"It is simply my aim to create a banjo that is the equivalent or better than any of the best banjos ever made, past or present. No small goal I realize, but I am not looking to do mediocre or budget banjos. There are many companies producing great budget instruments. My banjos must be elite in every way, or I don't want to make banjos.

I absolutely love the 5 string banjo, and have done so for 30 years. I adore the mystery of all the components that must come together just the right way, to make a truly magnificent and unique instrument. Tone, intonation, playability, finish, set up, appearance - we give absolute and exacting attention to everything we do. You cannot produce the best by accident. You must give complete and utter dedication to all of the principles of luthiery, research and sound production.

At the Bellbird Banjo Company we strive for the kind of excellence that over time, will see our instruments ranked along side the very best of the best. If you are just a beginner, a Bellbird is not for you. But if you long for that elusive, rich, clean, powerful, magnificent juicy twang that you fell head over heels with on your all-time favourite banjo recordings, then the Bellbird most certainly is the banjo for you. Are you ready to step up to a Bellbird Banjo? If you are, call me, and I will get into your hands a banjo that will make your longing a reality!

Why Bellbird?
There is a lovely, secluded rest area about 100 km west of Brisbane, Australia, just near the summit of Cunninghams Gap. We often stop there when traveling on through to the Darling Downs and beyond. As we make ourselves our coffee, we enjoy the truly magnificent chiming sounds of innumerable native bellbirds that inhabit the beautiful surrounding forest. For years, my brother Mark and I have always made a point of having our banjo and guitar with us when we stop here, and we soon take to as much parkin' lot pickin' as time can allow.

There is nothing like the ring of fine Bluegrass instruments in a forest, and as we play, the swelling, pinging notes of the bellbirds always get closer and louder, as if joining in with us. For years I had thought that if I ever made a banjo, I would call it a Bellbird, as a tribute to them. Well, now I am making what I consider to be the finest banjos being made today, and it is a privilege to name my instruments and my company after these wonderful little pickers of the forest!

The Bellbird photo above is of the Bell Miner (Manorina melanophrys) Click here to learn more about this species.