In this video, top picker and prewar banjo enthusiast Jim Mills proudly introduces his latest find, a Gibson Mastertone PB-3 conversion from 1929-30.
After giving a brief overview of the banjo’s history (almost without taking a breath), Jim goes on to play J.D. Crowe’s arrangement of Red River Valley, one Crowe recorded with Jimmy Martin in 1966 on the Big And Country Instrumentals album, using a nearly identical instrument.