My Little Grass Shack Duet
 

"My Little Grass Shack" was written in 1933 by Bill Cogswell, Tommy Harrison and Johnny Noble, reportedly for the 4th of July Canoe Races. My first exposure to the song was on the "Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts" TV show in the '50s. Godfrey was a strong influence in getting the Hawaiian Islands known as a vacation spot. He loved everything Hawaiian.

The song is not an easy one to play, but it is a fun song to play. It will be a challenge. I have posted two versions: one as the traditional two part harmony (Print); with the second (Full), as a break with my tradition, including the lyrics and chords. The Print version will fit on two printed pages, whereas the Full version extends to three pages. I have always tried to keep these posting to one or two pages.

There are two Hawaiian phrases, that if you can learn to say them, will allow you to brag a bit that you know a little of the native Hawaiian language.

I have the tempo marked as "Easy Lilt". It is a light, easy swing feeling that popular singers frequently use, and I have made adjustments to duration and attack of a number of the notes to affect this feeling.

Note in measure 17, there is a comma between the 6th and 7th notes. This indicates a short pause in the tempo at that point. I have chosen not to include a ritard or fermata (hold). Get a fresh breath and continue at tempo.

We hope you enjoy playing it. Mahalo nui loa (Hawaiian for Thank you very much).

Ralph Rayner