I am so excited to be e-mailing you! I live close to Nashville, Tennessee and I am 100% positive that I have a Bob Rock banjo. I have taken my banjo to dozens of places and had it looked at but no one had ever seen one like it. I just stumbled on your web site trying to find out for sure what it is. People thought it was Gretch or maybe a Vega but I`ve never seen one of those with the pearl inlay like whats on mine. Mine has both the moon and star on the head as well as the Fleur de lei. Also the inlays on the neck are identical to the one pictured on the site. The body I`ve been told is cast aluminum, and the back is beautiful wood that comes off, although there are no markings on the inside, or a name of any kind. And I`m even more sure because my dad has had the banjo in his possession since the 70`s and got it while living in Pennsylvania, somewhere near maybe Allentown or Skippack I believe. It is the most amazing souding instrument very solid and clear, the tone of it is unmatched, and especially since it sat around in a garage or barn for nearly 40 years. I am 24 and my dad recently came across it again and gave it to me since I love bluegrass and have recently taken up the banjo myself. I don`t have any pictures downloaded of it, I was really just trying to get some info. Thanks so much for your website, I love old instruments and am so happy to finally know the home that mine came from. If you want, I could mail you a picture or 2 of it, it`s one of my most prized and cherished possessions.
Thanks so much for readin this, and for the information!
-Tara
Banjo builder Bob Rock
Picture from BU magazine, August 1993
1 comment:
Bob and I had a lot in common because he was a blacksmith and I tinkered with blacksmithing. We made some of the same stuff. Bob planted a chestnut tree in his back yard by his garden. About 50 years later the chestnut tree fell over and he made 5 banjos out of it. Four he gave to his family and he sold one to me. He mentioned the banjo on a TV interview.
The banjo fell over and broke at the heel. He said it happens and he'd fix it. He kept it a few weeks and gave it back to us looking good. Oh, he said the mother of pearl was extra special because he wanted the ones he built from his chestnut tree to be special. If someone is interested, I can take some pictures of it and closeups of the mother of pearl.
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