Me too, Ralf. Actually, the banjo was my first instrument, in the mid-1960s. My parents bought me Pete's book "How to play the 5-string banjo", and it opened a whole world for me. It contained just enough theory to interest a beginner without being pedantic, and Pete's philosophy was "Don't think of it as practice, think of it as playing." Although I gave up the banjo for the guitar soon after, the lessons from that book are still with me.
I can relate! I had that book, too, and my Gibson RB170 (or something close to that) 5 string/open back banjo, and I credit Pete with teaching me how to hammer on.
