This is Blue Yodel #53, the same number of times that local bluegrass band The Remington Riders of Free Dirt, Texas, played their signature song, Remington Ride, at a wedding on November 19, 1995. It was band policy to play the tune whenever someone requested anything by ZZ Top. An insistent drunk egged them on thinking he was hearing his favorite band’s greatest hits. The Remington Riders broke up after the gig, but later re-formed as The Obnoxious Pull-Offs.
This week I thought I’d take a first crack at compiling a dictionary of bluegrass slang. That should tell you a lot about my social life.
I started making a list and then asked some friends if they had any contributions. (Okay, it was mostly Facebook, but I know if I were ever in trouble those people would like me.) If it wasn’t on the original list, I cite the person who sent it.
I’m sure this is just scratching the surface—and feel free to use Scratching the Surface as a title for a banjo tune. If you think of something you don’t see here, please contribute below. There are some I had not heard before; I especially like pork chop, sent by Charlie Sizemore.
If this goes well, I plan to start selling the dictionary door-to-door. A digital version will probably be easiest to carry.
A Dictionary of Bluegrass Slang
Being a Compendium of Select Words & Phrases Spoken & Overheard by People Gathered Together to Play & Listen to The Bluegrass Music.
Ain’t No Part of Nothin’ – (Mary Katherine Alden) Bill Monroe quote for describing something particularly bad. Triple-negative with a twist.
Arch-Top – (Ned Luberecki) A raised-head banjo. The kind of banjo Ralph plays.
B chord – (Megan Lynch) Referring to things as B chord means they are the best of their kind. “These Mallomars are B chord!” Said to have been coined by Terry Baucom.
Boom-Chick – Downstroke rhythm guitar style, alternating bass strings (boom) with off-beat quick strum (chick). Also, the first name every all-female band thinks up and discards – The Boom Chicks.
Boom-Chuck – See Boom-Chick.
Cheater – Capo (see Clamp).
Cheaters – Scruggs-Keith banjo tuners. See Risers, Twisters and Whiners.
Chunk-uh-a-la-foo – (Alan Munde) Verbal description of a G-run from Jimmy Martin. The last syllable “foo” lands on the final third-string open G of the run.
Chop – Off-beat rhythm usually played by the mandolin, fiddle, dobro, and/or guitar player.
Clamp – Capo (see Cheater).
Devil’s Box – A fiddle. Playing the instrument was thought to be sinful.
Diamonds –When the bass (or any instrument) rings for a certain number of whole beats. When bassist Irl Hees plays diamonds, you could say that diamonds are an Irl’s best friend.
Doghouse Bass – Acoustic bass.
Drive – The kind of bluegrass rhythm that great players have. You know it when you hear it. Also, what bluegrass bands do when not playing.
Drop Chord – (Ira Gitlin) meaning a flat-seven chord. “Little Maggie, that’s got the drop chord in it, don’t it?” See Off Chord.
Flat-Top – (Ned Luberecki) Dreadnought guitar or John Duffey’s hairstyle.
Gangnam Style – This entry fulfills the requirement that everything must include a reference to Gangnam Style.
Gear – (Tommy Goldsmith) Key that a song is played in. “What gear is this in?”
Good ‘Un – (Ned Luberecki) Any good song, or a reference to the tune Sally Goodin. See Minner-Dipper.
Herringbone – Any of the fancy-styled D-model Martin guitars. Also, suits occasionally worn by Del McCoury.
High Baritone – The baritone part moved up an octave and sung above the tenor. Also, the part some people claim to be singing when they’re actually singing unison with the lead.
Hook It – (Eric Bannister) The first time I heard it was at Bean Blossom several years ago when Dave Evans banjo player took off, Dave kept yelling “Hook it! Hook it, now!” See Mash.
Hound Dog – Resonator Guitar. See TIFKAD.
Jimmy Martin Ending – An abrupt, muted stop at the end of a song, as in Hit Parade of Love.
Kick-Off – To begin a song. A rare football term used in bluegrass.
Low Tenor – The tenor part moved down an octave and sung below the baritone. The part some people are actually singing when they think they’re singing baritone.
Mash – After 2005, to play fast with great drive. “Let’s mash.” Before 2005, an abbreviation for sour mash whiskey or a 70s tv show.
Minner-Dipper – (Ned Luberecki) I was never sure if Jimmy Martin used this for banjo or mando, but it’s a good’un either way. See Good ‘Un.
Off Chord – Any chord that’s not G, C, or D. Any minor chord. See Drop Chord.
Pork Chop – (Charlie Sizemore) All down-stroke boom-chick rhythm guitar style. This is a Jimmy Martinism. He’d say “Listen there at Melvin [Goins]: pork-chop, pork-chop, pork-chop . . .”
Potatoes – A shuffling fiddle kick-off that sets the tempo. Goes like: Nah-na-na-nah-na-na-nah-na-na-nah. See Taters.
Poverty Box – (Chris Rogers) Any of the bluegrass instruments. See Devil’s Box.
Quile – (Jon Weisberger) Harley Gabbard used to use the word quile, as in quile down – “I think I’ll go to the bus and quile down for a while.”
Rawhide – (Tommy Goldsmith) Exclamation said to indicate ending a tune as in the Monroe instrumental Rawhide.
Risers – Scruggs-Keith banjo tuners. See Cheaters, Twisters, and Whiners.
Spikes – (Ned Luberecki) Banjo 5th string capo made from small spikes usually at the 7th, 9th, and sometimes 10th frets. Sometimes referred to as Railroad Spikes.
Tater-Bug – (Ned Luberecki) Round-back mandolin. Heard from Mike Compton.
Taters – See Potatoes.
TIFKAD – The Instrument Formerly Known As the Dobro. See Hound Dog.
Turn-Around – A brief chord progression that introduces a song, or a repeated ending to a song.
Twisters – Scruggs-Keith banjo tuners. See Cheaters, Risers, and Whiners.
Whiners – (Jon Weisberger) Scruggs-Keith banjo tuners. See Cheaters, Risers and Twisters.
Wires – (Darcy Whiteside) Strings. “Gotta change my wires.”
Y’all Sounded Good Up There – A two-word expletive.
Yankee double-picking – (Ira Gitlin) Melodic banjo playing. Mike Munford heard this one at the Sandpiper, a Baltimore bar.
