$35

ingredients

tools

MAKE IT

JUG
No assembly required. The deep sound of breath across an open jug is what holds the music together. Old-timers emptied it by the gulp, so go on—being drunk is part of the tradition.

1. Hold the jug so its mouth is flush with your lower lip.

2. Purse your lips and blow hard—imagine your breath traveling straight from the near edge of the jug’s mouth to the far edge.

3. Experiment with the angle and force of your breath, and, on a 4/4 beat, experiment with blowing on 1 and 3, as opposed to 2 and 4.

WAX PAPER AND COMB
This granddaddy of the kazoo is also a cousin to the drum—part of the family of instruments characterized by the vibrations of a stretched membrane. A comb wrapped in wax paper is a crude melody-maker, so its player must blow with spirit, and not just stand there blandly tooting along.

1. With the comb held horizontally in front of you, wrap it in the paper, and hold it closed with one hand.

2. Press your lips against the wax paper where it lies flat against the comb’s teeth.

3. Make a noise through your teeth. This will require a bit of experimentation. “Doot, doot“ tends to make the pleasant buzzing sound you’re looking for. If it tickles your lips, you’ve got it.

WASHBOARD
There’s just something about that rub-it-clean metal shine that draws attention. So much so that Walter Taylor’s Washboard Trio made the instrument the main shtick of their old-time outfit. Some players even solo, as did Tiny Parham in his 1929 recording of “Washboard Wiggles,” backed by a jazz band.

1. Sit with the washboard leaning against your chest, or stand and hang it around your neck with a strap.

2. Run two wooden sticks or metal thimble-capped fingers up and down the metal surface.

3. Most jug-band tunes plod along in easy 4/4 time. Follow the bass player’s lead, and work a single stroke up or down for each beat, or try playing an entire up-and-down stroke in that time.

WASHTUB BASS
You are the heart of this outfit, producing a rhythm that gives each song form and paces the other musicians. Just stand there like a god, foot on the tub’s bottom, and strum.

1. With the hacksaw, remove the handles from your washtub and turn it upside down.

2. Drill a hole for your eyebolt in the center of the tub’s bottom, screw a nut high up onto the eyebolt, and follow it with a washer. Insert into hole.

3. Put another washer on the other side, from inside the tub, and follow with the other nut. Tighten the nuts on both sides.

4. Cut a 1/4” notch in the base of your staff, so that it fits snugly over the rim of the tub.

5. Mark and drill a hole through the top of the staff, roughly 6” below the end, perpendicular to the notch you just cut.

6. Tie a knot in your clothesline and feed the other end through the hole in the staff, running it down to the eyebolt, so it’s taut enough to pull the staff a bit. Loop the line through the bolt, tie it off, and secure it with your wire clamp.

7. With one foot on the tub, pluck the string. Pull back for higher notes; give some slack for lower thrums.