Gibson Mastertone: Flathead 5-String Banjos of the 1930s and 1940s

This book shows detailed photographs and descriptions of the famous pre war Gibson five string banjos that collectors and Bluegrass players have desired for over fifty years. Mr. Mills' enthusiasm for these instruments is apparent in how he has researched each instrument. The beautiful color photographs (with detail and close ups) illustrate what Mr. Mills describes as he goes through the factory details and history of each banjo. Mr. Mills writing style is as if he is talking directly to the reader over a cup of coffee and his love and respect for these fine examples of instruments as art objects becomes quite convincing! If you reading about the history of the Gibson banjo, viewing great photography of rare instruments and the ephemera that goes with them, this book will make a great addition !

I just got interested in the banjo recently and even more recently decided to buy this book even though it's a little pricey. From the reviews here, it looks like no one has commented on the book in a couple of years--maybe the banjo craze is dying off? I would have bought the book sooner, but I was a little put off by the two less than 5-star reviews.I guess the book could have been written and edited and formatted a bit more professionally, but it's really not that bad. I was expecting a cut and paste job or something resembling a high-school yearbook and was pleasantly surprised to find a fairly attractive and well-written book.More importantly, the information contained here is what really counts. As a newcomer to banjo lore, it's been a real pleasure to read and look at the pictures. Any niggles about the details pale when you consider where else would you even FIND this kind of information?If you have any interest in playing, collecting or just learning about the legendary "pre-war flathead Mastertones" get it--you'll like it.

Jim Mills is one of, if not THE, leading expert on Prewar Gibson banjos. Every instrument has a story and Jim Mills relays the journey of each of these banjos in detail. It's a history lesson and premier photodocumentation of the most famous and interesting banjos that have came to surface from the prewar era. I also learned a lot about prewar banjo specs from this book. I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in bluegrass or wanting to learn more about the banjo in general.

Just received this product today. I have read some of the information contained and it is very well written and easy to understand the termonology used in this book. Jim Mills is not only a great wealth of information, but even better as a musician (banjo player). I really enjoy listening to his playing abilities. If you are a banjo player or banjo instrument lover, this book is an excellent book to have in your library. I would highly recommend this book.

Mills knows a lot about prewar Gibsons. This book only covers the original 5 string versions which are the most rare but much of the information relates to tenors as well. Since there are very few publications that cover prewar Gibsons in any detail, the information here is valuable and the book will be useful for many people. It is a shame that the photographs are marginal and the production values, typography and text composition are not very professional either. It would have been worthwhile for the author to do a better job on the photos and to have a professional edit and format the text.

Great book on prewar banjos. Can't imagine the hard work it took to put this together. Only Jim's love of the banjo and its history could produce this great product. Kudos to the photographer. Great to have this book for young banjo players to view the past for many years to come. Thanks Jim Mills.

I am glad Mr. Mills took the time/effort to record these various Gibson banjos for history.......the photography was excellent........and the stories of each banjo was interesting......I only wish that he would do a volume two...maybe even include some better post war models.

Totally enjoyed definetely keeper. Banjo porn!!

This is a very interesting book, and many important iconic banjos are covered (e.g. those of Earl Scruggs, Don Reno, J. D. Crowe, Snuffy Jenkins, etc).One thing that slightly disappointed me was that fact that the photos supplied are a bit random (e.g. some have photos of the tone ring, others don't, some are shown front & back on the title page for that banjo, others front only, etc), so occasionally you can't identify exactly what type of components have been used. If I had done it, I would have had a standard set of photos of every banjo, methodically showing all of the components/fixings used, all the inlays, wood grain, etc, then a few extra ones as necessary to show the bits that are unique to a particular banjo (e.g. signatures scratched in). The approach seems to have been to take 'some photos' of each banjo (though it has to be said, quite a few), so every now and then you may find there is a detail you'd like to see about a particular banjo, but it can't be seen in the particular photos supplied for that instrument.That said, still a very good book, giving interesting info about each banjo, including who owned it throughout its life (as far as is known).Recommended.

Been playing and teaching 5 String since the 1960s - this book is a great to have. Excellent text/stories and fabulous photos many full page. A must have for a Mastertone nut like me.

Jim Mills' enthusiasm brings these wonderful banjos to life.

C'est évidemment un ouvrage destiné aux spécialistes ou amateurs éclairés du banjo 5 cordes, banjo natif des Etats-Unis par excellence. Jim Mills, qui figure parmi les meilleurs dans ce domaine, nous éclaire sur une époque jusqu'ici peu claire de la production Gibson des années 30 et 40. Avec une approche originale, peu académique et très plaisante, il retrace l'histoire de ces banjos très recherchés - les Stradivarius du banjo - à partir de ceux qui subsistent et qu'il connaît (il en possède d'ailleurs plusieurs exemplaires). Il a voyagé à travers tous les Etats-Unis pour les photographier et recueillir tous les témoignages qu'il a pu. On y retrouve les banjos de Snuffy Jenkins, Sonny Osborne, Don Reno ou Earl Scruggs avec une foule d'informations qui dévoilent aussi l'aventure humaine que tout cela représente.Maintenant, j'en sais bien davantage sur les RB-4, RB-75 ou RB-Granada sur lesquels nous ne pourrons que fantasmer...

E' un " manuale storico" dei più famosi modelli del banjo per eccellenza "il gibson".Fa parte della cultura e dei sogni di qualunque banjoista.Da consigliare con foto ottime e descrizioni puntuali.