Talk:List of banjo players

Untitled

How do you rename a page? Banjo pickers don't call themselves "Banjoists".

Added Etta Baker and Gus Cannon to the list. --TheListeners

Ongoing removal of redlinks

Some people seem to mistakenly assume that "non-notable" and "red linked" are the same thing. But actually, there are plenty of notable people who simply do not have entries yet; in time, I would expect that many of these articles would be created. You may notice that WP:NN does not say anything about red links. Note the following from the beginning of WP:RED:

Sometimes it is useful to create a red link to indicate that an article will be created soon or that an article should be created for the topic because it is about an important, verifiable subject.

WP:LISTS does not prohibit including red links either. What is the justification for getting rid of these links? Dsreyn 12:02, 28 June 2007 (UTC)

This list is no different than any other musician list. All are slowly being wiped clean of High School band members and "never-been, never-will-be" local barband nobodys. NN'd not req'd. It's an encyclopedia(or tries to be) despite all the damage done by wiki-inclusionists. Keep it clean. If you are trying to list your own name amongst the nn's, make an article about yourself first. 156.34.142.110 12:27, 28 June 2007 (UTC)

These are not "high school band members" of "local barband nobodys", and I am not including myself on the list. There certainly might be a few NN names among those you deleted, but you have removed a number of banjo players who are well known performers with multiple albums to their credit. Once again, there is no policy that prohibits including redlinks. Please cite a policy that justifies your action. I also suggest you read Wikipedia:Categories vs lists, particularly noting the following:

Categories can't include page names that don't exist yet. Lists can. Redlinks are useful as gap indicators and as task reminders (to create those articles).

There is similar language in WP:CLS in the section "Advantages of lists". Dsreyn 13:15, 28 June 2007 (UTC)

Why not add "Only add names here if the person has their own article - anything else will be removed." I did this on a few other lists such as List of guitarists; cleaned up the red & black links and have found it much easier to manage. I've also noticed more people getting involved in editing and cleaning up these pages; whereas last year they were just a list of jumbled up names and info. It does say "notable musicians" so maybe cutting all the red links would be a good idea, no need for extra info added next to the names either; that can be found on the banjo players page (if they have one.) INXS-Girl 14:43, 28 June 2007 (UTC)

The top of the article starts with "Notable musicians who play the banjo include:". I guess I'm having trouble understanding why people want to equate the lack of an article with a lack of notability. Plenty of notable people in various areas of interest don't have articles yet. For example, there are many former major league baseball players (see, for example, Boston Red Sox all-time roster), National Hockey League players, etc., who do not have articles. Does that mean that they aren't notable, or just that nobody has written the articles yet? Picking a few examples of names that were removed here: Ken Perlman has recorded six or seven albums, is a long-standing columnist (20+ years) for Banjo Newsletter, and has published several well-known instructional books as well as a book on the traditional fiddle music of Prince Edward Island; Alan Munde has over 20 recordings, plus a number of instruction books and DVD's; Samuel Swain Stewart is a well known publisher and banjo maker from the late 1800s. This is why I object when someone apparently unfamiliar with the topic comes along and deletes everything assuming "no article = no notability", and referring to the subjects as "high school band members" or "local barband nobodys". I do agree that there's no need to include extra info next to the names; that just clutters up the list. Dsreyn 15:19, 28 June 2007 (UTC)

If there are any links to players who are notable then they should be listed here on this talk page with a request to create articles for them. Also, the list is abundant with "guitarists who touched/played a banjo for 5 minutes". They, like nn's, need to be removed from the list. It should be a resource. Right now it's a school band roster. With some concensus as to what cleanup needs to be "re-done" perhaps an attempt to "re-cleanup" can be initiated on the weekend. All of the "red" players should be copied to a list on this talk page and all the main article reds need to be deleted ASAP. Once a clean list has been restored. An effort can be put forth to create articles for the truly "notable" red links listed here. A request can be made to the Guitarist Project to assist as many of that projects members are actually 'multi-stringed instrument' players whose editing experience can help flesh out the list. Eventually the list can be as good as some of the other player lists. 156.34.142.110 15:03, 28 June 2007 (UTC)

Comments like "right now it's a school band roster" seem to suggest a lack of familiarity with the topic. I apologize if this is not the case, but this makes me question how you can judge notability if you apparently haven't heard of the well-known people listed here. I agree with your point about guitar players who have dabbled with the banjo; it seems like we ought to add something at the top of the page indicating that the list is for people who play banjo as their primary instrument (or for multi-instrumentalists who play a significant amount of the time). In any case, I urge you to read the guideline on red links at WP:RED if you have not done so already. There is no "need" to remove red links from the main article. Dsreyn 15:28, 28 June 2007 (UTC)

The List of Telecaster players is an excellent example of how a "list" can be more than just a list. That featured article was built by several diligent editors whose first task was to strip the article down to almost nothing and then build it back into an excellent companion piece to the main Telecaster article. Many of the players stripped off of the main list and onto the talk page were the most notable Tele players on the list. But, over time they were added back in a more appropriate way. Articles were created for the notable red links. And quotes concerning use, history, skill and influence were found to add to the piece(along with verifiable refs). Pics were added in and... boom... Featured list status. It didn't happen overnight. And it took a lot of "rm the fanboy faves" to do get it right. And it takes a lot a rv's to keep it at that level. The same thing can be done with this list, along with every other player list. This one is almost easier than some of the other lists like guitarists, bassists and drummers because it will be much much shorter. Step 1... kill the red. Step 2... re-build with the following tips: As Dsreyn states... people who play banjo as their primary instrument"; Notabilty based on verifiable cites; 1 sentence blurbs as to why their are "special"; refs, refs, refs; and a pic or 2 to flesh it out (Earl, Bela, Pete...whoever... as long as they're freebees). It really has potential to be an excellent resource. But it isn't one right now. All in due time. 156.34.142.110 16:36, 28 June 2007 (UTC)

There has clearly been no consensus established here, and keeping red links is consisent with Wikipedia editing guidelines as already mentioned above. See also WP:RED, which among other things, states the following in the section "Dealing with existing red links":

In topic lists, it is useful to include every topic on the subject you can possibly find or think of. When they are turned into links, the list immediately shows where the gaps in Wikipedia's coverage for that subject are, since all of the topics missing articles will show up in red. Such lists are useful tools in developing subject areas on Wikipedia, as they show where work is needed most.

Please cite guidelines that prohibit or discourage red links before further removal is done. "I don't like red links" is not an appropriate justification for removing them. Dsreyn 00:40, 13 July 2007 (UTC)

If one reviews the concensus dicussion for the guitarist project which has filtered over to other musician discussion groups, the "high school band" lists were both unencyclopedic and invalid resources in support of the list's companion "intrument" articles. It has been agreed on many fronts that more positive work is done if the musicians lacking articles are kept on the discussion page where more dedicated editors can keep track of them. Simply sticking them "in the main" has long since proven ineffective for prompting article creation. And with this positive agenda ongoing, lists like the Telecaster player list or the newer, WIP, List of Stratocaster players is slowly building into something substantial. These talk originated from the guitarist project but, since many in that large membership are "other" players it is moving from instrument to intrument... drums, keyboards, bass etc. and encyclopedia article are being born in pages where nn lists once stood. 156.34.216.32 00:58, 13 July 2007 (UTC)

This is an ongoing work in progress, please do not undo the work of others. 156.34.216.32 00:45, 13 July 2007 (UTC)

See WP:OWN. I am allowed to edit other people's work without their permission. This is a fundamental concept on Wikipedia, and if you have a problem with it, this probably isn't the place for you. The fact that you don't like my edits doesn't make them vandalism. Dsreyn 00:52, 13 July 2007 (UTC)

You have a list of banjo players that does not include Steve Sparkman. You have an article that states not to add players who do not already have wikipedia articles. Steve Sparkman does not have an article on wikipedia about him. Steve Sparkman ONLY released two albums BEFORE he replaced Ralph Stanley in Stanley's band at Stanley's request. Steve Sparkman then went on to win a Grammy for his part in Ralph Stanley's band. I added him myself. Some serious problems with this whole list. I mean, come on editors, get it together. You're looking pathetic here.Daniel Sparkman (talk) 14:21, 26 February 2012 (UTC)

When positive contribution by multiple editors is suddently undone by one editor there really isn't any other words to better describe it. See the section below for ongoin work on this article. 156.34.222.2 01:16, 13 July 2007 (UTC)

Dsreyn are you 24.128.153.211 / 24.61.251.102? INXS-Girl 10:23, 14 July 2007 (UTC)

Articles to be created

Here are the entries from the main list who require article creation. If a page passing WP:BIO can be started the names can be struck from this list and re-added to the main player list. If the entries are truly non-notable then the name can be removed from this list right away. Igout Abdelhadi, Tom Adams, Clarence "Tom" Ashley, David Bandrowski, Janet Beazley, Perry Bechtel, Clayton Bell, John Boulding, Kieran "Bucky" Buchanan, Howie Bursen, Greg Cahill, Dean Campbell, Gaither Carlton, Ed Cuneo, Ollie Crafter, Janet Rice Davis, Toby Denham, Doug Dillard, Mike Dolan Jr., Andrew Dunlop, Pat Dutro, Curtis Eller, Albert 'Papa' French, Bob Flesher, Samuel Garigliano, Håkon Gebhart, Creole George Guesnon, Smith Hammett, Tyler Jackson, Buell Kazee, Bill Keith, Zale Kennedy, Walt Koken, Jens Krüger, Emile "Stalebread" Lacoume, Eden Latham, Scott Mabry, Gary "Chops" MacConnie, Steve Mandell, Reed Martin, Doug Mattocks, Seamus McMahon, Joe Morley, Reverend Jeff Mosier, Alan Munde, Howie "Wicked Fingers" Nielson, Damien O'Kane, Michele "Mike" Ortuso, Larry Passalacqua, Ken Perlman, Eugene Pingitore, Banjo Ikey Robinson, Art Rosenbaum, William Runkle, Emanuel Sayles, Woody Simmons, Doc Souchon, Donald F. Stevison, Samuel Swain Stewart, Sam Sweeney, Charlie Tagawa, Bobby Thompson (musician), Fred Van Eps, Scott Vestal, Wim van de Weg,Katharine Whalen, Scott Avett.

This is such a good idea - the page looks great. Well done INXS-Girl 11:22, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

Clarence "Tom" Ashley has a page under Clarence Ashley so I've put him back on the list. INXS-Girl 17:50, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

First off, my apologies for not reading this BEFORE I made any edits.

Next, I would like to nominate Tim Allan (musician), Ken Aoki, Arno Hagenaars, Dave Marty, Marvin "Smokey" Montgomery, Sean Moyses, Cathy Reilly, Sandy Riner, Georgette Twain, and Don Van Palta to the "Articles to be created" list.

I am volunteering to create the articles for Doug Mattocks and Buddy Wachter. Both are friends and I have direct access to them.

NEWBIE---> Scalhotrod (talk) 00:32, 10 August 2010 (UTC)

Welcome aboard. Bear in mind, though, that "direct access" can be two-edged — in particular, material that you gather in personal interviews can't be used. Everything must be supported by Reliable Sources. Take a while to read the introductory material, especially WP:V, WP:RS, and WP:OR. The last says you can't use your own Original Research as a source. Happy editing, once you work through the alphabet soup. PhGustaf (talk) 00:42, 10 August 2010 (UTC)

Thank you PhGustaf, I appreciate the advice. I am planning to use my relationship with these gentlemen in the hope that they can point me towards other available resource than just the internet. Scalhotrod (talk) 01:06, 10 August 2010 (UTC)

---

Anyone against including Bill Lowrey on the list? He's been a headliner on the professional circuit for more than a decade.

Done. If he already has his own article, it's a no-brainer. PhGustaf (talk) 06:05, 25 August 2010 (UTC)

Thank you PhGustaf, much appreciated. Scalhotrod (talk) 06:21, 25 August 2010 (UTC)

priority list to be created

• Raymond Fairchild
• Dewitt Jenkins
• Oren Jenkins
• Steve Lutke
• Bobby Thompson
• Buddy Wachter

someone really needs to at least put something in the article about Buddy Wachter..he`s been around a long time and a lot of people say he`s the best 4 string player in the world..that it really comes down to him on 4 string and Bela Fleck on 5 string...it`s pretty strange he`s not at least mentioned in this article. Lonepilgrim007 (talk) 16:03, 3 December 2013 (UTC)

I talked to Buddy several years ago at the Sacramento BanjoRama and asked him to send me a list of articles that I could use as references. While he's a prolific performance and has many impressive accolades to his name, its not easy to get info about him that isn't WP:OR or a primary source. Maybe we should just piece together what we can to get any kind of article up. --Scalhotrod - Just your average banjo playing, drag racing, cowboy... (talk) 18:47, 3 December 2013 (UTC)

I really don`t know what to say about this..I worked in a pizza parlor with him and a pianist named Ray Nelson..I was just an employee..I`m not his manager or anything..I just know he is very good...played Carnegie Hall a while back I think..he`s very good and very well known in banjo circles..he really should be in the article somewhere..I`ve been trying to track him down for years but he won`t answer an e-mail..if you are reading this Buddy I`m studying the Mickey Baker jazz method..would like to talk..thanks. Lonepilgrim007 (talk) 20

50, 7 March 2014 (UTC)

Inclusion criteria.

I have removed the link to WP:Notable, it is a WP:Selfref, and have added the caveat from the discussion above that it be a significant part of their output. Please feel free to improve that wording.

My attention has been brought to this page, and the ongoing dispute. It seems to me that there are a number of misconceptions. Firstly, there is nothing wrong with red-links¹, nor with having unlinked members of the list. However there is cartainly a case for challenging the notability of any given artist - as somoen mentioned this can be substatited with references. The fundamental question is wheather to remove all unreferenced material, or allow time (how much?) for references to be supplied. As someone who works on the maintenance categories the dilemma is sharpened as I see that vast amount of material that needs supporting, but is, nevertheless, valuable. IN this case it seems to me that the list is/was

1. Generated in good faith.
2. Populated by knowledgeable editors.

Threfore I would suggest leaving the names in, but unlinked, while references are sought.

Regards Rich Farmbrough, 14:39 16 July 2007 (GMT).

^1. Except that red-links to people often become blue when somoene of the same name has an article created.

RF. 14:39, 16 July 2007 (UTC)

That would all work fine provided editors actually followed up on the redlinks and created articles for them. Unfortunately, time has proven that this doesn't happen and the list becomes just another useless Wiki-article of which there are already too many. Multiple users, including one of the most active music related Wiki:project as a whole, have determined the better process for creating these lists is to build them off of the discussion page. And its a process that's working and has resulted in formerly useless lists becoming featured articles. Notability is governed by WP:BIO, WP:BAND, WP:MUSIC etc. Anyone who meets the criteria laid out in those guidelines can have an article created for them and then be added to their appropriate list. It's a process thats working well and many lists are being transformed from 'high school band rosters' into verifiable/reliable resources. 156.34.142.110 15:04, 16 July 2007 (UTC)

I suggest following Rich's suggestion - include the notable players that do not have articles, and by all means, eliminate any non-notable individuals that were previously included. As has already been mentioned, what you (156.34.142.110) are proposing goes against well-established Wikipedia editing guidelines. Furthermore, there is nothing that suggests to me that including unlinked or redlinked entries renders such a list "useless". On the contrary, it seems that the list is much less useful if it omits widely known, notable players (for example, Alan Munde) simply because those people do not have articles yet. Dsreyn 17:18, 17 July 2007 (UTC)

Are suggesting perhaps moving the "priority to be created list" which is already on this talk page onto the main page as a sub-list? As a compromise I am not totally against that idea. At least it keeps the "to be's" lumped together for easy tracking and quick googling for notability. I believe "screening" should be done on the talk page rather than the the main page. But I am open to hear if others think a sub-redlist on the main page is a good plan. I would like to wait for comment from other interested editors... one of whom is on a temp. wiki-break.... just to see what other ideas are. This isn't so much about guidelines so much as it is Wiki's prior history of "failed good faith". The idea that a redlink will prompt a noble editor to step up and create an article is all fine and good. But it simply doesn't happen that way. The "AGF that redlinks promote creation" test has long since failed and many editors, incl. one of the most active music related projects Wiki has, have said enough is enough... let's find a better way. And that's where the "working lists" on the talk pages came about. Fly-by editors simply don't do what our "guidelined AGF" tells us to sit back and wait for them to "do". Regular editors working as a team are the ones who get things done... done right... and done with some amount of quality, credibility and verifiabilty. It's almost a project unto itself. The Wikiproject:List notability.I know, I know... bad name :D Anyone else with a comment? 156.34.142.110 17:53, 17 July 2007 (UTC)

Weed Out

I've just gone through every link correcting links and disambiguations, removing non-notable banjo players (the criteria I used was that if no banjo was mentioned in their article or if their banjo playing was incidental to their main notability then I deleted the entry), removed obvious non-banjo players (politicians etc). I've also removed some notable banjo players who didn't have their own links (the link was to their band) but I've added them to the articles TBC section above. I now await the flak :) WebHamster 08:50, 8 August 2007 (UTC)

Articles to be created - reorganzied

After the amount of discussion about who need articles created, this is just a cleanup of an earlier section.

priority list to be created

• Raymond Fairchild
• Dewitt Jenkins
• Oren Jenkins
• Steve Lutke
• Bobby Thompson
• Buddy Wachter

accumulated list of articles

Here are the entries from the main list who require article creation. If a page passing WP:BIO can be started the names can be struck from this list and re-added to the main player list. If the entries are truly non-notable then the name can be removed from this list right away. I have removed the banjoists that now have articles.

Igout Abdelhadi Tim Allan (musician) Ken Aoki David Bandrowski Janet Beazley Perry Bechtel Clayton Bell John Boulding Kieran "Bucky" Buchanan Howie Bursen Greg Cahill Dean Campbell Ed Cuneo Ollie Crafter Janet Rice Davis Toby Denham Skip Devol Mike Dolan Jr. Andrew Dunlop Pat Dutro Jim Farquhar (banjoist) Albert 'Papa' French Bob Flesher Samuel Garigliano Håkon Gebhart Creole George Guesnon Smith Hammett Arno Hagenaars Tyler Jackson Zale Kennedy Walt Koken Jens Krüger Emile "Stalebread" Lacoume Eden Latham Carl Le Blanc Scott Mabry Gary "Chops" MacConnie Steve Mandell Reed Martin Doug Mattocks (musician) Dave Marty Marvin "Smokey" Montgomery Reverend Jeff Mosier Sean Moyses Howie "Wicked Fingers" Nielson Michele "Mike" Ortuso Larry Passalacqua Ken Perlman Eugene Pingitore Art Rosenbaum Cathy Reilly Sandy Riner William Runkle Brian Scheinhoft Woody Simmons Steve Sparkman Donald F. Stevison Samuel Swain Stewart Bobby Thompson (musician) Takashi Tsunoda Georgette Twain Patrick van Koot Don Van Paulta Don Vappie Scott Vestal Wim van de Weg Clem Vickery Katharine Whalen

--Scalhotrod - Just your average banjo playing, drag racing, cowboy... (talk) 16:24, 16 May 2014 (UTC)

Rash of new, questionable names?!?!

Hey Folks, I will admit that I have not been as active on WP as of late, but what's with the "second tier" or b-grade banjo players that are being added lately? Spot checks have revealed that they all play the banjo, but whether its their primary creative output seems debatable. I removed Kermit the Frog simply because he's not a real person. I think once we cross this line, the list's integrity is lost. --Scalhotrod - Just your average banjo playing, drag racing, cowboy... (talk) 15:24, 26 September 2011 (UTC)

Celebrities that play the banjo

Any thoughts on adding another section of celebrities that are banjo players? It would clean up the main list and give a home to many of the questionable entries on the list who have articles, but aren't major banjo players. OK, Steve Martin is a bit of an anomaly, because he plays so much.--Scalhotrod - Just your average banjo playing, drag racing, cowboy... (talk) 04:24, 10 February 2013 (UTC)

I like how you phrase it "plays so much". ;^)

Steve Martin really shouldn`t even be in this part of the article..he is a celebrity but then again so was Earl Scruggs..there are a lot of people getting into bluegrass today who really only know about him because of his involvement with music..he`s played banjo in his act since the beginning of his career and currently is pretty much a working musician not a star who just does it as a side project..I`m not saying he`s the greatest banjo player in the world but he`s pretty good..this would be like adding Jerry Garcia to the list..what about Pete Townshend? they pretty much started on the banjo. Lonepilgrim007 (talk) 16:20, 3 December 2013 (UTC)

I think such a section would be okay. It could list John Lennon, for instance. Binksternet (talk) 04:34, 10 February 2013 (UTC)

I`m a beatles fan and I didn't even know Lennon played the banjo..really don't know what to say about a musician who played the banjo now and then..seems to me ideally there should be a separate list for musicians who have played it on a few records but it`s not their primary instrument..or maybe a list of music played on the banjo...idk...the problem seems to me to be is people are confusing the terms celebrity and working musician. Lonepilgrim007 (talk) 21:30, 7 March 2014 (UTC)

Cool, thank you for the endorsement Bink! :) Lennon, wow, didn't know that...--Scalhotrod - Just your average banjo playing, drag racing, cowboy... (talk) 05:00, 10 February 2013 (UTC)

Bink, do you think it should be at the top or bottom of the list? Having it at the top gets a little more attention for the list and gives it IMHO a bit more flair. Having it at the bottom makes it inclusive, but not "in your face" inviting every yahoo and seemingly GF editor to add a name like they've been trying to do with the main list. Your thoughts? --Scalhotrod - Just your average banjo playing, drag racing, cowboy... (talk) 16:41, 26 March 2013 (UTC)

The bottom, because the focus should be on career banjoists. Binksternet (talk) 16:49, 26 March 2013 (UTC)

Works for me... :) So basically just replicate the the same format, but make a "second section" "==Primary banjo players==" and "==Celebrity banjo players=="? Think we should add a "mini-lead to explain the difference? --Scalhotrod - Just your average banjo playing, drag racing, cowboy... (talk) 16:49, 1 April 2013 (UTC)

Yes; go for it. Binksternet (talk) 17:02, 1 April 2013 (UTC)

OK, one more thing occurred to me. I'm moving forward, but I still want to run this idea by you. Given the two lists, the priority would appear to be to place someone on the Primary list if they qualify for both. For example, Earl Scruggs who is a banjo player and a celebrity that plays the banjo, my inclination would be to place him solely on the Primary list. The justification being that as a musician his primary output was through the banjo. Yes, he attained celebrity status and the fact that it was in part due to playing the banjo (via the "Beverly Hill Billies" theme and such), but he's a musician first and foremost. Make sense, kind of? --Scalhotrod - Just your average banjo playing, drag racing, cowboy... (talk) 05:31, 2 April 2013 (UTC)

I agree and would certainly keep Scruggs in the first section. Binksternet (talk) 15:13, 2 April 2013 (UTC)

 Done

Look OK so far? I added a few names and moved some of the obvious ones from the main list. One of these days I'll start doing searches so that more can be populated into the Celebrity section. --Scalhotrod - Just your average banjo playing, drag racing, cowboy... (talk) 04:37, 9 April 2013 (UTC)

Seems like there are some musicians in the Celebrity section and some celebrities in the Musicians section. While of course John Lennon and Taylor Swift aren't known primarily for their banjo playing, they are primarily musicians, and Steve Martin is primarily an actor who happens to also be a very good banjo player. I understand the "primary output" phrase, but if you're going to call the sections "celebrities" and "musicians", that should be the distinction, not how good they are, or else you might as well name the sections "people who play the banjo a lot" and "people who play the banjo a little bit". Anomonymity (talk) 05:06, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

There is no "one perfect definition". There are people who primarily are known for playing the banjo and then there are famous people who also happen to play the banjo. Are there those that fit both categories as has been discussed above, yes. It's judgement call on each one. Is your only issue with the list just with Steve Martin's placement? --Scalhotrod - Just your average banjo playing, drag racing, cowboy... (talk) 06:15, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

Jerry Garcia should be on the primary list if he isn`t already not the celebrity list...love him or hate him he was a full time musician and played a lot of banjo..as far as I know Old and In the Way is one of the biggest selling bluegrass records of all time..besides he wasn`t really much of a celebrity..he never did TV or movies for the most part..arguably Neil Young and Peter Tork too as they are both musicians believe it or not although banjo was never either their primary instrument. Lonepilgrim007 (talk) 21:30, 7 March 2014 (UTC)

Its basically a gray area. The fact that they are on either list acknowledges that they are banjo players, but its pretty clear that over their careers that the banjo was far from the most significant part of it. When they played and when they became famous really aren't taken into consideration as it just invites debate and complicates the list. --Scalhotrod - Just your average banjo playing, drag racing, cowboy... (talk) 19:44, 8 March 2014 (UTC)

I agree and I have no intention of debating this..in Garcia`s case however the dead alienated a huge section of society while at the same time attracting millions of followers...a lot of people don`t know that he pretty much started on banjo..those of us hard core fans did see him as a multi-instrumentalist..he was a good steel guitar player at one point too..they started as a bluegrass style jug band and he has always said in interviews he was much more serious about the banjo then the guitar when he was studying it..I see him as a guitarist who played banjo rather than a celebrity who did..btw Buddy told me on numerous occasions that he started out as a jazz guitarist who switched to banjo..I think his website says it was mandolin..I agree though there is no point in making any of this over complicated. Lonepilgrim007 (talk) 22:43, 8 March 2014 (UTC)

The whole "banjo to guitar" thing is decently common. If you read the Charlie Tagawa article, it basically says the same thing. Plus some of the best "banjo players" I've ever known have used guitar tuning on plectrum banjos. The Garcia article seems to do a good job of bringing attention to his banjo playing. Buddy is a talented guy, I always enjoy chatting with him. --Scalhotrod - Just your average banjo playing, drag racing, cowboy... (talk) 01:07, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

Is there a reason Rhiannon Giddens is not included.

She plays more kinds of banjos, and knows more about the history of banjos and banjo-playing than anyone else I am familiar with. Drbb01 (talk) 23:00, 25 January 2024 (UTC)

 Done! Thank you for the suggestion. Patrick. ツ Pdebee.^{(talk)(become old-fashioned!)} 15:27, 26 January 2024 (UTC)

@Pdebee Thanks! Drbb01 (talk) 10:51, 30 January 2024 (UTC)