Gibson Style GB Guitar Banjo , c. 1922
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Item # 3926
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Gibson Style GB Model Guitar Banjo, c. 1922, made in Kalamazoo, Michigan, red sunburst varnish finish, maple neck and rim, ebony fingerboard, original black hard shell case.
One of Gibson's more unusual instruments, and a considerable rarity. The original "Style GB" banjo guitar is not only an extremely impressive find in its own right, but is also remembered by aficionados as the instrument used extensively by pioneering African-American bluesman/songster "Papa" Charlie Jackson, the first self-accompanied solo performer to record in that idiom. Jackson's early Paramount records, highly influential in their time and still great listening today, are a showcase for the unique sound of this most interesting Gibson creation. This early "Snakehead" banjo-guitar is a fabulous example of this style instrument.
The "Style GB" was part of Gibson's initial banjo line, introduced in 1919 as follow-ups to the initial "Style TB" tenor banjo which debuted in 1918. There were numerous variations in these instruments as Gibson experimented with trying to create a banjo line sonically on par with their mandolins and guitars. This example has a wooden dowel, single adjustable co-ordinator rod, and the earliest form of "trapdoor" resonator.
This particular combination of features dates to around 1922, pre-dating the ball-bearing Mastertone tone ring that would appear on these instruments in the next year. This earlier rim is a double-walled wooden honeycomb with hollow tone chambers, ebony capped and bound on both sides at the bottom. This GB includes the optional wire armrest and raised grained ivoroid pickguard for an especially deluxe combination of features.
These early Gibson banjos were quite expensive instruments when new, and the construction and cosmetics are rather upscale. The neck is laminated maple with an ebony center strip, finished in a graduated cherry-to-natural from the heel up. Both the extended fingerboard and headstock are bound, and the headstock is faced with ebony inlaid with a pearl "The Gibson" logo and fleur-de-lys. The tuner buttons are amber celluloid and the nut is pearl. This early "GB" plays and sounds excellent with a darker, plunkier tone than later models, and is actually quite a useful banjo-guitar, as well as a great piece of Gibson history.
Overall length is 36 1/2 in. (92.7 cm.), 14 in. (35.6 cm.) diameter head, and 2 7/8 in. (7.3 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 25 in. (635 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).
Excellent original condition overall; all original except a later skin head and reproduction bridge. Minor wear, mostly to the neck finish. Plays very well with the perfect deep, plunking "Papa Charlie" sound. Includes an original shaped hard case. Excellent Condition.
One of Gibson's more unusual instruments, and a considerable rarity. The original "Style GB" banjo guitar is not only an extremely impressive find in its own right, but is also remembered by aficionados as the instrument used extensively by pioneering African-American bluesman/songster "Papa" Charlie Jackson, the first self-accompanied solo performer to record in that idiom. Jackson's early Paramount records, highly influential in their time and still great listening today, are a showcase for the unique sound of this most interesting Gibson creation. This early "Snakehead" banjo-guitar is a fabulous example of this style instrument.
The "Style GB" was part of Gibson's initial banjo line, introduced in 1919 as follow-ups to the initial "Style TB" tenor banjo which debuted in 1918. There were numerous variations in these instruments as Gibson experimented with trying to create a banjo line sonically on par with their mandolins and guitars. This example has a wooden dowel, single adjustable co-ordinator rod, and the earliest form of "trapdoor" resonator.
This particular combination of features dates to around 1922, pre-dating the ball-bearing Mastertone tone ring that would appear on these instruments in the next year. This earlier rim is a double-walled wooden honeycomb with hollow tone chambers, ebony capped and bound on both sides at the bottom. This GB includes the optional wire armrest and raised grained ivoroid pickguard for an especially deluxe combination of features.
These early Gibson banjos were quite expensive instruments when new, and the construction and cosmetics are rather upscale. The neck is laminated maple with an ebony center strip, finished in a graduated cherry-to-natural from the heel up. Both the extended fingerboard and headstock are bound, and the headstock is faced with ebony inlaid with a pearl "The Gibson" logo and fleur-de-lys. The tuner buttons are amber celluloid and the nut is pearl. This early "GB" plays and sounds excellent with a darker, plunkier tone than later models, and is actually quite a useful banjo-guitar, as well as a great piece of Gibson history.
Overall length is 36 1/2 in. (92.7 cm.), 14 in. (35.6 cm.) diameter head, and 2 7/8 in. (7.3 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 25 in. (635 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).
Excellent original condition overall; all original except a later skin head and reproduction bridge. Minor wear, mostly to the neck finish. Plays very well with the perfect deep, plunking "Papa Charlie" sound. Includes an original shaped hard case. Excellent Condition.