Music

Toward the end of the Jazz Age, Gibson took banjo design over the top with the All-American. The resonator, headstock and neck heel were carved with an eagle motif, the pearloid fingerboard was hand-tinted with historical scenes, and the gold-plated metal parts were elaborately engraved. It carried a list price in 1929 of $550. With the introduction of the All-American came the Great Depression, and Gibson only made an estimated 25 AA's over the next decade. This All-American from 1930 was fitted with a flat-head tone ring. (All other known examples, except the very first AA, have an archtop ring.) The ring weighs 3 lbs, 2.9 oz. Has a tube and one-piece flange.  This banjo is completely original. A custom truss rod cover bears the original owner's name - Phil Drake. Phil played his AA enough to wear off most of the scenes on the fingerboard and the finish on the back of the neck. Check out the image of Phil in his Navy days.