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Leedy Timp-Bass
Donated by Carroll Bratman
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| Joe and George Hamilton
Green, Jr. pictured with various instruments used for
their recordings and radio broadcasts. Note the Timp-Bass
on the left side of the photo. |
During the 1920s and '30s, novelty
instruments were the rage of radio and the stage. Although
not strictly a percussion instrument, this 'Timp-Bass' is
an upright string bass with a body made from a 26-inch kettledrum.
The drum originally had a calfskin head and was manufactured
by the Leedy Manufacturing Co. in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Although the exact year of manufacture is not known, the instrument
can be dated by the cursive logo, which appeared in 1925,
and the fact that Leedy moved to Elkhart, Indiana in 1930.
This places the date of manufacture in the late 1920s. Leedy
also manufactured banjos during this time period, so it was
not a large step to develop a string instrument from their
percussion inventory.
The famous Green Brothers, Joe and George, were well-known
for their use of novelty percussion instruments, and when
photographed with their large assortment of instruments, included
this type of bass in the picture. Most likely, the instrument
in the PAS collection is the same instrument shown in the
photograph, and may be the only such instrument in existence.
The Green Brothers had many other novelty instruments manufactured
for them by Leedy, including a glockenspiel made of glass
bars, the Octarimba and early models of the vibraphone.
Detail of the metal tailpiece showing
the cursive Leedy logo and location of the company.
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