Lamb had other talents aside from composing classic rags. He loved designing house plans, which he drew by the hour, and he was an excellent carpenter, a skill he obviously acquired from his father, who was a professional. Patricia's husband Bill Conn was often asked by fans of Lamb what he thought of the "master ragtimer" ­ Bill would reply that Joe Lamb was a good carpenter, and that he'd learned a lot from Joe about woodworking.

Beyond the eras of ragtime and novelty piano, Lamb produced minstrel shows for his church from the late 1920s to the mid 1930s. Minstrelsy was almost a century old by that time, and was alive in many hometown productions across the country, while newer media such as radio were broadcasting The Blue Coal Minstrels and "talking pictures" were reworking old routines and preserving the acts of veteran performers. Lamb's shows -- called "The Blackberries" -- gave him an outlet for his composing skills and other creative talents.

"Every year they had a minstrel show over at church, which he [Lamb] put on...we used to be able to go see these shows on Sunday afternoon; it was a dress rehearsal and that's when the kids got to go; they were a lot of fun while they were on. We enjoyed it."

Lamb created the shows with his in-laws, the Collinses, and he rehearsed and directed the cast. There were the three brothers -- Gus Jr., Dorrie, and Jack -- and their father, Gus Senior. Lamb had been friends with the Collins family for years before they were in-laws; Jack was a piano-playing pal and a big fan of Lamb's, and it was this friendship that would lead another one of the Collinses -- Amelia -- to meet Lamb and eventually develop into a courtship, then a marriage.