This is a "just for your information' kind of post, in case anyone was wondering what had happened to it.
Probably most of you know that after Eddy's death the banjo went to our dear friend and much-missed contributor to this forum, Tony Lombardo. I've been absent from this site for too long, and can't remember his forum name - I'm sure one of you will remind me?
I was deeply saddened when Eddy died. He had been very encouraging to me, and I loved what he left for us - many great recordings, videos and memories. Tony had been friends with Eddy and his wife, and told me that when he was in New York he paid her a visit to wish her all the best. It was a great and touching surprise for Tony when Eddy's wife arranged it through lawyers to bequeath the banjo to him. It really stunned him.
My main contacts in the tenor-banjo world were Eddy and Tony, so I was a distraught when I got a lawyers email saying Tony had died, and totally floored when he said Tony wanted me to have the banjo! That was some time ago, and I'd heard nothing. Suddenly another email came from the lawyer, and the banjo arrived in Edinburgh just three days ago.
What can I say? It's a superb banjo, best I've played. I cleaned it up and put on new strings, and heard the banjo sound I'd been searching for all these years. It plays beautifully, and has a very warm sound with clarity. The plastic-like semi-resonator on the back is of course something only Eddy could come up with, and I'll leave it in place. There being no dowel rod, it serves to hold in place an old tee shirt for midnight playing!
Some of you know I had my own near-death experiences (yes, more than one - four altogether!) two and a half years ago, and am only now getting back to playing. The banjo has arrived at the perfect time, and with lots of warm memories associated with it. I hope to work up something for YouTube in the coming weeks, which I'll share here. I of course don't play like Eddy and Tony, so I'll be doing my own thing, but after all that is what they both encouraged me to do. Despite that, I can't help feeling "I'm not worthy!" Certainly my playing is nowhere near where it used to be.
If you have any questions about the banjo, I'll do my best to answer them.
PS Nice to be here again!!
Edited by - Rob MacKillop on 10/23/2026 06:57:44
Hi Rob,
Happy you have Eddy's banjo. Sorry we now lost another tenor great.
Looking forward to hearing it when convenient.
Best regards from Maine,
Tom
Cheers, Tom. Indeed.
Very nice, Rob, that you now have this banjo. The way I remember it, it's a 12" inch, 17-fret, openback tenor banjo. Looking forward to hear you play this banjo!
One question: is there anything like a tonering, e.g., a rolled brass rod or tube, or does the head rest directly on the wood rim?
Hi Emiel. Nice to hear from you again. I’d say it had a wooden tone ring:
Very cool Rob, fine instruments are meant to be played and now you are the keeper of the flame. I remember once reading the story of the half resonator, but now I’ve forgotten it. Do you remember how it came about?
I missed that Tony had died. I don't get around here much anymore, but man that's a bummer. I'm glad you have the banjo, though.
Hi Laurence, nice to hear from you too.
My understanding is that Eddy always preferred open-backs for weight reasons, but occasionally he needed more volume. This solution gave him “just enough” volume to be heard in an ensemble. He of course had more than one banjo, though, so probably had full resonator banjos available for when needed.
haildixon - sorry to dump the news on you like that. I don’t know exactly when Tony died, but it must have been about nine months ago. Was his name compass5 here? That rings a bell.
It seems Tony’s name here was Compass56.
I just found a discussion about Eddy’s banjo here: https://www.banjohangout.org/archive/390343
Edited by - Rob MacKillop on 10/23/2026 10:15:59
I’ve just tried to get in touch with Ome Banjos to talk about this banjo, but the site has been entirely taken over by GoldTone. Is there any way of getting in touch with the guy or guys who might have made this banjo?
Thanks, Rob. Several years ago when I was gigging a lot more and still in New Orleans Tony and I talked quite a bit and had a short hang on one of his trips to New Orleans. He was a genuinely nice and curious guy, extremely humble and gracious. A real loss. Wish I could help you on finding whoever made the banjo. I'm out of the loop.
Cheers, Hail. I never met him - I live in Scotland - but we were in touch via email. My memory is shakey, as I suffered memory loss when ill, but if I remember correctly he had been told at one point he only had a couple of years to live. So his time was precious, and I’ll bet he enjoyed talking to you.
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