Duelling Banjos - The story of Billy Redden
Banjo boy Billy Redden just turned 64, while the musicians Steve Mandell (guitar - second on left in photo) and Eric Weissberg (banjo) have both just passed away. Despite his fame Billy only received a few hundred dollars for Deliverance and spent the next 40 years washing dishes or running his little Cookie Jar Cafe until it went broke which led to the job at Walmart (photo of Billy in Clayton at end of clip). I played the tune on my Gibson 175 which is the same age as Billy but born up the road apiece in Kalamazoo. If you look closely you might observe that another local banjo player has his arm through Billy's left sleeve to make the playing look authentic. I tried to visit Billy at the local Walmart in Clayton Georgia but no luck.
Back in the 70's, Duelling Banjos was a staple in my repertoire in the pubs of Dortmund but it has taken 40 years to finally duel with a real banjo player. I played Steve's part until the last chorus where I added some country licks.
Dedicated to Aussie Joe who once went out to procure a guitar in Vung Tau so he could get me to play it one last time.