Bluegrass and science fiction

In my short story Mr. Wilson, there's a part where the ship captain plays the song "Sittin' On Top of the World" over the cabin speakers.  In the story, it's an up-tempo bluegrass version of the song.  Historically, though, the song has been performed in a variety of styles.  Wikipedia gives credit for the first recorded version to the Mississippi Sheiks, a blues band.  Here's their version:

 Another blues version, this time by the wonderful B.B. King:

The grand old man of bluegrass, Bill Monroe, performed a bluegrass version featuring his usual "high & lonesome" singing voice.  This one's from a 1957 album.

Here's Earl Scruggs and friends.

 The always entertaining Jerry Reed:

Some big-name artists from the rock world have covered it, too.  Here's a slower-than-molasses version done by Eric Clapton and Cream:

Here's the one by the Grateful Dead:

Here's a recent version done for the movie Cold Mountain, but it sounds ancient.  Which is appropriate, given the movie's time period.

In my story, I envisioned the song sounding similar to this version, but a little faster, and in a lower key:

Those guys are playing it in C#, which seems insanely high to me.  I think B is the standard for bluegrass versions of this song.  (Not sure; could be wrong.)  Those fellows definitely did a nice job, though.

So, next time you re-read Mr. Wilson, you'll have an idea of what the ship's cabin sounds like.

Jeff Tanyard: putting the bluegrass back in science fiction.  :D