Bill Monroe's Mandolin: When Mr. Monroe was 21 years old

[DataNick]

Bill Monroe's grandson, James William Monroe II, posted this picture up on facebook of Bill Monroe at age 21. Mr. Monroe is holding an oval hole mandolin that looks to me like some type of Gibson.

Perhaps the experts here can ID it. His grandson would appreciate any info that could be gleaned.

[FLATROCK HILL]

Too much glare on the headstock to see the script style (if any), but it looks like a snakehead straight A model to me.

[allenhopkins]

Looks like an early-'20's "snakehead" Gibson A-1, if I am correct making out black finish, single ring of soundhole purfling.

I'm sure keener eyes and greater expertise will correct me if I'm wrong.

[pheffernan]

I'm no expert, but it sure looks like one of the late Loar era blacktop snakehead A models much like the one I own.

[Tobin]

That hair... LOL! I keep trying to look at the mandolin, but his haircut keeps drawing my eyes away.

Yup, definitely a Gibson snakehead, but I can't get any more specific than that.

[DataNick]

That hair... LOL! I keep trying to look at the mandolin, but his haircut keeps drawing my eyes away...

Just goes to show you that at age 21, all of us were pretty much a little bit "hell bent for leather"...LOL!

[Tom Coletti]

I wonder how history would have differed if he kept the A1...

"They arrived at the bluegrass jam with a scroll AND f-holes! Oh, the sacrilege!"

"Nah, that Feb. 18th F5 is overvalued. Shouldn't be over $2K in a reasonable offer. Oh, but that A1? I'd pay $250K for that thing, man!"

"Well, it has some top sinkage and large cracks at the transverse brace, but still, for $50,000 and a bit of work, that's a steal!"

"What did Lloyd Loar even do, again? Made that frilly thing with the strap hook? Meh."

--Tom

[BradKlein]

Yeaaahhh... I don't think so, Tom.

[BradKlein]

Now if he'd been able to keep that hair... THAT would have changed music history!

[AlanN]

That ain't Bill, it's Larry from The 3 Stooges.

[Emmett Marshall]

That hair... LOL! I keep trying to look at the mandolin, but his haircut keeps drawing my eyes away.

I think the hair is a definite sign of musical genius. Have you seen Dawg's hair, or Mike Marshall's hair, or Thile's hair? There must be something to it.

[Tobin]

So does anybody know where his snakehead ended up?

[Ivan Kelsall]

From AlanN - "That ain't Bill, it's Larry from The 3 Stooges.". Alan,i was thinking exactly the same thing !!. I'd have liked to have seen those guys playing Bluegrass - still funny even today,
Ivan

[Steve VandeWater]

I wonder how history would have differed if he kept the A1...

"They arrived at the bluegrass jam with a scroll AND f-holes! Oh, the sacrilege!"

"Nah, that Feb. 18th F5 is overvalued. Shouldn't be over $2K in a reasonable offer. Oh, but that A1? I'd pay $250K for that thing, man!"

"Well, it has some top sinkage and large cracks at the transverse brace, but still, for $50,000 and a bit of work, that's a steal!"

"What did Lloyd Loar even do, again? Made that frilly thing with the strap hook? Meh."

--Tom

I'm sure you meant this as a joke, but I think you are right on the money with this.

[Givson]

Larry Fine played the violin.

[JeffD]

I'm sure you meant this as a joke, but I think you are right on the money with this.

It is an interesting thought. I don't think the answer is clear black and white. Assuming that Bill developed the mandolin's role in Bluegrass exactly the same way (big assumption), it is not inconceivable at some point he would try and F5 and be able to tell it is more suited to his style of playing.

If we forego the assumption, would could envision the possibility that the role of the mandolin in bluegrass to develop slightly differently, such that the oval hole and its advantages were predominant.

Or not.

Cool picture.

[Jeff Mando]

That hair... LOL! I keep trying to look at the mandolin, but his haircut keeps drawing my eyes away.

Looks like the dude from Simply Red. Or rather, he looks like a young Monroe!

[allenhopkins]

Bill Monroe was born in 1911, so he would have been 21 in 1932. He was already living in Indiana, and playing professionally, at least part-time. That year he and brother Charlie took jobs as professional square dancers for WLS; within a couple years the Monroe Brothers were full-time musicians, working at a variety of radio stations, and Bill probably had acquired the F-7 Gibson he played up until he bought his Loar (he also played an Epiphone, quite possibly a variety of mandolins).

The Monroe Brothers' first available recordings date from around 1936, and Bill's playing already shows signs of the distinct style he was to develop. I have the Monroe Brothers double-LP set that RCA reissued, and the mandolin on it is pretty definitely an f-hole Gibson by sound, so I'm assuming it's the F-7.

Whatever happened to the "snakehead" in the pic, it probably was sold or traded, or just left behind. It would be wonderful to find it and to learn its provenance, but I doubt that's a possibility. Maybe someone's playing it now, with no idea of its history -- hope so, anyway.

[sprucetop1]

That's a great photo. Assuming that is Charlie Monroe top left....what brand of guitar is he holding? Could it be a Larson Bros with the wide top binding and those headstock and bridge inlays?

[BradKlein]

Assuming that is Charlie Monroe top left....what brand of guitar is he holding? Could it be a Larson Bros...

I was wondering if it might be a Weymann like Jimmy Rodgers' famous guitar. JR must have loomed large in Charlie's imagination.

[Dave Hicks]

Now if he'd been able to keep that hair... THAT would have changed music history!

[Mandoplumb]

I think the hair is a definite sign of musical genius. Have you seen Dawg's hair, or Mike Marshall's hair, or Thile's hair? There must be something to it.

And here I've been struggling to become a great mandolin player and find out there's no hope for an almost bald man.

[Cheryl Watson]

I was thinking the same thing, exactly, but hesitated to say it--LOL!!!

That ain't Bill, it's Larry from The 3 Stooges.

[mandroid]

The rest of the family definitely was showing the future hairline that ran in the gene pool..

[Folkmusician.com]

That hair... LOL! I keep trying to look at the mandolin, but his haircut keeps drawing my eyes away.

haha... that is the first thing I was drawn to as well!