I HAVE READ and heard lots of comments over the years on the bad aspects of Tablature, but I have found tab to be very useful in conjunction with listening to recordings and picking at jams. When I started playing banjo, the mass of notes flying at me was wonderful, incredible and mysterious. Tab helped me see how pieces of the musical puzzle were put together. The Foggy Mountain Breakdown roll, the forward roll, the alternating thumb roll (in St. Earl's book) - helped me to begin to make sense of bluegrass banjo playing.

To the rolls I added slides and hammer-ons (hammers-on?) and pull-offs. Now it wascoming together. With this knowledge, I could listen to recordings and figure out the gist of what was being played. The mystery was gone, but not my awe of the way Earl, J.D., Bill Emerson, Butch Robbins, Don Reno and others put similar chunks togetherin different ways. I could begin to hear how innovators like Don Reno and Alan Shelton broke away from the mold. I could have not made this progress without rolls, licks and tab. Janet Davis' tab books enabled me to hear and understand what was going onwith back-up and up-the-neck phrases and licks. My capabilities now to dissect what I hear, put in my own licks, add Shelor, Baucom and Vestal licks to come up with my own version are due to the tabs, rolls and licks.

Tab books like those by Mr. Lawless of Acutab shorten the time it takes me to learn new ways of playing. To all this, I can add on Jazz phrases taught in Pat Clouds book. To summarise, if it weren't for tab, rolls and licks, I would have given up banjo in total frustration years ago. It worked for me.

Ronald Cohen, Golden, CO, USA. rcohen@Mines.edu

21st Sept 2000