Interesting stuff, RtS, but I've never seen the word used in the USA for the type of bands described which are usually called just "Jug Bands" - Gus Cannon, Memphis JB etc - which played what we came to know as skiffle music. Johnny Dodds recorded with several "Washboard Bands" and the way his brother , Jimmy Bertrand and others played that "instrument" (well, more of an instrument to me than all this electronic stuff in my view) was amazing. Do you know of any early US skiffle bands as such or when the word was first used.? I was at the Cavern in Liverpool when Lonnie Donegan started his Skiffle Club there. Two earlier jazzmen - Mick Groves and Tony Davies helped get things going. They eventually moved to Sampson and Barlows in Liverpool and became the Spinners. There was a guitar maker there - Stan Francis, I think - who made a 12 string guitar for Pete Seeger. Dr John