Official Luthiers Forum!

OK just to give you guys some harmless entertainment, my wife (bless her) found this picture of me playing in the mid 1960s, yes that's the 16 year old me on the right playing the banjo! Right you can all laugh now!



Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

Good one Colin!

Colin,

Great picture. What kind of guitar is your buddy playing? Looks like you are working on your Beatles hair cut!

Cool picture, thanks for sharing.

Jeff

Colin,

Love the way you are concentrating hard at looking cool - or were you just trying to avoid looking at the D*********t

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Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

What do you mean Dave "concentrating hard at looking cool", I was the coolest thing on the planet! Yes I'm sorry about the D*********t, I even think it had a sitka top, what you can't see is the F******k!

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

Man, it took fortitude for a 16 year old boy to play a banjo in the mid-60's! I applaude your bravery!

Colin,

Do you still play banjo? Was it "jug band", folk or folk rock you were in to?

I have an 1918 Orpheum #1 tenor (for ragtime and early jazz) and an 1924 Orpheum #2 5 string (for bluegrass) that I play when I show up somewhere and there are too many flatpickers or multiple mando players.

While people either love or hate the banjo, it does have the ability to cut through the mix of other instruments so it will also be a good secondary instrument for me. For classic bluegrass there is no one like Earl Scruggs, but for people that do not think that they like banjo or think it is not very musical I have them listen to Bela Fleck.

You actually post a picture of you PLAYING... BANJO??
Have you NO SHAME MAN!!!   



Really nice shirt though!! I give you $5.00 right now for it!! Not them Aurstralian or Canandian dollars either- American money!!!

I'll pay S&H!! Just wash it, and send it too me!! Billy T38864.7859490741

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Billy Dean Thomas
Covina, CA

"Multi famam, conscientiam, pauci verentur."
(Many fear their reputation, few their conscience)

Colin, my bro is gonna love that shot!
He'd respond, but he's gone up to the hills of N.C. this weekend to work on his new shop / home. (Hesh would love it: it's a huge bathroom.)

I'm impressed just how far up the neck you are playing.

And yes, you look way cool.

Steve

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From Nacogdoches...the oldest town in Texas.

http://www.stephenkinnaird.com

Colin, you da man!!!!

Since it appears to be an open back banjo, were you playing Pete Seeger stuff, or maybe Kingston trio?

Man I have a whole new appreciation for you. My hero is Earl Scruggs, but I agree with you on Bela, and maybe Tony Trishka. My 2nd favorite (after Earl) is Alan Munde.

Banjos rule!!!

Ron

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OLD MAN formerly (and formally) known as:

Ron Wisdom

Somewhere in the middle of Arkansas......

Houray for Scruggs and Bela Fleck, Scruggs is an all time favorite of mine also!

Colin, you are one courageous guy admitting the truth finally!

OK, it was at a time when I was still trying to find the musical me, that's my excuse. I've still got the banjo, and occassionally take it out and see if I can still remember how to play it. I did try Scruggs picking but bluegrass didn't appeal to me, I preferred the older clunkier styles, ala Seeger.

Ron, funny you should mention Pete Seeger, I was taught both banjo and guitar by his sister Peggy who was the partner of the "father" of the British folk music movement Ewan McColl. (He wrote "First Time ever I saw your face" for her.)

Shawn, the guy I'm playing with had an old Orpheum, heavily inlaid, but he had it stolen when we were playing in France. We had a three man group called the Poachers, and swapped around who played what, I mainly played guitar, and occasionally banjo.

Colin Colin S38865.219849537

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

Colin,

Where's the hand-carved rose on that banjo?

Skip

Would that be a "renaissance banjo"?

Actually I had a banjo that was "baroque" but I repaired it and it plays just fine!

Thanks for diverting some of the flack Colin. Very nice picture. You look for all the world like Paul Simon in that shot. In fact the other guy could be Art Garfunkel with a haircut.

That is an amazing story about Peggy Seeger. Pete, along with Woody Guthrie is a legend as far as I am concerned. His sister has a lot of that mojo. I am really ignorant of the folk music Movement in England, but have heard of Ewan McColl and I envy your connections.

This coming week I will be at the Old Tyme Music Week at the Mars Hill College campus in the hills of North Carolina, with my homemade banjo. (no back) I strongly suspect we will be learning some Seeger stuff and perhaps some Ewan McColl as well. There is a strong Scottish heritage that is celebrated in those parts. In fact the largest Scottish games in the world are held annualy in North Carolina. (Strange world huh) I may be wrong, but I have the feeling Ewan was a Scot.

We don't talk about Paul Simon over here in polite society, (the Scarborough Fair copywriting still rankles!) I play a lot of Woody stuff and Pete and still is greatly admired here. Yes Ewan was a Scot, he almost singlehandedly created the British folk revival, singing not only traditional material but writing some of the most evocative music about the working man in the English language, listen to "shoals of Herring" if you get a chance. I was lucky to be in my formative years when all this was happening and to live only a mile away from Peggy and Ewan, and then Davy Graham arrived and nothing was ever the same again.

Keep that back off the banjo and have a great time.

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

Colin, you looked cool!

Every picture tells a story; this could make a great separate tocpic. Stay tuned!

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin