“New Five Cents” is an old-time fiddle tune from the Cumberland Plateau country along the Kentucky and Tennessee border. The melody is thought to date to the early twentieth century, and Paul Warmack made an early recording in 1928.
A breakdown carried by fiddlers such as Isham Monday, the tune circulated under other names — in the Ozarks it was known as “Buffalo Nickel.” Its second strain echoes part of the well-known reel “Grey Eagle.”
The tune remains a favorite in old-time circles.
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