Fiddler’s Dream

“Fiddler’s Dream” is an old-time reel built across two keys — a G-major first strain and a D-major second — composed by the Tennessee fiddler Fiddlin’ Arthur Smith and first recorded by him in 1935. That tonic-to-dominant shift between the strains is the tune’s defining trait. Fiddlers vary on whether to open with the G part or the D part. It also circulates under the title “Fiddler’s Trouble.” Smith cut it for Bluebird (5843-A) in 1935, and it later entered the repertoire of players including Kenny Baker and Howdy Forrester, Tommy Jackson, and Michael Cleveland.

Arthur Smith (1898–1971) was raised on a farm near Bold Springs, Tennessee, made his Grand Ole Opry debut as a fiddler in December 1927, and led the Dixieliners with the McGee Brothers in the 1930s. His smooth, bluesy long-bow style made him one of the most imitated fiddlers of the early country era and a foundational influence on bluegrass fiddling.