I took this in trade from a famous Nashville musician, who used this instrument in concert for many years. Frets are good, neck set is good, finish and parts are original. The Lyon and Healy firm grew out of an effort by Oliver Ditson - beginning in 1864 - to expand his wholesale musical instrument business. This instrument features a 30-hook pot, a mahogany neck with carved heel and ebony fingerboard, and lots of mother of pearl inlay. This mandolin features an assymetrical 2 point body shape, birdseye maple for the back and sides, solid Adirondack spruce top, a 13 inch scale, radiused fretboard, clamp tailpiece with the most amazing cover ever, a vulcanized rubber headstock faceplate and removable floating pickguard, and the most beautiful violin style carved headstock. Here is a lovely 1899 Lyon - Healy Mystic Banjo, in fully playable condition. Ditson label inside which also shows it was made by Lyon and Healy. This one was made around 1922 in Chicago and has a Chas. I am always impressed by both the sound and craftsmanship of the Lyon & Healy mandolins, and the top of the line Style A is an extremely fine instrument worthy of any player's or collector's attention. They have been considered since the 1920's to be the best instruments ever made for classical mandolin playing. The sound of these instruments is more delicate and lighter than most Gibsons, with a nicely rounded top end and less "bark". The violin scroll headstock is immediately distinctive, but the 2-point body, shaped pickguard, and clamp tailpiece cover are all signature features. Using the finest materials and a thoroughly original design, Lyon & Healy created a timeless classic in the Style A. These elaborate and beautifully made mandolins were the only really serious competition Gibson ever faced in the high-end carved top 8-string market. It was shipped for the first time on Jto Lyon and Healy, the large musical retailer in Chicago Lyon and Healy obviously returned the banjo to Gibson fairly quickly and it was sent out again on. If you've never played a top-flight Lyon & Healy mandolin from this period, they're simply a few evolutionary steps ahead of the competition at the time. Higher-priced banjos of this period were often shipped more than once before finally finding a home, and this TB-Granada was no exception. This instrument is not just gorgeous, but it also sounds it, too.
1922 Lyon and Healy Style A Mandolin 1922 Lyon and Healy Style A Professional Model Mandolin