Hi,

I've been asked to contribute some harp to Goodnight Irene in G. Two questions:

1. The tab by TinMan is very useful (first line needs a tweak though). Thank you. Is it possible to say which position it is in?
It seems to start and end on the 5 draw. I think this means that to play it in G I need a D harp. Am I correct?

2. One of the group has asked specifically that I learn the harp part from the Alex Harvey Band's version (its on YouTube). I can't make much sense of it. Second position? Can someone get me started please?

Thenks in advance
Paul

Did some research on the myquill site.

1. It seems to be in 12th position. So I will go with the D harp.

2. Still no further forward.

P

I just added
"Goodnight, Irene (Key of G)."
You'll need a G harp, or a high G harp, depending upon which octave you prefer.

Play a -2 on your C harp. That's what the G harp would sound like playing the -4 in the tab. (That note is G.) Playing the -4 from the tab with a high G harp would sound like playing the 6 on your C harp. They both sound good, but if you need to be heard over other instruments, the high G would be better.

Edit:
Oops... Never mind about that high G harp. You can play an octave higher on the regular G harp. I've edited the tab to show it in two octaves.

Here's a link to it:
[www.harptabs.com]



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/22/2015 11:38AM by gene.

Oh. I just read your question a little better.
I listened to it on You Tube. I could only hear the harp well enough to know that there does seem to be some harp somewhere in there. My guess would be that the harp is in 2nd position. (C harp, if that's performed in G.)

Many thanks for that.

Do you work in positions (I'm starting to get the hang of it)?

I've gone and learned TinMan's version now.
Still think it's in 12th position so a D harp for key of G

I think your version is in 1st position which means a G harp for key of G.

Please let me know if I am barking up the wrong tree.

I can't hear much in the Alex Harvey version - I will just try and improvise (not my strong point)in 2nd with a C harp.

Thanks again
Paul

I can't say what position TinMan's tab is in. The harp key is not specified. It's probably tabbed in first position, but in a key other than G.

Yes, mine is in first position. Whatever key you want to play the song in, you use that harp. The version I tabbed is in G, so I specified a G harp, but that doesn't mean you can't play it on another harp. If you want to play it in C (in first position), use a C harp; If you want to play it in G, use a G harp. You were asked to play it in G, so you need a G harp. (And yes...If you want to play a G song in second position, you'd use a C harp.)

What little I could hear in the Alex Harvey version sounded like comping in second position. To do that, you wouldn't need to sound exactly like that guy's playing. You can do it however you want to. Scroll past the part about soloing here:
Playing Accompaniment/Comping



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/24/2015 04:58AM by gene.