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Photo by Pamela Zilly

You can purchase the Old Time Banjo CD directly from Reed. Send $15.00 to:

Reed Martin

6431 79th Street

Cabin John, Maryland 20818

or through Elderly Instruments, County Sales and House of Musical Traditions!

The old time banjo world is a divided one with devotees of the Round Peak style in one corner, Galaxers in another (nearby) corner, Hammonds family followers (WV) holding their ground, melodic players and many others hunkered down defending their turf and defining everyone by their own parochial picking pecking order. Reed Martin is one of the few players who seems capable of crossing these borders unmolested and leaving a trail of dropped jaws and incredulous stares in his wake. Though his style is distinct and does not follow the tenents of any single area or group, his experience and firsthand knowledge of the old players that are the godheads of the old time faithful, and the undeniable truth that lies at the heart of his music seem to make him welcome in most camps and an honored and perhaps revered character in many.

Born in 1946 in Bloomington Indiana, Reed's early years were spent exploring the dirt roads and meeting the people who inhabited the nooks and crannies of the surrounding countryside. His childhood reads like a Rob Reiner coming-of-age movie script populated with colorful characters, unpredictable animals and solemn rituals that would seem like fabrications or exaggerations if they were portrayed on screen. It was here that he developed, or at least honed, the practice of walking up to a stranger's house, knocking on the door and making friends. This skill would serve him well later as he began to seek out musicians in the Bloomington area and, later, around Baltimore and elsewhere learning the traditional tunes and the tales that surround them.

Unlike many of the folk boom musicians who grew up in New York or other metropolitan areas, Reed grew up among the "real" old time musicians. Kentuckians displaced by the great depression who spoke a dialect that was barely understandable, Hoosiers playing mail order banjos with the frets yanked out, men and women who played like their fathers and mothers and grandparents had. He sought out the old players wherever he went, the famous and the unknown, and listened to their stories and their music.

Those who frequented the Banjo competitions and festivals in the east during the 1960s and 1970s may recall hearing Reed Martin. He played and won, placed or showed in many. His appearances on record from this period were few with Old Time Banjo in America and the Young Fogies anthologies being the best known.

Reed is still around, still playing the banjo and attending festivals and competitions whenever they don't conflict with important swap meets, antique car shows and tandem bicycle rides (with his lovely wife Barbara) in various parts of the country. If ever presented with the opportunity to hear him play, don't miss it. It will be a unique experience that will leave you exhilarated and amazed and, if you are a banjo player, maybe a little depressed (temporarily) and a lot inspired.

Jeff Chumley