Cotton Patch Rag: Mandolin Tab
Mandolin tab and sheet music with synced audio · Key of C · 120 BPM · 4/4 time · Country Rag · Intermediate
Chords used in this arrangement: C, F, G, D, G7.
Apparently, bluegrass fiddler Byron Berline from Texas once said he grew up going to fiddle contests with his dad but never heard this tune played anywhere outside of Texas and Oklahoma, which tells you a lot about how deep its regional roots go. Cotton Patch Rag dates back to the early 1900s, right in the middle of the ragtime craze, and it became a staple of the Texas fiddle contest circuit largely thanks to Benny Thomasson, the Dallas–Fort Worth fiddler whose version is the one most people learn from today. There's even a wonderfully confused bit of history where people kept attributing it to the wrong Arthur Smith. It turns out the 1954 recording was by Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith of South Carolina, a totally different guy from the Grand Ole Opry's Fiddlin' Arthur Smith of Tennessee. On mandolin in C, the melody sits really nicely under your fingers, but keep an ear out for those chromatic little runs.
This page includes mandolin tablature, standard music notation, and a chord chart, printable as PDF and playable in sync with the original recording. Change the key, slow the tempo down, and loop the bars you want to practise. Download the Cotton Patch Rag PDF.
Cotton Patch Rag: questions and answers
What key is Cotton Patch Rag in?
Cotton Patch Rag is in C major. The transpose control on this page moves the tab, notation and chords to any other key.
What chords are used in Cotton Patch Rag?
The chords in this arrangement are C, F, G, D, G7. The chord chart on this page shows each shape and highlights the current chord as the tune plays.
How fast is Cotton Patch Rag played?
This recording is at 120 BPM in 4/4 time. Use the speed control to slow it down without changing the pitch, then work back up to full tempo.
Is Cotton Patch Rag a good tune for beginners?
Cotton Patch Rag is rated intermediate, so it is best approached after a few beginner tunes are comfortable.
Can I download Cotton Patch Rag as sheet music?
Yes. A printable PDF with the mandolin tab and standard notation is free at /tab/cotton-patch-rag.pdf, and there is a download button on this page.
Related tunes
More in C
- Banks of the Ohio (C, 120 BPM)
- East Tennessee Blues (Charlie Bowman, C, 120 BPM)
- Hawkins Rag (Ted Hawkins, C, 120 BPM)
- Green Valley Waltz (C, 120 BPM)
- Baltimore Rag (Tom Kelley and Dick Roger, C, 120 BPM)
- Billy in the Lowground (C, 120 BPM)
- Stone's Rag (Oscar Stone, C, 120 BPM)
More ragtime tunes
- Dallas Rag (The Dallas String band, 120 BPM)
Browse more: Mandolin tabs, Tunes in the key of C, Ragtime tunes, Intermediate mandolin tabs, or see all songs and the chord charts.