Edwards not only played cigar box ukes; he made and sold them. His first efforts, I believe, were created for a production number in a revue. They were brightly painted (the Edwards color sense was always loud); and, judging from contemporary accounts, sounded pretty good.
I’ve often wondered if any of those instruments survive. So far, I’ve found nothing. Meanwhile, here are some of his designs. He often decorated his scores and drawings with uke sketches; he even put one on the front cover of The Quill. The ones following are from his 1917 Song Book.
(Posted by Doug Skinner)
4 responses so far ↓
1 Angela // Jan 9, 2011 at 9:42 am
fun!
2 Mamie // Jan 9, 2011 at 3:41 pm
They are fantastic,
3 Win // Jan 14, 2011 at 2:23 am
Doug,
I happened to see an episode of Antiques Road Show over the holidays that featured a cigar box ukelele that was apparently made somewhere in Florida or another of the southern states. The expert, as I recall, said that such instruments were made all through the Appalachian region. I immediately thought of Bobby Edwards, because of the photos you had posted here. The example in question was, like Bobby’s augmented with brightly painted panels, in the “folk” style. In any case, they do survive!
4 Doug // Jan 15, 2011 at 11:58 am
Oh, painted cigar box ukes are around. I have one myself. But have any of Bobby’s creations survived?