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By Dan Levenson
letterHi Folks, Happy New Year. As I write this we’re just settling in at our winter hangout in Yuma, AZ. There are lots of workshops scheduled out west this year and you just can’t beat the weather. Check out the full schedule by going to my website.

This is exciting. We are starting the third year of The Old Time Way! I have you to thank for making it such a success. This year starts off with several reviews of albums that came out this summer, as well as a feature on another great banjo builder, John Bowlin, written by our old friend, R.D. Lunceford. You also get a great tab of Charleston Girls as played by R.D. on his Bowlin banjo, from R.D.’s latest book project “Cotton Blossom,” which was reviewed last year. Reviews this month include recent CDs by Allen Hart, Paul Brown and Riley Baugus; albums that are all long overdue by their artists.

Bob Carlin has contributed a tab of his new tune Goldtone Blues and an update on the banjo that inspired it. The accompanying article gives us some more insight into how the BC 350 came about.

levensonPhotoIn future issues, I have features planned on David Holt, Andy Rubin, and Doc Huff as well as more CD reviews, with tabs, profiles and more. As always, your input is important as we go on to decide what to write about in the upcoming year. The best way to let us know what you would like and are enjoying (or not) is to sign in to our forums on The Banjo Hangout. You’ll find one specifically for our old-time articles as well as forums on virtually every topic in banjodom you can imagine. I have really enjoyed visiting with many of you there and am always amazed at how well run the site is. No politics, no “nasties”, just banjo and lots of it! Check it out at www.banjohangout.org.

I’ll close with a note about what has been playing in my CD player last year. I judge most albums by how how long they staying in the “playing” sequence, so here are a few albums you might enjoy: “Traditional Old- Time Fiddle Tunes” by The Cliffhangers (5 String 05004CD); “Clawhammer Banjo–1, 2 and 3,” (County 2716; 7; 8—you just got to have these); “Soon Be a Time” by Bruce Molsky (COM 4432—to be reviewed); “Steppin’ in the Boiler House” by Mark Schatz and Friends (Rounder 559—Wow, to be reviewed); “Pretty Little Dog” by Laura P. Schulman (no label. A surprise by an “unknown” talent. To be reviewed.); “And I in the Uttermost West” by The Freilachmakers (no label; andyrubin@comcast. net—clawhammer Klezmer! Review and feature coming this summer); “Fiddle Music Along a Great River,” Along Ohio’s Shores (ROU 544—yes, a fiddle CD but a great resource with 38 tunes!); “Essence of Old Kentucky” by Roger Cooper (ROU 533—another fiddle CD with lots of notso- often-heard tunes and quite a few others. 34 cuts!)

Well, that should keep you busy for a while, so again, thanks for making our second year of OTW a great success! Till next time, play nice. - Dan.

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   By R.D. Lunceford

letterW e are truly living in a golden age of banjos and banjo-makers. Along with such names as Ramsey, Reiter, Enoch, and Flesher, there are many other smaller makers that are turning out instruments that rival the most respected names in the business as far as quality, skill of execution, and design. One of the brightest stars in the banjomaking firmament today is that of luthier John Bowlin. John and I collaborated on a proto-type design of a mid-nineteenthcentury- style banjo that with his own subsequent refinements, evolved into the Model 1865 Bowlin Fretless Banjo. I was so pleased with the banjo John made for me that I recorded a complete album with it, entitled, “Cotton Blossom: 19th Century Banjo Tunes, Clawhammer Style” (by R.D. Lunceford, available with accompanying tab book from Elderly Instruments: www.elderly.com). To date, John has placed some of his fine instruments with players from coast to coast, and as...

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