guitarbanjoman - Posted - 12/08/2025:  20:20:35

So every year I do a freebie for the local Rotary Club’s annual Christmas fundraiser.

It’s a house tour which raises roughly $100,000 every year, and part of the ritzy house tour experience is having local musicians playing at each house.

(So I think I shared my story last year about playing outdoors near a propane heater which set the headstock of my guitar on fire?

And I had to blow it out like you blow out a burning marshmallow? because it turns that nitrocellulose finish on your instruments is EXTREMELY flammable, watch out!)

So anyway, this year a got a cushier location. It was in the horse stables of this lovely mansion, but the stables had sort of a staffroom with a nice wood burning stove which I could sit near—- well, not too near as you know!

Anyway.

This year I decided to leave the guitar at home and I learned a bunch of Christmas songs on my plectrum banjo.

I have some cool arrangements of Christmas tunes I like, so I would sit by the stove and play and the house tour guests would come trooping into my cozy little room and listen to a number or two before continuing on their tour.

So anyway, right after I finished playing “Silent Night” in duo banjo style, aka “red garter” style, this one old dude gave me a big smile and two enthusiastic thumbs up and shouted

“EARL SCRUGGS!”

Which I thought was hilarious, but it turns out that if you’re not a banjo player, you probably don’t get the joke…

Merry Christmas to all,

Will

TB4 - Posted - 12/09/2025:  04:31:00

Not bad as a compliment!!

banjoboyd - Posted - 12/09/2025:  09:50:27

I'll take "Earl Scruggs!" over "Paddle faster! / Squeal like a pig! / etc." any day.

RB-1 - Posted - 12/09/2025:  10:51:20

Plectrum banjo and nobody mentions Ken Aoki?

While -I'm a three finger picker to the bone myself- Earl certainly is one of my all time heroes, sometime ago, while preparing for a duo set with @dutchtenor that a.o. had My China Town in it, I stumbled on Ken playing this: youtube.com/watch?v=rqh2JK5tBuA

Now that's banjoplaying!

guitarbanjoman - Posted - 12/09/2025:  11:52:21

Wow, awesome Ken Aoki banjo

Thanks for sending, Bruno