I wish this prewar, Regal built, woodbody Dobro could talk! It simply oozes history, and has the most authentic Delta Blues sound I've ever heard from a resonator. It has a pronounced vintage "V" neck profile, and has a very high action, certainly suited to slide playing. Inside the case (not the original, but a sturdy old item) are an old solid steel slide (not the bottle-neck style) and finger picks and a thumb pick, so the guitar has obviously been played in a sitting horizontal position as a lap-steel. I repeat that the sound is absolutely gorgeous - very clear and loud, but with the most beautiful tone.

Dobro and National were the two big names in resonator guitars at this time, with Dobro being generally associated with wood-bodied guitars and National with metal bodies (although this was not at all necessarily the case).

Purchased from a fellow in his mid-70s, who said he bought the guitar from a miner at Lightning Ridge because it was an antique, and the sound was so nice. He remembers that the guitar was used by a well-known Blues band in Sydney, but he can't remember the name of the Sydney band that played it (!), apart from the fact that they were well known at the time. Does anyone recognise the guitar?

It was previously found in a barn and had been sitting there for some time. He remembers being told the bottom of the guitar needed to be repaired slightly (see detail pic in "more pictures" below). It was originally black and when they repaired it, they found the wood was so nice that it was then reconditoned into the way it is today. It is, however, still the original wood (as far as he knows).

One for the player more than the collector, this Dobro is a lovely example of the most coveted of all Dobro types - the pre-war, wood-bodied style. Serious mojo and street cred guaranteed! Serial number of L9177 stamped into the top of the headstock indicates a 1937 build.

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