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Mr. Glenn Bell

Glenn is one of our Plectrum Banjo players. Like so many others that play Plectrum he plays "Chicago Tuning" Which is the same as the first four strings of a guitar. He was born in Port Clinton ( no relation to the former President), Ohio, back on June 29th of '33 ( that's 1933 not 1833). Glen said he was born there because he wanted to be close to his mother, and that's where she lived.

He learned to read music by taking piano lessons and even played in a high school swing band. Just picture Glenn sitting on a swing, playing piano!!

Moving ahead a number of years, Glenn is now in College. Realizing that Piano's, and swings were a little cumbersome to take to the dorm every day after practice he decided to downsize a bit and took up the Tenor Ukulele. Glen reports that 7 Uke's were destroyed when people sat on them in the back of his '36 Ford. ( That's 1936!) The University of Denver was never to be the same again. Glenn teamed up with Carl Ishamuri( a Hawaiian gentleman) and learned a whole load of Hawaiian songs on the Uke. They then formed the first and only University of Denver Hawaiian Ukulele band and Uphill Ski Team. The team disbanded after their first practice, as the trip up hill left them too tired to play the Uke's. Glenn later took lessons from Ben Harrison on the Baritone Uke ( apparently his voice was finally getting deeper), and then the Plectrum Banjo tuned Chicago Style.

Glenn played with a band in Des Moines, Iowa called the Cow Paddy Daddies!!! Their motto was " Music that Sticks With You". After settling a big "Mooo Ha Ha" with the local Bovine association that claimed their Cow Paddies were the originals, Glenn moved to Annapolis, Maryland, apparently hoping for a more cooperative group of Bovines.

In Annapolis, Glenn hooked up with a Dixieland band and had to leave the Paddy's behind. Learning an entirely new kind of music was quite a job so, again, Glenn started taking lessons. He contacted Jim Riley of Baltimore and started taking lessons from him. These lessons are ongoing. Jim said he didn't mind teaching Glenn since he quit wearing the Cow Paddy clothes and the flies quit buzzing around them.

Since moving to Annapolis, Glenn has played with the Mummers and became a member of the Gulf Cost Banjo Society, where he said he has met one of the finest group of people he has ever had the pleasure to be associated with.

All kidding aside, During Glenn's amazing career, he started off in radio as a 'morning man" and wound up being the CEO of Stoner Broadcasting. Listening to Glenn sing it is obvious that a great voice like that should have been on the radio. Glenn always brings a smile to the faces of the audience when he rips up "Alexander's RagTime Band" or "Is it True What They Say About Dixie". His great attitude and sense of humor are truly appreciated by the rest of the band and the audience as well. We are lucky to have Glenn here with us in the Gulf Coast Banjo Society and truly appreciate his talent, attitude, and humor. Thanks Glen.............