A New Backing Track For “Fergal O' Gara”

I enjoy playing this Irish reel “Fergal O' Gara” on the Double C tuning (gCGCD), which is what Dave Hum used to record the tune. The tune i  played with a hornpipe lilt on the 5-string banjo; capo 2nd fret, 5th string capo 7th fret, for key of D. The tune is also known as: “The Falcarragh,” “Faral O'Gara,” “Fearghal O'Hara” and “Hewletts.” I've made backing tracks at various speeds for both the keys of C and D for your preference. I also tabbed out the melody for you in the Double C tuning. Enjoy!

• Fergal O' Gara Tablature (.pdf)
• Fergal O' Gara Tablature (.tef, TablEdit)
• Fergal O'Gara (key of D, normal)
• Fergal O'Gara (key of D, slower)
• Fergal O'Gara (key of D, slow)
• Fergal O'Gara (key of D, woodshed)
• Fergal O'Gara (key of D, caveman)
• Fergal O'Gara (key of C, normal)
• Fergal O'Gara (key of C, slower)
• Fergal O'Gara (key of C, slow)
• Fergal O'Gara (key of C, woodshed)
• Fergal O'Gara (key of C, caveman)

I used MIDI for the drums, bass and piano parts. I used real audio loops for the tambourine and some of the percussive sounds.

Google Blogspot does not allow me to upload audio files, so I had to store them all on my SteelC6th.com website. If something were to happen to me, dying for example, my SteelC6th website would disappear after the next April (which is the month each year when I renew my annual hosting plan). All of these backing tracks would be gone forever! So, I strongly encourage you to download all my backing tracks to your own computer. You are more than welcome to share and even post my backing tracks on your own blog, website, social media, et cetera. I made them to share freely with everyone. No credit need be given. I just love music and want to be a blessing to other musicians. These are YOUR backing tracks! So enjoy them my friends.

Dave Hum (April 11, 1966 - November 14, 2012)

A New Backing Track For “Half Past Four”

This tune is called “Half Past Four,” an old time Ed Haley fiddle tune played on the 5-string

banjo (standard tuning - gDGBD); capo 2nd fret - 5th string capoed 7th fret, Key of A. I've a made backing track using Dave's YouTube recording as a template, in both the keys of A and G for your preference. Enjoy!

• Half Past Four (key of A, normal)
• Half Past Four (key of A, slower)
• Half Past Four (key of A, slow)
• Half Past Four (key of A, woodshed)
• Half Past Four (key of A, caveman)
• Half Past Four (key of G, normal)
• Half Past Four (key of G, slower)
• Half Past Four (key of G, slow)
• Half Past Four (key of G, woodshed)
• Half Past Four (key of G, caveman)

I used MIDI for the bass, drums and piano. I used real audio loops for the shaker, tambourine, cymbal and train beat rhythm. I use 'MixCraft Pro Studio' to make all my backing tracks.

I have been working hard making many new backing tracks. I have enough tracks made so far, that a new backing track is scheduled to upload every Friday until September 12th. There's some great new tracks coming, so please keep visiting my blog at least once a week to see what's new. I sincerely hope that you are enjoying these backing tracks, as much as I have enjoyed making them. Dave Hum is a tremendous inspiration to me musically. I love the guy!

Also, please make sure to download all of my backing tracks for safe keeping. You are welcome to freely share them elsewhere on the internet. No credit need be given. I plan to keep my blog going, but as Proverbs 27:1 says, we don't know what each day may bring forth. Eventually, as with all websites, this one will disappear too. These backing tracks are YOURS to do whatever you want with. So, please enjoy and share them with everyone.

Thank you for your continued interest in my banjo blog. God bless.

I had this cool T-shirt made on Amazon.com for under $20. You just upload any photo you want when you place your order and they'll make a T-shirt for you. Here's the above .png photo that I used if you want to get one made. You'd want a black shirt for this photo...

This .png photo also works very well on any color T-shirt. The edges are transparent....

A New Backing Track For “Jig Runrig”

Last week I made a backing track for Jig Runrig & Wee Todd, but I went back and made this backing track for just the song Jig Runrig, which is my favorite of the two tunes. This is a fun song to learn and play in standard tuning (gDGBD tuning - capo 2nd fret, 5th string capo 7th fret for keys D then A). I used Dave Hum's performance on YouTube as a template. This is a Scottish jig by Fergie MacDonald, played on the 5-string banjo with improvisations. I tabbed out the song “Jig Runrig” as Dave Hum played it. What a tremendous tune! Enjoy!

• Jig Runrig Tabs (.pdf tabs)
• Jig Runrig Tabs (TablEdit tabs)
• Jig Runrig (key of A, normal)
• Jig Runrig (key of A, slower)
• Jig Runrig (key of A, slow)
• Jig Runrig (key of A, woodshed)
• Jig Runrig (key of G, normal)
• Jig Runrig (key of G, slower)
• Jig Runrig (key of G, slow)
• Jig Runrig (key of G, woodshed)

I'm using MIDI bass, piano padding, piano chords, drums and sticks. I also used a real audio tambourine, cymbals, djembe, and then a kick drum (for the intro). I tried meticulously to recreate the extraordinary rhythm that Dave Hum did. Since he is using Reason software for his MIDI and then recording his audio files into Sonar, and I am using MixCraft, I simply don't have some of the sounds that he used. I tried Sonar but didn't like it. Plus, it costs $499, whereas MixCraft Studio Pro is only $149 (sometimes it's on sale for $99).

Dave Hum
(April 11, 1966 - November 14, 2012)

New Backing Track For “Jig Runrig” & “Wee Todd”

These are two Scottish jigs by Fergie MacDonald: “Jig Runrig” and “Wee Todd,” played on the 5-string banjo with improvisations. This is a tremendous song to learn and play in standard tuning (gDGBD tuning - capo 2nd fret, 5th string capo 7th fret for keys D then A). I used Dave Hum's performance on YouTube as a template. This was a tedious song for me to make, because of the complicated bass lines, jig rhythm and extensive piano parts. It took me about 12 hours over 3-days to complete the backing track. I also tabbed out the song “Jig Runrig” as Dave Hum played it. What tremendous tunes! Enjoy!

• Jig Runrig Tabs (.pdf tabs)
• Jig Runrig Tabs (TablEdit tabs)
• Jig Runrig & Wee Todd (Normal, Key of A)
• Jig Runrig & Wee Todd (Slower, Key of A)
• Jig Runrig & Wee Todd (Slow, Key of A)
• Jig Runrig & Wee Todd (Woodshed, Key of A)
• Jig Runrig & Wee Todd (Normal, Key of G)
• Jig Runrig & Wee Todd (Slower, Key of G)
• Jig Runrig & Wee Todd (Slow, Key of G)
• Jig Runrig & Wee Todd (Woodshed, Key of G)

I'm using MIDI bass, piano padding, piano chords, drums and sticks. I also used a real audio tambourine, cymbals, djembe, and then a kick drum (for the intro). I tried meticulously to recreate the extraordinary rhythm that Dave Hum did. Since he is using Reason software for his MIDI and then recording his audio files into Sonar, and I am using MixCraft, I simply don't have some of the sounds that he used. I tried Sonar but didn't like it. Plus, it costs $499, whereas MixCraft Studio Pro is only $149 (sometimes it's on sale for $99).

I love MixCraft because it is very user friendly. I have made all my Dave Hum style backing tracks using MixCraft. And once you purchase the program, it's yours for life. I have also purchased some percussive audio loop bundles (e.g., Drums On Demand) elsewhere online to use with MixCraft, which are invaluable. Even though I don't have the exact sounds that Dave Hum used, I always seem to find something that works well.

To be honest, I am not sure if Dave recorded his bass live or used MIDI. His bass playing has a texture in this song that I couldn't recreate. You can actually hear the bass strings being picked, a nice percussive sound which I couldn't recreate with MixCraft, or even by playing my bass. I am still learning. Albeit, I think the backing track overall came out very nice. Artists are always most critical of their own work, and that is certainly true of me too.

Dave is such an incredible inspiration to me. I have kept in touch online with his wife, Mel, for the past couple years and she is a very sweet lady. I cannot thank her enough for making Dave's backing tracks available to the banjo world. If you haven't purchased them yet, I highly recommend buying all of his backing tracks. They're pricey, about $12,50 a piece, but when you consider all the several hundreds (if not thousands) of hours of hard work that Dave invested in making the 115 tracts that are available, it's a super great deal.

Dave's wife told me recently that there hasn't been much interest in his backing tracts. That is so sad. I know the economy is hurting right now, but it's a matter of priorities. I thank God that I don't smoke tobacco, drink booze or gamble on lottery tickets (I don't condemn those who do). That is why I have the extra money to buy things like Dave's backing tracks. I bought all 115 of the backing tracts and cherish them! The thing that makes Dave's banjo playing shine and come alive are his driving backing tracks. That is why I strongly encourage you to buy some of them. If you just buy one pack each month, you'll have all 12-packs in a year. The available backing tracks are 100% authentic—the same exact tracks that Dave plays along with in his public performances as seen on YouTube.

Having said that, I know that some of you guys don't have the extra money to purchase $1,400 worth of Dave's backing tracks. So, I have continued in the spirit of Dave Hum, making my own backing tracks to play along with, and gladly share all of them freely in this blog for the love and joy of making music and playing the banjo. The banjo is a happy instrument.

I recorded myself in August of 2024 playing along with Dave's backing track for Mason's Apron, one of my favorite songs. I used a Deering Golden Era banjo for this recording. The banjo had a bad buzz on fret one, so I returned it and bought a Deering Golden Wreath instead, which sounds very nice. I slowed the track down a bit to accommodate my slower speed. This is such a fun song to play. You can hear that I am trying to emulate some of the cool things that Dave plays. I wrote this blog to teach you how to play the captivating run-up that Dave does in songs like Mason's Apron and Speed The Plough. There is a technique to everything that Dave plays on the banjo. If what you are playing doesn't sound like what he is playing, your technique is likely wrong. Technique is how something is done.

Here is another favorite fun song that I recorded, called: “Green Gates.” I'm using my Deering Calico banjo for this recording. I have three Deering banjos: Calico, Golden Wreath and a Goodtime Special with a tone ring. They are all uniquely different. For sustain, the Calico wins hands down, but for recording I like the Golden Wreath; and believe it or not, the Goodtime Special sounds great for recordings, weighs 3 pounds less and is one very nice quality banjo for $1,100. Here is my recording of “Green Gates” played on my Deering Goodtime Special.

Here is my recording of “My Grandfather's Clock” played on my Golden Wreath banjo. These are all Dave Hum's backing tracks. It's hard to sound bad when you're playing along with Dave's rhythm tracks. I've been learning new things from Don Reno. He likes to strum pick a lot, which you can hear me doing quite a bit in this song. Gotta love banjo pickers! Check out Jason Skinner's YouTube channel. In the same way that I love and humbly try to emulate Dave Hum's artistry, so also does Jason skinner love and try to emulate Don Reno's playing.

Here is an invaluable FREE banjo course by Jason Skinner teaching the Don Reno style of playing. The course is 31-pages long. If you download the .pdf file to your computer, the interactive audio links will all work. On my computer, there was a message at the top of the page when I opened it, which said for security reasons the links were blocked. Simply click on “Options” and specify to trust the document and then the links will all work, so that you can hear Jason play the tablature. I love this Don Reno course!

Psalms 150:3, “Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp.” God bless you friend and THANK YOU kindly for reading my banjo blog.

Dave Hum
(April 11, 1966 - November 14, 2012)

A New Backing Track For The “Eighth Of January”

This is a fun song to learn and play, called “Eighth Of January.” I used Dave Hum's YouTube video as a template to make my own backing track. I have made backing tracks in both keys of G and A for your preference. Enjoy!

• Eight Of January (normal speed - Key of G)
• Eight Of January (slower speed - Key of G)
• Eight Of January (slow speed - Key of G)
• Eight Of January (woodshed speed - Key of G)
• Eight Of January (normal speed - Key of A)
• Eight Of January (slower speed - Key of A)
• Eight Of January (slow speed - Key of A)
• Eight Of January (woodshed speed - Key of A)

I used a MIDI bass, piano and kick drum. I also played along with my Cajon Box to give the track a realistic feeling. I used a real audio tambourine.

Dave Hum (1966-2012)

New Backing Track For “I'm Using My Bible As A Roadmap”

I like this popular Bluegrass song, “I'm Using My Bible As A Roadmap.” Jason Skinner does a great job playing and, and he also made a helpful YouTube lesson explaining how to play Don Reno's rendition of the song. The song is done in the key of A, but I've made backing tracks in both keys of G and A for your preference. Enjoy!

• I'm Using My Bible As A Roadmap (key of G, faster)
• I'm Using My Bible As A Roadmap (key of G, normal)
• I'm Using My Bible As A Roadmap (key of G, slower)
• I'm Using My Bible As A Roadmap (key of A, faster)
• I'm Using My Bible As A Roadmap (key of A, normal)
• I'm Using My Bible As A Roadmap (key of A, slower)

I used a MIDI bass and piano. I played along with my Cort acoustic guitar and Eastman 505CCTV Mandolin. I used a real audio drum loop with a train type of beat that I think works well.

Dave Hum and The Huckleberries

An Improved Backing Track For “Gaspe Reel”

I wanted to redo the backing track for one of my favorite song, Gaspe Reel. I love this song that Dave Hum recorded in Double C tuning. My original backing tracks used an acoustic guitar and I played bass, but in these new tracks I decided to go with a MIDI bass instead. I added a MIDI organ, and some piano with orchestral strings for padding. I also added some crash cymbals and shakers. I am pleased with the improvements I've made to this backing track, and I humbly think you'll agree. I've made tracks in both the keys of C and D. Enjoy!

• Gaspe's Reel Tablature (TablEdit tabs)
• Gaspe Reel Tablature (.PDF tabs)
• Gaspe Reel (key of C, normal)
• Gaspe Reel (key of C, slower)
• Gaspe Reel (key of C, slow)
• Gaspe Reel (key of C, woodshed)
• Gaspe Reel (key of D, normal)
• Gaspe Reel (key of D, slower)
• Gaspe Reel (key of D, slow)
• Gaspe Reel (key of D, woodshed)

This is a beautiful song to learn and play.

Dave Hum (1966-2012)