oldchief

Does this 20B appear to be an authentic C. Jeffries 20 button concertina? I understand in the past some sellers have enhanced value of their concertinas by applying the Jeffries stamping. The font of the stamping seems to be consistent with pictures of other pre- Praed St. Jeffries. The fretwork seems a little coarse but the bellows embossing looks good. What do you think? I guess the price is a tad optimistic. 🤑 https://www.ebay.com/itm/144547819665?hash=item21a7b8b091:g:w9kAAOSwtzdhTjYU

The Ceili is a Jeffries layout. Sorry I neglected to include that information. It also comes with a Morse-supplied hard case and the original papers. Jim

Build date of the concertina is April, 2012, and its barely played in, it came from a friend's estate a year or so ago. Its everything a Morse should be. The reason I'm moving it on is that I am more attracted to vintage boxes(And I may be more of a collector than a serious player). I would trade this concertina for a Maccann duet concertina. An upscale (not a tutor) 65 key Wheatstone or Lachenal would be ideal. I wouldn't mind if it was in old pitch. Shipping and insurance costs will be the buyer's responsibility. I'd prefer contact by PM to exchange email or phone numbers. Since I'm a bit of a Luddite I have no idea how to post a sound file. Oldchief/ Jim Richardson

Heres a link to one discussion here... General consensus seems to be they weren't all that popular. Stan Hugill has written they were not seen and he was there. I'll have to admit to carrying my Jefferies anglo on the bulker I sailed on for years, many times around the world taking surplus US surplus grain to an assortment of third world countries. I don't think I was the only one to do this. Walt Disney may have contributed to the sea-going concertina popularity. I would chase down the Dan Worrall book if I were you. Have fun.

Good morning, Michael- I have a copy of the notes you are looking for. They are by Harry Bradshaw. They are in a 5x7 inch format and run to nearly a hundred pages. I have no way to scan or to copy them. If you do, I'd be willing to send them to you to copy and return. I guess the downside of the plan is I am located in the US, so there would be some time lag and some expense but I'm willing if you are. My email is jdouglasrichardson@yahoo.com Regards Jim Richardson

LHMark, I can totally relate to that, and of course Snorre is on the money with his advice. I have played for many years and with the exception of a few lessons with David Levine in the early 1990's haven't had a chance to play concertina with others. It is limiting to say the least. I understand there is a lot ITM in your area so at least you will have the chance to seek other players there. Until I retired in mid 2007 I carried my box as company and sometimes solace around the world on a large bulk grain carrier (a freighter in other words). It did give me the chance to play some solo performances to captive audiences in a few exotic and sometimes slightly (erm, ah..) funky locations. I did have an AB from Borneo ask where the batteries went in the Jeffries once. One option I have tried to exercise is using a recorder to play along with and if necessary slow down tunes for practice. I'll expect to see you at NECW, I'll be the old guy with the white hair. :-) Jim

Well, I'll be there, anglo in hand, and my EC as well. I received confirmation from the Button Box some time ago and have motel reservations, so I just waiting for April. I'm looking forward to it. Cheers Jim

Sad news indeed. I first met Rich at one of the early NESI, either the first or the second, when building and marketing concertinas was little more than a gleam in his eye. I can't claim to have know Rich well but he will surely be missed. Jim

I too have an F/C "baritone", but made by Wheatstone. It was previously owned by Steve Harrison. This also has some large reeds which sound very different from a Wheatstone G/D - much more mellow and rounded which give the impression of more than just the one tone difference in pitch. Chas I have to wonder how common the F/C tuning was. Anyone have any thoughts on that? My F/C Jeffries came to me from Lark in the Morning in August 1988. I came across the sales slip last summer just in time to be reminded that it indeed had been 20 years. A small celebration seemed to be in order. The instrument doesn't require any special handling when playing, all the LH reeds respond very well, which is what I'd expect of Mr. Jeffries, I guess. Jim

Actually, the ...er... snowperson may be a bit ......... underdressed? Jim

Well, to echo Chris Timson, yes. But there's more for me as well. When I unlimbered the Jeffries in a waterfront house of somewhat dubious (but not quite ill..) repute in Nantong a few years ago one of the techs with me sighed and said "ahh, Chieffie, therapy". Reflecting back, he was right. That's one of the reasons I probably won't ever have a new concertina, I really enjoy the connection to previous players and the old boxes give me some of that. Some of the tunes give a connection as well: "Soldiers of the Queen" can evoke troopers on the tide bound for Table Bay. "Tipperay" in a London pub after the Armistice. Some may call a illness. There are worse ways to use your time.

The situation in southern Maine was the same, I guess, as electrical service was off from Thursday night to Monday at 11:00 AM. Thanks to a small generator we had heat and basic power for hot plate and microwave cooking. The last time I saw an extended outage like this was in 1998 when the area effected was much larger and my power was off for eleven days in sub-zero (F.) weather. The generator really earned its keep then. The one time I went out for fuel the few stations open all had long lines so I elected to fuel the generator from various other machinery in the garage. That way the fuel stays fresh as well. The fun part was there was lots of time to play. I'm trying to get up to speed with the 'Vital Spark' theme (thanks for the tune, Stuart) on EC, having some fun working on the C part with the drone effect. Now we have the snow to look forward to.

I hope that's a typo............................ Haha, good one! David, next time I come down for tea, I'll bring my whip and some leather! Typo edited and still salt encrusted ears red - or at least somewhat pink. Thanks for the info and pictures, Peter, I guess I mis-read the ledger, or at least misunderstood. The strap scheme is clear now as well as the end-plate configuration. David, I was surprised to hear of your move, I guess that's what happens when you loose contact with people. The Linota is alive and well, may get some maintenance in the not-too-distant future. The questions came to me during a semi-annual end-plate polishing when I decided to do some online research on the serial number. Your label is still on the action board. I expect to hang onto the box for a while longer, I retired a while ago and have had more playing time. Thanks for the answers, all. Jim

Alden, as you probably will find out it can be a compulsion. Not a bad one, though. I have been playing since the late 1960s, I think my first exposure to the instrument was through the Disney movies in the '50s, maybe Kirk Douglas in '20,000 Leagues'. Unlike many of the other board members the concertina is my only instrument (Well I may admit under torture to owning a few old button boxes). I have carried my old C.Jeffries FC around the world many times over and found it a great comfort through the years. my playing sort of evolved from a plastic ended East German Anglo to a Bastari to a Lachenal to a series of english made anglos which now include the Jeffries and a Wheatstone Linota. In addition I also have accumulated two English pattern instruments for variety. I keep playing for two of the reasons already mentioned: 'Because I must' and '...mad as a hatter'. Good luck with the concertina! Jim Richardson (oldchief)