The fiddle tune “New Hot Times” is found on Mississippi fiddler Hoyt Ming‘s 1973 album of the same name. The album title was a statement of a new era for a musician who had largely withdrawn from the public for decades.
After recording four songs for Victor in 1928, Ming focused on potato farming and played locally until he stopped performing in the late 1950s. Hoyt Ming’s song “Indian War Whoop” was included in Harry Smith’s 1952 Anthology of American Folk Music, a collection that became influential in the folk revival of the 1950s and 1960s. This led to a search for the musician.
Following his rediscovery, Ming and his wife began playing at folk festivals. The album Hoyt Ming and His Pep Steppers: New Hot Times was recorded during this period.
New Hot Times has an AABB structure and a duple meter, typical for old-time music intended for dancing. The tune is commonly played in the key of G major.