The lesson tunes are recorded and laid out in the same way all of the tunes in my Jam Tunes books are done. Each tune has three tracks. The 1st track is melody with band @ 106 bpm. The 2nd track is no melody with band @ 106 bpm. The 3rd track is full band, 3 times through @ 170 bpm. Remember to practice your rhythm playing as well as the picking, you’re going to need it.
The tunes are in MP3 format, the text and music/tab is in PDF format and videos are either links to our YouTube channel or WMV. In order to read the PDFs, you will need to have Adobe Reader. The MP3s and WMVs are as small as I could make them without losing quality. Right click on each of the links for the MP3s, WMVs and PDFs, and download them to your computer.
The lessons are designed for intermediate players for both mandolin and guitar, and are intended for private/home study use. Of course, feel free to contact me with any questions you might have, Rick@runningdogsmusic.com, I will get back to you. Also be sure to visit our free samples page to download actual samples from Jam Tunes.
Several folks have asked, “Who played on the recordings”? Well, for better or worse it’s all me, one track at a time.
Big Sandy River
Since one of the most emailed questions I get is, “how do I improvise around a melody, once I understand the tune?” To help answer that question, what we’ve done is a version 1 and a version 2 of Big Sandy River. Version 1 is a straight forward, “here’s the melody” sort of arrangement. For version 2, I’m trying something I’ve never seen done before. There maybe a very good reason I’ve never seen it done, but we’re going to try it anyway. Version 2 is a fancier arrangement. The difference is I’ve color coded certain licks and phrases, to give you an idea of what licks can be swapped out with other licks. The blue licks on page one, will swap out with any of the other blue licks on page one, etc. The goal of course, is to get you to begin to see how licks and phrases can be used to create your own version and still have it sound like the tune, more or less.
I’ve taught these versions for about 3 weeks now, and everyone seems to get and like the whole “color” thing. A good friend of mine whose opinion I trust, really liked the idea of colored licks and said, “You’ve created Garanimals for bluegrass.” I’m hoping you get it as well.
This one has a lot of files and a lot of info. I’ve followed the same format that we have used for our previous lessons. You have a slow melody track, a slow rhythm track, and the faster jam track, for both versions 1 and 2. We also shot videos of me playing both versions slowly, along with a lesson video to walk you through this. Of course, all of this is for both guitar and mandolin.
This is a cool tune and was fun to put together. I hope you enjoy it and are able to get a good grip on improvising your arrangement.
Guitar Version 1
- Big Sandy River Guitar Version 1 PDF music/tab
- Big Sandy River Slow Guitar Version 1 MP3
- Big Sandy River Slow Rhythm MP3
- Big Sandy River Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through
- Big Sandy River Guitar Version 1 slow video on YouTube
Guitar Version 2
- Big Sandy River Guitar Version 2 pdf -music/tab
- Big Sandy River Slow Guitar Version 2 MP3
- Big Sandy River Slow Rhythm MP3
- Big Sandy River Version 2 Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through
- Big Sandy River Guitar Version 2 slow video on YouTube
- Big Sandy River Guitar Lesson WMV video lesson
Mandolin Version 1
- Big Sandy River Mandolin Version 1 PDF music/tab
- Big Sandy River Slow Mandolin Version 1 MP3
- Big Sandy River Slow Rhythm MP3
- Big Sandy River Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through
- Big Sandy River Mandolin Version 1 slow video on YouTube
- Big Sandy River Mandolin Lesson Version 1 WMV video lesson
Mandolin Version 2
- Big Sandy River Mandolin Version 2 PDF music/tab
- Big Sandy River Slow Mandolin Version 2 MP3
- Big Sandy River Slow Rhythm MP3
- Big Sandy River Version 2 Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through
- Big Sandy River Mandolin Version 2 slow video on YouTube
- Big Sandy River Mandolin Lesson Version 2 WMV video lesson
Blackberry Blossom
If you are unfamiliar with Blackberry Blossom, this lesson won’t make a lot of sense. This version should not be your introduction to this tune. Get a solid melody version under your belt before you tackle this one. There are so many good versions of this tune on the net, learn as many as you can. Then pick out the licks and phrases that sound the best to you and reassemble the tune. You now have your version of this, or any other tune.
Again, make sure you know the chords. I say this a lot, don’t I? Also practice going from melody to rhythm, rhythm to melody, etc., without stopping.
The lesson videos are 65+ megs. A high-speed connection is a must.
Guitar
- Blackberry Blossom.mp3 — Intro track from Jam Tunes
- Blackberry Blossom Sheet Music/Tab PDF
- Blackberry Blossom Slow Guitar Melody MP3
- Blackberry Blossom Slow Rhythm MP3
- Blackberry Blossom Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through
- Blackberry Blossom Slow Video on YouTube
- Blackberry Blossom Lesson Video.wmv
Mandolin
- Blackberry Blossom.mp3 — Intro track from Jam Tunes
- Blackberry Blossom Mandolin PDF music/tab
- Blackberry Blossom Slow Mandolin Melody MP3
- Blackberry Blossom Slow Rhythm MP3
- Blackberry Blossom Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through
- Blackberry Blossom Slow Video on YouTube
- Blackberry Blossom Lesson Video.wmv

The Gold Rush
This one is going to be relatively easy. It’s one of my favorites and was written by Mr. Bill Monroe. If you’re new to bluegrass, you’ll want to know a little about this man, visit the Bill Monroe Foundation and learn about the father of bluegrass.
Guitar Lesson
- Gold Rush Guitar Tab
- Gold Rush Guitar Discussion (in PDF)
- Gold Rush Slow Guitar MP3
- Gold Rush Slow Rhythm MP3
- Gold Rush Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through
- Gold Rush Guitar Slow Video on YouTube
Mandolin Lesson
- Gold Rush Mandolin Tab
- Gold Rush Mandolin Discussion (in PDF)
- Gold Rush Slow Mandolin MP3
- Gold Rush Slow Rhythm MP3
- Gold Rush Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through
- Gold Rush Mandolin Slow Video on YouTube
Dixie Hoedown
Guitar Lesson
- Guitar Melody Tab pdf
- Guitar Harmony Tab pdf
- Guitar Variation Tab pdf
- Guitar Lesson Discussion pdf
- Dixie Hoedown Melody Slow Guitar MP3
- Dixie Hoedown Harmony Slow Guitar MP3
- Dixie Hoedown Guitar Duet Slow MP3
- Dixie Hoedown Guitar Variation Slow MP3
- Dixie Hoedown Guitar Duet Jam Fast MP3 (3 times through, melody/harmony, melody, harmony)
- Dixie Hoedown Slow Rhythm MP3
- Dixie Hoedown Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through
Mandolin Lesson
- Mandolin Melody Tab pdf
- Mandolin Harmony Tab pdf
- Mandolin Variation Tab pdf
- Mandolin Lesson Discussion pdf
- Dixie Hoedown Melody Slow Mandolin MP3
- Dixie Hoedown Harmony Slow Mandolin MP3
- Dixie Hoedown Mandolin Duet Slow MP3
- Dixie Hoedown Mandolin Variation Slow MP3
- Dixie Hoedown Mandolin Duet Jam Fast MP3 (3 times through, melody/harmony, melody, harmony)
- Dixie Hoedown Slow Rhythm MP3
- Dixie Hoedown Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through

Lonesome Fiddle Blues
Guitar Lesson
- Guitar Music/Tab pdf
- Guitar Lesson Discussion pdf
- Lonesome Fiddle Blues Guitar MP3
- Lonesome Fiddle Blues Slow Rhythm MP3
- Lonesome Fiddle Blues Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through
Mandolin Lesson
- Lonesome Fiddle Blues Mandolin Tab
- Lonesome Fiddle Blues Mandolin Discussion (in PDF)
- Lonesome Fiddle Blues Slow Mandolin MP3
- Lonesome Fiddle Blues Slow Rhythm MP3
- Lonesome Fiddle Blues Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through
Interstate Rag
Guitar Lesson
- Guitar Music/Tab pdf
- Guitar Lesson Discussion pdf
- Interstate Rag Guitar MP3
- Interstate Rag Slow Rhythm MP3
- Interstate Rag Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through
Mandolin Lesson
- Mandolin Music/Tab pdf
- Mandolin Lesson Discussion pdf
- Interstate Rag Mandolin MP3
- Interstate Rag Slow Rhythm MP3
- Interstate Rag Fast Jam MP3, 3 times through
Deck The Halls
Guitar Lesson
- Deck the Halls Guitar Basic Tab.pdf — Simple traditional melody
- Basic Traditional Melody with Even Feel
- Rhythm Only with Even Feel
- Deck the Halls Grass Tab.pdf — Bluegrass version
- Bluegrass Version with Swing Feel
- Rhythm Only with Swing Feel
- Full Band, three times through, with Swing Feel
- Deck the Halls Guitar.wmv — Video of slow grass version
Mandolin Lesson
- Deck the Halls Mandolin Basic Tab.pdf — Simple traditional melody
- Basic Traditional Melody with Even Feel
- Rhythm Only with Even Feel
- Deck the Halls Grass Tab.pdf — Bluegrass version
- Bluegrass Version with Swing Feel
- Rhythm Only with Swing Feel
- Full Band, three times through, with Swing Feel
- Deck the Halls mandolin.wmv — Video of slow grass version
It Came Upon a Midnight Clear
Guitar Lesson
- It Came Upon a Midnight Clear Guitar Tab.pdf Simple traditional melody
- Melody with Band
- Rhythm Only
- It Came Upon a Midnight Clear Guitar Solo Tab.pdf — Chord melody
- Guitar Solo
- It Came Upon a Midnight Clear Solo Guitar.wmv -Solo version lesson video
Mandolin Lesson