Just walked out of 5th String in Oakland with a 90+ year old instrument – a 1920s banjolele, with a wonderful nasally jazz sound. Thinking of the rooms it has played, the vibrations that have moved through this wood! Built like a tank, too. Maker unknown – lost to history. My first antique instrument.
A couple people asked for sound samples, so here you go – the first compares the banjolele to a modern Kamaka soprano, the other is just a few Velvet Underground riffs.
That sounds great! I never knew that the VU could sound so much like a parlor band.
may I ask what the damage was to your wallet?
the banjolele outclasses the pineapple, imho. way more character.
one nice thing about resonator (dobro-style) ukes and banjoleles is that without amplification they have at least a chance of holding up to much louder acoustic guitars in a jam situation.
xian, I sprung for it in part because I couldn’t believe how cheap it was – $150!
Yeah, the native amplification is pretty astounding. It won’t become my main play, that’s for sure (doesn’t feel very precise or consistent) but will be great for street parties, etc.