just below, the surface. These hidden obstructions<\/strong> can be treacherous for river craft<\/strong>. Riverboat crews and other boatman on the Mississippi had to watch out for these hidden dangers, and called them \u2018Mississippi Sawyers’.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That may be the case, I don’t know.
But, if you look up ‘sawyer<\/strong>‘ in Wikipedia, it states that “a sawyer is an occupational term referring to someone who saws wood, or operates a sawmill<\/strong>“.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, the fiddle tune ‘Mississippi Sawyer<\/strong>‘ could have been inspired by someone who works in a sawmill<\/strong> along the Mississippi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That being said, at one time Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) was a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi River<\/strong>. So, he would be familiar with the term ‘Mississippi Sawyer’<\/strong>.
Who knows for sure!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Tune<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This tune is in the Key of D Major<\/strong>. Play the A-part twice, then the B-part two times. Listen to the recording several times to get the tune in your head. Then work at it slowly<\/strong>, line by line. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you’ve got it figured out, use a metronome<\/strong> to build speed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Listen to Mississippi Sawyer for mandolin:<\/p>\n\n\n\n