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On Top Of Old Smoky — Sheet Music, Tab & Chord Directory

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About On Top Of Old Smoky

On Top Of Old Smoky is a folk song in C major — beginner-friendly, running from C to C and staying in first position on banjo, mandolin and fiddle.

Type
Folk song, each usually played twice
Key
C major · 3/4
Range
C to C · first position
Notes used
C D E F G A
Level
Beginner-friendly

On Top Of Old Smoky — sheet music

C major · 3/4

The notes

Letter names, bar by bar · capitals up to C in the third space, lower case from the D on the 4th line

C C E G | C | A | A A F G A | G | G | G G G C E G | G | D | D E F E D | C | C | C C C E G | C

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On Top Of Old Smoky — tab

Tenor banjo · mandolin · fiddle · guitar · ukulele — tap one to open it

On Top Of Old Smoky — Tenor banjo tab

G D A E (Irish tuning) · open position

E|---------|---|---|-----|
A|---------|-3-|-0-|-0-0-|
D|-----2-5-|---|---|-----|
G|-5-5-----|---|---|-----|
E|-------|---|---|-------|
A|-----0-|---|---|-------|
D|-3-5---|-5-|-5-|-5-5-5-|
G|-------|---|---|-------|
E|-------|---|---|-----|
A|-------|---|---|-----|
D|---2-5-|-5-|-0-|-0-2-|
G|-5-----|---|---|-----|
E|-------|---|---|-----|
A|-------|---|---|-----|
D|-3-2-0-|---|---|-----|
G|-------|-5-|-5-|-5-5-|
E|-------|---|
A|-------|---|
D|---2-5-|---|
G|-5-----|-5-|

Numbers are frets. Tenor banjo sounds an octave below the written notes.

On Top Of Old Smoky — Mandolin tab

G D A E · open position

E|---------|---|---|-----|
A|---------|-3-|-0-|-0-0-|
D|-----2-5-|---|---|-----|
G|-5-5-----|---|---|-----|
E|-------|---|---|-------|
A|-----0-|---|---|-------|
D|-3-5---|-5-|-5-|-5-5-5-|
G|-------|---|---|-------|
E|-------|---|---|-----|
A|-------|---|---|-----|
D|---2-5-|-5-|-0-|-0-2-|
G|-5-----|---|---|-----|
E|-------|---|---|-----|
A|-------|---|---|-----|
D|-3-2-0-|---|---|-----|
G|-------|-5-|-5-|-5-5-|
E|-------|---|
A|-------|---|
D|---2-5-|---|
G|-5-----|-5-|

Numbers are frets. Same strings as the fiddle, so the same notes fall in the same places.

On Top Of Old Smoky — fiddle fingering

G D A E · first position — finger numbers

E|---------|----|---|-----|
A|---------|-L2-|-0-|-0-0-|
D|-----1-3-|----|---|-----|
G|-3-3-----|----|---|-----|
E|--------|---|---|-------|
A|------0-|---|---|-------|
D|-L2-3---|-3-|-3-|-3-3-3-|
G|--------|---|---|-------|
E|-------|---|---|-----|
A|-------|---|---|-----|
D|---1-3-|-3-|-0-|-0-1-|
G|-3-----|---|---|-----|
E|--------|---|---|-----|
A|--------|---|---|-----|
D|-L2-1-0-|---|---|-----|
G|--------|-3-|-3-|-3-3-|
E|-------|---|
A|-------|---|
D|---1-3-|---|
G|-3-----|-3-|

0 = open string · 1–4 = finger · L = low (half step back), H = high.

On Top Of Old Smoky — Guitar tab

E A D G B E · open position

e|---------|---|---|-----|
B|---------|-1-|---|-----|
G|-------0-|---|-2-|-2-2-|
D|-----2---|---|---|-----|
A|-3-3-----|---|---|-----|
E|---------|---|---|-----|
e|-------|---|---|-------|
B|-------|---|---|-------|
G|---0-2-|-0-|-0-|-0-0-0-|
D|-3-----|---|---|-------|
A|-------|---|---|-------|
E|-------|---|---|-------|
e|-------|---|---|-----|
B|-------|---|---|-----|
G|-----0-|-0-|---|-----|
D|---2---|---|-0-|-0-2-|
A|-3-----|---|---|-----|
E|-------|---|---|-----|
e|-------|---|---|-----|
B|-------|---|---|-----|
G|-------|---|---|-----|
D|-3-2-0-|---|---|-----|
A|-------|-3-|-3-|-3-3-|
E|-------|---|---|-----|
e|-------|---|
B|-------|---|
G|-----0-|---|
D|---2---|---|
A|-3-----|-3-|
E|-------|---|

Numbers are frets; the bottom line is the low E string.

On Top Of Old Smoky — Ukulele tab

G C E A (high G) · open position

A|---------|-3-|-0-|-0-0-|
E|-----0---|---|---|-----|
C|-0-0-----|---|---|-----|
G|-------0-|---|---|-----|
A|-----0-|---|---|-------|
E|-1-----|---|---|-------|
C|-------|---|---|-------|
G|---0---|-0-|-0-|-0-0-0-|
A|-------|---|---|-----|
E|---0---|---|---|---0-|
C|-0-----|---|-2-|-2---|
G|-----0-|-0-|---|-----|
A|-------|---|---|-----|
E|-1-0---|---|---|-----|
C|-----2-|-0-|-0-|-0-0-|
G|-------|---|---|-----|
A|-------|---|
E|---0---|---|
C|-0-----|-0-|
G|-----0-|---|

Numbers are frets; the top line is the A string, the bottom line the high G.

On Top Of Old Smoky chords

C major · 4 chords: F, C, G7, C7

pickup
F
F
F
F
C
C
C
C
G7
G7
G7
G7
C
C
C
C7
C

One box per bar, in the same order as the sheet music. A faded chord carries on from the bar before.

Guitar chords for On Top Of Old Smoky

Strings E A D G B E, low to high · o = open string, × = don't play it

FC×G7C7×

Ukulele chords for On Top Of Old Smoky

Strings G C E A, low to high · o = open string, × = don't play it

FCG7C7

Tenor banjo & mandolin chords for On Top Of Old Smoky

Strings G D A E, low to high · o = open string, × = don't play it

FCG7C7

More folk songs and tunes like it

The Camptown RacesThe Yellow Rose Of TexasScarborough FairGreensleevesLondonderry AirOh, My Darling ClementineHome On The RangeRed River Valley

This melody comes from The Public Domain Song Anthology (David Berger & Chuck Israels), released CC0. The song is in the public domain. Tabs and letter names worked out by The Music Arcade.

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