pickin' and grinnin'
Banjo and smiles
Pickin' and grinnin' describes playing stringed instruments—especially banjo, guitar, or fiddle—while smiling and having a good time.
The phrase evokes informal folk or country music sessions, front-porch jam sessions, and rural American culture: We spent Saturday night pickin' and grinnin' on the back porch.
The apostrophes mark the dropped g's of relaxed Southern speech.
- jam sessionInformal improvisational music gathering
- back porchRear outdoor platform
- joyfulFeeling great happiness
- bluegrassAcoustic Appalachian folk music
- old time musicTraditional Appalachian folk genre
Appalachian · community gathering · hootenanny · guitar · fingerpicking · flatpicking · strumming · sing-along · dobro · banjo · humorous · folk music · barn dance · rural traditions · down home · good ol' boys · mandolin · storytelling
pickin' and grinnin'opera
Theatrical art combining song
classical music · symphony · art music · chamber music · orchestral music
pickin' and grinnin'solemnity
Serious, dignified quality
seriousness · gloom and doom · doom and gloom · sulking · moping
pickin' and grinnin'funeral dirge
Music for mourning ceremonies
mourning · weeping and wailing · lament · brooding · melancholy
pick, grin, picked, grinned, picking, grinning, picker, grinner, pickers