Chubby Dragon PDF Print E-mail

I was fortunate to know Ray Alden for many years. To learn from his recordings, play tunes with him and work on a few projects with him.

Toward the end of his life, he was very much in my thoughts. A week before the Lake Genero festival in Sept of 2009,  a tune came to me and I realized it was for him. What better name for it could there be than "Chubby Dragon"? Knowing that time was short and there was little I could do for him, I hoped that the tune would cheer him. At Genero, I gathered a handful of his friends and taught them the tune. Then we did a "field recording" of ourselves playing it. I then moved on to another camp and repeated the process.

by the end of the weekend we had 10 versions of the tune. Gil Sayre delivered and played the cd of those 10 versions during his last visit with Ray. I'm told that Ray appreciated the project. A group of us played it at Ray's memorial service.

 

Joel Wennerstrom and I have made a recording of it that we are proud to share and

to make freely available to his many friends in our community who might wish to learn it, play it and remember Ray:

CHUBBY DRAGON (mp3 for download)

 

Video of Joel playing Chubby Dragon at a concert performance by Hammer and String (Cleek Schrey, Joel Wennerstrom) with guest fiddler Tashina Clarridge sitting in for Rhys Jones during the Appalachian music weekend in Shepherdstown, West Virginia

 

To read more about Ray Alden's life and work:

Ray's Field Recorders Collective

Paul Brown's NPR obituary

 

Ray Alden Discography
Year Format Company Title Artists Comments
1974 LP Heritage Music from Round Peak Tommy Jarrell, Fred Cockerham, Verlin Clifton and Ronald Collins Fred Cockerham encouraged Ray to record with this group
1981 LP Heritage Visits Many bands and musicians spanning several generations; Ray plays on two cuts of the Young Musicians LP: first with his NYC based band: Ben Steel and His Bare Hands; the other with Pete Peterson and Dave Howard This Double LP featured The Young Musicians and The Old Timers; it was subsequently reissued and re-mastered as a double cassette by Ray and Larry McBride
1983 LP Heritage Young Fogies: double LP Many bands and musicians active at the time; Included Ray’s composition Visits with Ray playing with Al Tharpe and Bobby Patterson Recorded during Ray’s spring term sabbatical in 1984 (Now available as a CD on Rounder 0319
1987 Cassette Merimac Old Time Friends Ray playing with 34 other musicians Partnered with Larry McBride to produce this cassette
1992 Cassette Merimac The Kimble Family; Pine Knots School Rowdies With Dave Spilkia, Ivery and Doris Kimble, the latter two were children of Taylor Kimble
1992 Cassette Merimac The Round Peak Band With Mac Snow, Scotty East, Patsy East and Richard Bowman
2001 CD Chubby Dragon Productions mountairy.usa With Brad Leftwich, Bruce Molsky, Mac Snow, Scotty East, Meredith McIntosh Ray dedicated this CD to Earnest and Fannie East; in 1974 he had played with Earnest East and his Pine Ridge Boys
2005 CD Chubby Dragon Productions The Humdingers Ray played as a special guest on banjo with Brad Leftwich, Bob Herring, Linda Higgenbotham, Randy Marmouze, Dirk Powell
2006 CD 5-String Productions The Southern Schoolhouse Rascals With Gil Sayre, Ambrose Verdibello, Dave Howard, Pat Plankey Ray was thrilled to be a member of this working band which played at many venues, including library concerts in his home area
2009 CD Field Recorders' Collective Ray’s Dream Ray playing with many friends; A retrospective CD documenting Ray’s music, spanning time and place Produced by Bruce Molsky at Ray’s request; Ray asked that this CD be distributed at his memorial service