Jonathan's Musical instruments from found objects podcast

In this episode, I describe a single-stringed instrument called a "Diddley bow" and play some improvised blues riffs. The Diddley bow is typical of the American Southern States and is often associated with blues music. The simplest Diddley bow consists of the side of a house or a wood board, two nails, a length of wire and something serving as a bridge, such as a small rock, glass bottle or jar. My Diddley bow features a three-foot-long piece of lumber, two sixteen penny nails, two two-inch common nails, a piece of picture wire, a mini-paint can, a piece of scrap wood, a wood block and an L bracket. The wood block and L bracket keep the can from moving around. The scrap wood nut is held in place with wood screws. In addition, my Diddley bow features a guitar pickup.

In this episode, I play some blues riffs on a homemade cigar box bass featuring a broom stick neck, steel wire string, a screw eye, an eyebolt with accompanying nut, two washers and a wing nut, along with a scrap wood bridge.

In this episode, I play some improvised blues riffs on a two-string cigar box guitar of my own design. A previous episode features a similar instrument. The only difference is probably just the cigar box I used to build the instruments and possibly the actual strings I used, along with the respective tunings.

In this episode, I play some blues riffs on a two-string fretless two-string cigar box guitar of my own design. This instrument features tuners consisting of eye bolts with accompanying nuts, wing nuts and washers.

In this episode, I play an experimental cigar box guitar with one string, a zither pin for a tuner and a small screw eye for a nut.

In this episode, I play a one-string cigar box fiddle of my own design. Here I play the instrument as if it was a guitar, such as a cigar box guitar, instead of as a fiddle or a violin.

In this episode, I play an acoustic three string cigar box guitar of my own design. Most of the parts, specifically the neck, bridge, strings and tuners, come by way of a local supplier of cigar box guitars, kits and parts.

In this episode, I play a simple acoustic cigar box guitar of my own design. This instrument features a single string consisting of weed whacker cord, a tuner composed of an eye bolt with its accompanying nut, a wing nut and washers, as well as a nut and bridge consisting of wood dowels. The song I play is my rendition of a traditional bluegrass tune called "Old Joe Clark.""