Dueling Banjos - Rock & Pop songs featuring banjo

[WilliamS68311]

August 1973, now 51 years ago, “Travelin’ Prayer” was released as the third single off the album whose title song is little known or appreciated in pop music, “Piano Man.” In all seriousness, while dwarfed by the massively successful career-defining song by Billy Joel, “Travelin’ Prayer” is one of my favorite little-known Joel songs. It features perhaps his best honkey-tonk piano work, fantastic banjo, and even some killer mouth harp 🤣. The song provides the theme for today’s playlist, rock and pop songs featuring banjo. Yes banjo in rock. It continues the series of playlists of instruments in rock previously highlighting acoustic guitar intros, bass guitar, piano, keyboard, accordion, saxophone, flute, harmonica, and most recently mandolin.

Some rock and pop artists with songs on the list include The Beatles, The Who, Led Zeppelin, The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, The Hollies, Fleetwood Mac, Elton John, The Doobie Brothers, The Eagles, REM, Madonna, Matchbox Twenty, Dave Matthews Band, and Taylor Swift. Actor and comedian Steve Martin is featured solo as well as accompanying Edie Brickell of the New Bohemians fame.

So I did expand the genres of the playlist a bit beyond rock and pop, to include movie and TV themes, a just a touch of popular folk, country, and bluegrass. The TV themes of my mid-childhood with some great banjo that I watched usually with my cousins or grandparents, as they had cable TV and we didn’t, included The Beverley Hillbillies, Petticoat Junction, and Green Acres. Some movie themes with banjo include such disparate movies as Deliverance, Stroker Ace, and Rainbow Connection.

I hope that this music and my blog truly serve as a “revival: a new presentation of something old,” a springboard to return to the music of your youth, or perhaps to find artists you want to discover anew.  Rediscover the passion of music in your life. Live in the moment. Enjoy the moment. Love the moment. Listen to the MUSIC!

https://listentothemusicblog.com/dueling-banjos-rock-pop-songs-featuring-banjo/

[BeatleloverKT]

Great way to wake up today and see

Steve Martin, a long time fav of mine, on the

banjo with Kermit the frog!! Lots of great songs 

on there, many I never knew had the banjo in it.

You’re right, once you hear it, you can’t unhear it.

Kudos for including my fav Fab 4️⃣ song “All you

need is love” 🎶💜