Playing Since: 1973
Experience Level: Purty Good

Interests:
[Teaching] [Jamming] [Socializing] [Helping]

Occupation: Teacher (Retired)

Gender: Male
Age: 71

My Instruments:
Sullivan Festival Deluxe

Favorite Bands/Musicians:
Bobby Thompson, Alan Munde, Tony Trischka.
Courtney Johnson is the picker who influenced me the most.

Classified Rating: not rated
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Profile Info:
Visible to: Public
Created 3/23/2006
Last Visit 6/2/2025

Was given a little crank-toy banjo by my grandmother at age 4; it would only play "Oh, Susannah." Drove my poor, sleepless parents crazy with it for months. Pleaded for a real one until 10th grade, when I received a $45. Kay. Played it till the cheap head split a couple of years later. During Junior year at college(1973), a friend sold me his Aria for $50. Best deal I ever made; even got the Scruggs book thrown in for free. Played it till the fret-board split in ? bought an Alvarez soon after. In ?, while trying to learn Bela's bridge for "On the Boulevard", I knocked it over and the neck Split. In. Two. Was picking in a garage band with Robbie Fulks at the time, and he loaned me an open-back something-or-other that I played for about two months, until I bought my Iida. Bought it at Main Street Music in Evanston, IL. It so happens that this friendly old guy was in the shop at the time, looking at mandolins and shooting the breeze. We chatted a bit, and something just seemed so familiar about him. On his way out, he said, "Well fellers, sell lotsa Git-tars, 'n' make lotsa money, so's I'll have somebody to borree it off of." It was Jethro Burns. I sold the Iida on e-bay in 2006, to get money to buy something I could enjoy playing. I had never owned a "good" banjo before. In May of that year I bought a Festival Deluxe from Mr. Bill Sullivan. It is such a pleasure to play, and I've improved so much since getting it. I taught Spanish and German at a Catholic high school for boys, but am happy to be retired. My screen name, Sangrejoven, is what my Spanish students called me (Spanish for Youngblood). In heaven, as my eternal reward, I hope and pray that I'll be issued a Stelling Staghorn and a Pre-War Mastertone, and told to go sit under a tree and decide which one has the best sound.