ABOUT JACK HATFIELD

Hi! I'm Jack Hatfield. Welcome to my banjo cyberstore. Hatfield Music is located in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee in the foothills of the beautiful Smoky Mountains. I have been picking banjo for over thirty-six years. As an upcoming banjoist I placed in several local and state banjo contests and in 1987 I was a finalist (top five) in the National Banjo Championship in Winfield, Kansas. I taught banjo, guitar, mandolin and fiddle for seventeen years full time before moving to Pigeon Forge to perform at venues such as Dollywood theme park, the Dixie Stampede and the East Tennessee convention circuit. I worked with internationally renowned mandolinist Red Rector and performed regularly with Lawrence Welk alumni Ava Gardner and Dick Dale at their show in Pigeon Forge. In addition to working conventions and corporate gigs with my band True Blue, I have recently played a 15 year solo gig at Duffey's restaurant in Gatlinburg every Saturday night and performed regularly at the Alabama Grill in Pigeon Forge. I recently performed in the feature-length movie The Work and the Glory and appeared on CMT Network series Outsider Inn starring Bobby Brown, Carney Wilson and Maureen McCormack. I also taped a show for the Travel Network, Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmerman, which will air in April 2009. We fed Andrew local delicacies: possum, coon and bear meat! Currently I am performing a strolling gig at Walden's Landing in Pigeon Forge on weekends. I have written several instruction books. Some are self-published and some are published by Mel Bay Publications, Inc.the largest publisher of stringed instrument instruction books in the world. I have been a columnist for Banjo Newsletter magazine since 1976. I wrote the Scruggs Corner column for five years, the Beginner's Corner column for seven years, and for the last twelve years I have been authoring a column called Systems and Concepts, which attempts to de-mystify music theory and present "big-picture" concepts relating to the five-string banjo. My newest book Backup Techniques on the Five-String Banjo - Bluegrass Banjo Method, Book Three will be available in January. I have been workshop director of the SPBGMA/Banjo Newsletter workshop in Nashville for twelve years. I was on the faculty of the very first banjo camp, the Tennessee Banjo Academy in 1988, and was bluegrass director of all three Maryland Banjo Academys for Banjo Newsletter before setting out on my own as a banjo camp director. My Smoky Mountain Banjo Academy is approaching its sixth year. My workshops and camps have featured top authors, teachers and recording artists such as J.D. Crowe, Sonny Osborne, Sammy Shelor, Alan Munde, Pete Wernick, Scott Vestal, Tom Adams, Eddie Adcock, Bill Keith, Doug Dillard, James McKinney, Larry McNeely, Charlie Cushman, Butch Robins, Bela Fleck, Richard Bailey,and dozens of others. Though Hatfield Music specializes primarily in bluegrass banjo instruction and supplies, we have branched out into books and accessories that other acoustic musicians will also find useful - items like strings, straps, electronic tuners, digital slowdown recorders and other goodies. Along with my eight hundred-plus tablature arrangements and the dozen or so instruction books I have authored, I have either invented and/or manufactured several unique items such as the Banjo Board, the Pick Pouch, Anti-Gravity strap, my patented Capo Caddy, and Raejusters (adjustable resonater screws invented by Jim Rae). These are items that can only be purchased from Hatfield Music. You will find most of the products a banjo player will ever need at very competitive prices. If you do not find what you want, give me a call and I will try to run it down for you.

2005 Smoky Mountain Banjo Academy	SPBGMA/BNL workshop with J.D. Crowe
Jack Hatfield Banjo Workshops Besides performing and selling banjo products, jack Hatfield teachs workshops and camps. He have taught banjo workshops all over the USA and the United Kingdom and Australia. Jack was on the staff of the very first banjo camp, the Tennessee Banjo Academy in 1988, and was Bluegrass Director for all three of Banjo Newsletter's Maryland Banjo Academys. He was banjo director of Chuck Stearman's Nashville Academy of Traditional Music at the Opryland Hotel. For twelve years Jack has been director of the BNL/SPBGMA workshop every February in Nashville which features top name performers such as , banjo craftsmen and setup specialists, and other Banjo Newsletter columnists. When Banjo Newsletter decided to curtail the Maryland Banjo Academy, Jack decided to take up where they left off. In April 2004 he directed his first three-day banjo camp, the Smoky Mountain Banjo Academy. The 2004 SMBA featured renowned artists like Doug Dillard, Larry McNeely, Butch Robins and Bill Keith, along with many professional teachers and authors. The first SMBA was a huge success so Jack decided to make it an annual event. The 2009 SMBA will be the sixth annual. SMBA and the BNL/SPBGMA workshop have featured great teachers and recording artists such as Tom Adams, Eddie and Martha Adcock, Dave Ball, Eddie Collins, Charlie Cushman, Gary Davis, Janet Davis, Wayne Erbsen, Bill Evans, Andy King, John Lawless, Dan Levenson, Randall Morton, Ken Perlman, James McKinney, Tom Nechville, Sammy Shelor, Rick Sampson, Curtis McPeake, Herb Trotman, J.D. Crowe, Sonny Osborne, Sammy Shelor, Alan Munde, Pete Wernick, Scott Vestal, Tom Adams, Eddie Adcock, and Bela Fleck.

Tour Smoky Mountain Banjo Academy:

Other Interests When Jack is not servicing customers, working on the website, making Banjo Boards, AntiGravity straps or Capo Caddies, teaching workshops, maintaining a rental house or performing, he is often playing volleyball or tennis. The Hatfield Music Gatlinburg recreation league volleyball team placed first in 2003, 2004, 2005 2006 and 2007 with an unprecedented 27-0 undefeated season in 2005. In tennis, Jack's partners and him were number one in Tennessee in NTRP 3.5 doubles and 3.5 mixed doubles in 2005 and in 2006 and 2007. He was number five in TN in 3.5 singles in 2005 and in 2006 and 2007. He has been to the state payoffs on seven different teams in the last three years and the 7.0 mixed doubles team he was on in 2006 won the state title. In Jack's first-ever expericence as captain, his 2007 Tri-Level team won the Knoxville city champoinship. In late 2007 he was bumbed up to 4.0 level, so he starts at the bottom of his division and will have to work his way up the rankings. In 2007 Jack was also elected to serve on the board of directors of the Greater Knoxville Tennis Association, the local arm of the USTA. In the fall of 2006 Jack founded a middle school tennis league in Sevier County, which now has all six Sevier County middle schools participating. This league has introduced over 200 kids to the sport. If you come to Pigeon Forge, bring your racquet and Jack may just close up shop for a couple of hours (!)
		Tennis and Volleyball trophies- 2005	Hatfield Music Volleyball team: 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007 Regular season Champions Gatlinburg, TN.

Jack "in costume" on Pillar of Light movie set	Jamming between takes with Pillar of Light Director Steve Smiley & cast member
Jack appeared in his second feature length movie recently, playing fiddle in a one minute scene, and the music was recorded live! (not from tracks like in the first movie!) The third in a series of Pillar of Lght movies is scheduled to be released sometime in 2006. Click to see movie website and other on-set photos and check to find out which theatres in your area willl be showing the film.recent TV appearances for Jack include Outsider Inn starring Bobby Brown, Maureen McKormic, and Carney Wilson on Country Music Television network, and Bizzare Foods with Andrew Zimmerman, to be aired on the Travel Network in April 2009. Andrew is served possum, racoon and bear meat while jack and friends play bluegrass music at the dinner party in a cabin in the Smoky Mountains..
	This is a still shot of the actual scene Jack shot in the first Pillar of Light movie

Catching some air at the "Sinks"	Jack & digeredoo player Grace in Australia	Jack & Daniel skiing

JULY 2001 Banjo Newsletter feature article by Eddie Collins

JACK HATFIELD: One of BNL's Most Prolific Columnists By Eddie Collins Jack Hatfield needs no introduction to most Banjo NewsLetter (BNL) subscribers. Readers have been following his columns for over 20 years. He heads up the bluegrass portion of the Maryland Banjo Academy, was chosen as an instructor for the prestigious Tennessee Banjo Institute and hosts the annual BNL Workshop at SPBGMA in Nashville each year. He has written many instruction books and was included in Mel Bay's Banjo 2000, an anthology of over 40 influential banjo players. But just who is Jack Hatfield and what is it in his background that makes him such a revered instructor? When I recently reached him via phone to seek answers to these questions, he was doing what he does on any given day - filling orders for banjo instruction and accessories for his mail order/web-based business, Hatfield Music. In between orders, we managed to discuss the highlights of the career of one of BNL's most prolific contributors. "When I was seventeen, I had earned a spot on the football team. A week before the season started, I broke my foot and then broke my other foot while walking on crutches," says the native Tennessean who calls the Knoxville area home. The time off his feet gave Jack the opportunity to focus on playing a musical instrument. He had been playing guitar since age twelve, doing three-chord songs, but had not really put a lot of effort into it. "I had heard a banjo and knew where I could buy a cheap one," recalls Jack. "I couldn't really figure it out, though. I tried to play it like a guitar." Luckily, Jack found Wayne Goforth, the local banjo guru whose instruction method was later published by Oak Publications. Jack took lessons for about six months then began figuring out things on his own and working with the Scruggs book. "Once I understood the concept of rolls and licks I was off and running. Eventually, I averaged nearly four hours of practice a day." Not being from a musical family, Hatfield says he didn't even know what bluegrass was when he started to play the banjo. After about a year and a half of intense study, he filled the teaching position at the music store vacated by Goforth. Through the store and reading BNL Jack began to find out more about bluegrass festivals and where to hear good banjo players. He doesn't mind admitting he liked banjo, but not necessarily bluegrass. "I really didn't care for rough high harmonies," Hatfield offers by way of explanation. "Over time, I realized you had to play it [bluegrass] if you were going to be a professional player, so I began to sing baritone parts and learned to appreciate the music." Unlike those who grow up in a family with a background in music, Jack's parents did not encourage his music. Like most parents, they envisioned their son earning a college degree. He tried to oblige, but felt the time was right to pursue music. With his teaching load approaching 80 students per week, Jack was actually better off financially than many of his peers who had graduated from college. Much of Jack's career has been shaped by opportunities simply presenting themselves at the right time. A case in point is the manner in which Jack, at the age of 23, became a columnist for BNL in 1976 after having had a few of his tabs published. "I noticed that the magazine was mainly filled with melodic-style tabs. So I sent a letter to the editor [Hub Nitchie] saying they should print more Scruggs style tabs. He wrote back saying, 'You're right. Why don't you write a column called, 'Scruggs Corner'?" Jack's commitment to the readers of the column actually forced him to become a better banjo player, since he wished to publish completely accurate tabs. He went about his monthly task by slowing 33 rpm records down to 16. Many tunes, with all the solos and back-up, took him as much as ten to twelve hours to figure out while wearing out the grooves of the record. Hatfield also feels that writing the column helped him become a better teacher since he had to put his presentation into words. A side benefit of doing the "Scruggs Corner" column was getting to know Earl Scruggs. Jack contacted Earl with some questions regarding the column and Earl invited him to come over. Earl was very gracious and invited him to come back and visit. The two have continued to visit informally once or twice a year ever since. Never wanting to impose on Earl, Jack recalls the first time he got to hear him play up close. "I had taken a promising young picker over to have his banjo signed. The boy asked Earl to play and he picked 'John Hardy'. It was a Kodak moment - seeing this eight-year old kid wide-eyed in awe of Earl." As is the case with many people, Hatfield feels he learned the most from his mistakes. "I think I became a good teacher from recognizing that I didn't pay enough attention to the fundamentals when I first learned." Bluegrass Banjo Method was written as a result of Jack's frustration in finding a teaching method that presented the fundamentals in gradual steps. Wayne Shrubsall, in his 1979 BNL review, described it as the best book on the market. Although he contracted with a publisher to have the book printed and distributed, it was never released. Once his agreement with the publisher was terminated, Jack typed out the pages himself on an IBM Selectric typewriter, writing in the note stems of the tablature by hand. The book is now in its fifth printing and improvements have been made with each new edition. Hatfield handles his own distribution and has personally visited several thousand music stores to set up dealerships. In the early 80s, Jack had taken a break from writing for BNL when they called and asked him to take over the "Beginner's Corner" column. With the material from his book and nearly 10 years teaching experience, Jack was well suited for the task and wrote the column for six years. All the while, the seasoned columnist envisioned himself as being not only a professional teacher, but performer as well. With this in mind, Hatfield decided to enter banjo contests. He reasoned that titles won would help enhance his resume when searching for a band or selling his books. Although he got to the finals of the National Banjo Championships in Winfield, Kansas and took second place in the Tennessee State Contest, he didn't feel as though he was cut out to be a contest player. "I had great arrangements, but never got over the nerves," explains Jack. "At the time, I was playing in a band and concentrating on backing up vocals, which was a totally different deal. I would practice for contests a month or two out, while most successful contest players make it a year-around commitment." As a performer, Jack has worked a couple of prestigious gigs, one as the resident banjoist for the "Saturday Night Barndance" on WNOX radio in Knoxville - a show started in the 1930s. This was another opportunity that came about as a result of Jack being in the right place at the right time; one of the producers of the Barndance worked at the same music store as he did. The Barndance was a weekly country music variety show that featured one or two banjo instrumentals. "I'd join the house band for my feature tunes as well as backing any singers that requested banjo." One opportunity again lead to another when a Barndance performer recommended Hatfield be hired as bandleader for a six-month show at Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, TN. Working with charts on the Barndance came in handy in his new role as bandleader of a country group. The band sometimes played six days a week, three or four shows a day. The following season Jack was hired to be bandleader for Dolly's sister, Freida Parton. After three years at Dollywood, Jack auditioned his own bluegrass band, True Blue, which had a successful run at the park. Over the years, the group included Richard Bennett, who later went with J.D. Crowe and Paul Brewster, formerly with the Osborne Brothers and currently with Ricky Skaggs. From his Dollywood exposure, Hatfield earned a job performing at the nearby Dixie Stampede where he strolled with a wireless set-up in the saloon show. This gig required him to add some stand-up comedy to his routine. Today, Jack does a solo gig with comedy where he plays all the bluegrass instruments. He also plays conventions with True Blue and his country band. Hatfield has one solo recording to his credit, Pickin' From the Heart Of The Smokies. True Blue also made some recordings, which are primarily marketed to tourists who frequent the area venues. Other special performing experiences came as a result of Jack's teaching. Asked to give banjo workshops in the United Kingdom, he also played pubs and festivals while there. In the vein of instructing, he has given school workshops in the UK on about 25 different occasions and estimates that he has introduced nearly 6,000 school-age children to the 5-string banjo. Another important aspect of Jack's career is Hatfield Music - a mail order business he began in 1986. What started as a catalog of a few books has turned into an "everything banjo" one-stop shopping center. He describes how the business has grown, "It was totally mail order when it began. Now, about eighty percent of my orders come from the website I designed about three years ago. It's getting to the point where it is taking over my life. I just finished constructing a building on my property to house Hatfield Music." Jack is quick to stress that while the business is very demanding, he has always tried to maintain a healthy relationship between work, family and play. The business has grown to the point to where it could become a full-time music store, but he prefers to restrict it to mail order and E-commerce. He fills orders on his own time - often until 3:00 A.M. This leaves him time to enjoy other things, such as playing tennis and volleyball, or working out at the gym. "I feel it's important to be healthy, have fun and have diverse interests and to not let the music business totally rule my life. A top priority is spending time with my eleven-year old son, Daniel." Another hobby - designing things, has actually been useful in creating products for Hatfield Music . Jack has a woodworking shop where he builds Banjo Boards [practice devices] that he sells. He also designed the Pick Pouch and AntiGravity Strap. He recently was awarded a patent for a new banjo-related invention that he hopes to have in production in the near future. In addition to creating new products, Hatfield continues to write. In 1993 he wrote a general music theory book called How To Play By Ear. He approached Mel Bay with the idea of publishing the book. The world's largest music instruction publisher informed him they were already planning a related series specific to each of the bluegrass instruments. They asked Jack to do the books for banjo, mandolin, and fiddle. He accepted their offer and wrote You Can Teach Yourself Banjo By Ear and You Can teach Yourself Mandolin By Ear. His most recent Mel Bay book is Old Time Gospel Banjo Solos. On the very morning of our phone conversation, Jack had just concluded an agreement with Mel Bay to expand his current "Concepts and Systems" series into a book, Exercises For The 5-string Banjo. As we wound down our chat, I felt I should query Jack on behalf of the many banjoists who seem to be starting later in life. Here's what he had to say: "The biggest problem facing late learners is they have so many other obligations. Make sure you have thirty minutes a day and create a spot in your home where you won't be bothered by any other distractions during that time. It's not really physically harder to begin later in life, just harder to clear your mind and focus; and of course, get a good teacher and/or method that stresses the fundamentals." The other group Jack wishes to address before closing is banjo teachers. "I think the most common mistake teachers make is they assume too much on the part of the student. Most teachers need to proceed more slowly and present things in logical steps." As with any person who has had a long and successful career, there are people to thank. "I really owe much of my success to the Nitchies," states Jack appreciatively. "Hub took a chance on me. Nancy has been like family to me. She's always suggesting and encouraging new avenues for my creativity." And here's thanks to you, Jack, from all of us who have read and learned so much from your columns year in and year out. Keep up the good work.

325 Laurelwood Drive Pigeon Forge, TN 37863 Phone/fax: 1-865-428-8063 Toll free, order line only: 1-800-426-8744