Glad to hear it Terry ......

Tom Lamb was a very important part of Trio Camp.

He was also a Kingston Trio ...PS Long-neck banjo guy.

It's a pretty unique group of people.

My friend, Tom McGoodwin was one of them...but, he was never at camp. I tried to get him to go with us… but, he wouldn’t.

In about 1986, Tom and I did go to Washington for the so-called 20 year anniversary of the Trio’s hit, Tom Dooley. There we met and talked to Dave, Nick and John. Here’s a photo that I took of Dave playing Tom’s banjo, that Tom had him autograph.

(Can't get it to work)

People who got Vega PS banjos were always in a class by themselves.

They were Pete and Dave's Disciples.

The Vega PS Long-neck banjo also became a big part of who these people were and who they'd always be.

Their banjos became another part of their bodies like an arm or a leg ... plus much more because it could speak for them and express feelings no words could ever convey.

If you think of Pete Seeger ... you automatically think BANJO!!!

If the 1950s, and 1960s folk revival had a symbol to represent it ...it had to be the Vega PS Banjo.

Pete, Dave and The Kingston Trio made this happen and it was followed by Alex of the Limeliters, and so on....

Vega of Boston is gone... First, Martin bought the company. Now, the name and the brand is owned by Deering. Here you can order one …

https://www.deeringbanjos.com/collections/long-neck-banjos

But, it won’t have a Vega Tubaphone rim. That’s where the magic came from …

However, the truth of the matter is …how often are you going to need those 3 extra frets?

Keeping the darn things in tune is a pain.

When Tom and I saw Dave in 1986, he’d switched to a Bluegrass Gibson Mastertone.

George’s newest banjo has only one extra fret.

I’m left-handed … I’ve NEVER seen or heard of a left-handed Vega PS Long Neck. My guess is that they had to make some…

Of course, there are tons of left-handed Bluegrass banjos.

You can easily get one from Deering.

But, I was very lucky and was able to get a 1930s Vega Plectrum … with a tubaphone rim and a resonator… close enough for me and easily made left-handed.

I’m certainly glad that Tom was able to get his banjo back.

I don’t know if he has kids … but, if he has them, I suspect that after his wife ands his kids … he values his PS Long-Neck banjo most of all.

How well does life go in the absence of such things?

It’s hard. I’m a car guy and this was my biggest connection to Shane, who was a big car guy. Like Shane …. There were cars that were a very big part of my life. That I wish I still had.

In about 1979, I found a used 1966 left-handed Martin D-28. Brazilian Rosewood … you know … in 2020, COVID-19 put us out of business. We were desperate for rent money. So, I had to sell it … for a fraction of its value. Well, arthritis had preventing me from playing it. It was useless to me. So, it made sense to sell it. But, it had been a big part of my life for …. 40+ years. It was my connection to the kind of music that was and still is a big part of my life.

Well, the good news is … I still have my first D-28. The one I got that my father paid for in 1965. But, I had it put back right-handed so Jackee’s father could play it. So, I can’t play it. But, what I do have is my 1959 Left-handed Tenor. That I can still strum a little bit. Haven’t changed the strings in 15 years…. Got a set in the case…

https://photobucket.com/bucket/d24e74f7-fe56-46e5-aba7-e509b162d322/media/48919418-0e60-4d05-b60f-cba7935d1b1a

After the first time I saw “The New Kingston Trio” with Bob, Pat and Jim at one of their shows ... I asked Shane how he was … he said, “I just hate getting old!” Bob didn’t know what old was then… at 80 … I’m starting to get the same feeling….