DanvillRob Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 Here's a great clip of Tommy with another favorite of mine. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5qakFIecBU That's just good, I don't care who you are! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brians356 Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 Ok, please excuse the "name dropping": I played trombone nearly 20 years in the casino house bands in Reno/Tahoe, during the '70s and '80s. Roy Clark was a frequent performer, and yes he used the full orchestra with horns and string section. He would sometimes jam with local guitarists in his dressing room between shows, always bebop jazz, Charlie Parker tunes etc., and always amazing. Anyway, one time I worked behind him at Harrah's Tahoe, and he showed up for rehearsal with a his left hand and forearm in a cast. (Fell off his motorbike on the ranch he said.) Since he sang on every song except one ("Ghost Riders in the Sky" instrumental) we figured he would just put the guitar aside and let the guys behind him take up the slack. Nope. He played every song by draping his left arm over the bass side of the neck and fingering like Jeff Healey, only standing up, with the guitar strapped on as usual! So, ok, he could still be kind of fudging along, since there was a full orchestra behind him, plus his traveling country band. However, we all fell off the bandstand when he played the "Ghost Riders" feature instrumental, including the double-picking solos, at full breakneck speed, and seemingly never missed a note! It was the single most amazing feat of guitar playing I've ever witnessed. I need to add that he also usually played that "Malaguena" solo on acoustic guitar in his show, but he had to let that one go, for obvious reasons. Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanvillRob Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 Ok, please excuse the "name dropping": I played trombone nearly 20 years in the casino house bands in Reno/Tahoe, during the '70s and '80s. Roy Clark was a frequent performer, and yes he used the full orchestra with horns and string section. He would sometimes jam with local guitarists in his dressing room between shows, always bebop jazz, Charlie Parker tunes etc., and always amazing. Anyway, one time I worked behind him at Harrah's Tahoe, and he showed up for rehearsal with a his left hand and forearm in a cast. (Fell off his motorbike on the ranch he said.) Since he sang on every song except one ("Ghost Riders in the Sky" instrumental) we figured he would just put the guitar aside and let the guys behind him take up the slack. Nope. He played every song by draping his left arm over the bass side of the neck and fingering like Jeff Healey, only standing up, with the guitar strapped on as usual! So, ok, he could still be kind of fudging along, since there was a full orchestra behind him, plus his traveling country band. However, we all fell off the bandstand when he played the "Ghost Riders" feature instrumental, including the double-picking solos, at full breakneck speed, and seemingly never missed a note! It was the single most amazing feat of guitar playing I've ever witnessed. I need to add that he also usually played that "Malaguena" solo on acoustic guitar in his show, but he had to let that one go, for obvious reasons. Brian Brian....WOW.... he da MAN! Where do you live now? Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
57classic Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 Ok, please excuse the "name dropping": I played trombone nearly 20 years in the casino house bands in Reno/Tahoe, during the '70s and '80s. Roy Clark was a frequent performer, and yes he used the full orchestra with horns and string section. He would sometimes jam with local guitarists in his dressing room between shows, always bebop jazz, Charlie Parker tunes etc., and always amazing. Anyway, one time I worked behind him at Harrah's Tahoe, and he showed up for rehearsal with a his left hand and forearm in a cast. (Fell off his motorbike on the ranch he said.) Since he sang on every song except one ("Ghost Riders in the Sky" instrumental) we figured he would just put the guitar aside and let the guys behind him take up the slack. Nope. He played every song by draping his left arm over the bass side of the neck and fingering like Jeff Healey, only standing up, with the guitar strapped on as usual! So, ok, he could still be kind of fudging along, since there was a full orchestra behind him, plus his traveling country band. However, we all fell off the bandstand when he played the "Ghost Riders" feature instrumental, including the double-picking solos, at full breakneck speed, and seemingly never missed a note! It was the single most amazing feat of guitar playing I've ever witnessed. I need to add that he also usually played that "Malaguena" solo on acoustic guitar in his show, but he had to let that one go, for obvious reasons. Brian Great story! I would love to have seen that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brians356 Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 Bob, I live in Reno. I quit playing trombone completely in 1988, and some time later got serious about guitar (I dabbled since I was a kid.) Reno/Tahoe used to have a lot of really good guitar players working in the clubs here, guys who could sight read music well (a must in the house orchestras), play jazz, and "comp" over standards. I happened to be checking out Benedetto Guitars' "players" page, and was surprised to count three players who used to live/work in the Reno/Tahoe area: http://benedettoguitars.com/players/benedetto-artists/ Sid Jacobs Clint Strong Bill Moio Another good player I worked with here is back living in his native Bay Area now, Tim Volpicella. Ever run across him? Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brians356 Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 Hey, 57classic, I have a friend who was a stagehand at Harrah's Reno for 25 years, an A/V guy, with a collection of memorabilia from that showroom, who may have a videotape stashed somewhere of that Roy Clark stunt. I will ask him ... Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mojorule Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Sorry fellas...call 'em like I see 'em...as you most assuredly do as well. Well fair enough Sternfan, insofar as you're giving a verdict based on your taste. But when it comes to technical matters trying to compare TE's fingerstyle with RC's flatpicking is a bit like comparing chalk and cheese. I wouldn't want to eat the former with a bottle of fine wine, and I wouldn't want to use the other to write on a blackboard. They're both equally virtuosic in their genre, I'd say. I guess you like flatpicking more. Me I like both, though I prefer fingerpicking in the end. Now this floats my boat. Good beat and a big soul. And it doenst make me feel like hanging it up (forward past the taking part for the music). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIsqu-18T0Y Guy Davis. Long as You get it Done. This is also more technically complex than it at first appears, Rambler. Great blues for feel for sure, but I still sense a lot of practice in there. And not quite up there for feel with, say, Skip James when it comes to fingerpicking blues. Still, love it and love his playing/singing. Should we be referring to him as the Rev. Guy now? What I was driving at, but more kindly. TEs immensely fluid and plays a wide range of stuff, of which the sample is a part, but, by itself, there's no tune, no song. Running scales/chord sequences isnt that hard (with practice. lots of practice). But can you feel it? Actually I can feel it in the case of this clip. It's just a different feel from (Rev) GD. It's the difference between jazz and blues. I've heard much more self-abusive players than TE... To my ears this definitely has a tune, no less so than a lot of classical guitar pieces which are comparatively complex. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
57classic Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Hey, 57classic, I have a friend who was a stagehand at Harrah's Reno for 25 years, an A/V guy, with a collection of memorabilia from that showroom, who may have a videotape stashed somewhere of that Roy Clark stunt. I will ask him ... Brian Keep me posted please Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissouriPicker Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Interesting topic that this thread turned in to. But, how in the world does one talent surpass the other with guys like Tommy, Roy, Chet, and some others? I enjoy hearing them all. I've heard before that Tommy plays a lot of scales, but it's all scales in one way or another, isn't it? I think he's amazing. There was a thread (think it was the banjo forum) that Roy can't play bluegrass. At least in here things don't get too heated, remain friendly, and contain some commonmsense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sternfan Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 It's all friendly banter, based in opinions. These guys have devoted their lives to the mastery of music and entertainment and have talents that most of us will never have. It's fun to go back and forth (in a civilized fashion, of course)...it's what makes any forum fun. I think of the times I've sat in a bar and talked Michael vs. Magic, '85 Bears vs. '78 Steelers, Miles vs. Coltrane, etc. Ad naseum. Some people say baseball is America's pasttime. I would submit it's friendly 'head to head' discussions like these. At the end of the day, whether you think it's Tommy, Tony, Norman, Roy, Clarence, Doc, etc. really isn't the point. The point is that fun to discuss... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brians356 Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Yeah this thread has wandered, but what the heck ... Again tapping my Nevada showroom experience, I'll toss in a couple more guitar talents not usually considered, guys who are known for their pop recordings and screen work, and appeared in the main rooms on that basis: Glen Campbell Jerry Reed Both were really great pickers, and did a lot of session work before they "made it." Both were fully capable of making your jaw drop. Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mojorule Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Yeah this thread has wandered, but what the heck ... Again tapping my Nevada showroom experience, I'll toss in a couple more guitar talents not usually considered, guys who are known for their pop recordings and screen work, and appeared in the main rooms on that basis: Glen Campbell Jerry Reed Both were really great pickers, and did a lot of session work before they "made it." Both were fully capable of making your jaw drop. Brian But which are the Campbell cuts we need to uncover? I'm aware of his rep, and don't doubt it is deserved, but haven't really knowingly come across any of the jaw-dropping moments yet. I'd really like to hear his best playing. Guidance through my ignorance please? Jerry Reed is much easier to track down... Sternfan: +1 for the art and spirit of the head-to-head. I think we Brits go in for this sort of thing too. But Coltrane vs. Miles? The easiest answer has to be synthesis: Kind of Blue = Coltrane + Miles! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mojorule Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 It doesn't diminish my admiration of his talent in any way, but I agree 100% with what you're saying. I have no doubt he can play the Reverend's tune...but can you feel it? I know Nick could... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wY8YaLQ8H74 A splendid link, for which thanks. ND certainly could feel it. But how weird it is to hear him singing with that transatlantic accent. Much more used to hearing his own voice... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sternfan Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 True...Kind of Blue has 'em both but I'm partial to Birth of the Cool and Love Supreme ;) As for G Campbell, love his songs but he's not in Jerry's class. Me? I'd take Nick Drake over 'em all. What he may have lacked in speed he more than made up for in discovering tunings nobody'd ever heard of...and making songs with them that sound divine. A true master... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
57classic Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 But which are the Campbell cuts we need to uncover? I'm aware of his rep, and don't doubt it is deserved, but haven't really knowingly come across any of the jaw-dropping moments yet. I'd really like to hear his best playing. Guidance through my ignorance please? Jerry Reed is much easier to track down... Sternfan: +1 for the art and spirit of the head-to-head. I think we Brits go in for this sort of thing too. But Coltrane vs. Miles? The easiest answer has to be synthesis: Kind of Blue = Coltrane + Miles! Glen Campbell is a giant! He was a member of the Wrecking Crew, a renowned group of session musicians out of L.A. Look them up on Wikipedia. Fascinating story about the real musicians behind so many famous recordings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mojorule Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Glen Campbell is a giant! He was a member of the Wrecking Crew, a renowned group of session musicians out of L.A. Look them up on Wikipedia. Fascinating story about the real musicians behind so many famous recordings. Yes, I have looked the (retrospectively named) Wrecking Crew up in the past, but so much of their huge output is marked by their restraint as backing musicians. Their musicianship was so consummate that they knew not to show off on other people's work. So much so that it's not really clear who played on which recordings. And just try to work out who played what from the Wiki site. It's OK if you want to know what Carol Kaye played bass on. Otherwise you can fish. Maybe Phil Spector really did use all of them simultaneously, but the Byrds' version of Mr Tambourine Man? That's no wall of sound, so it must have been a select few. I just love the idea that David Crosby's part might actually have been played by Barney Kessel, but I can't find any evidence. Howard Roberts was a member of the collective too. As I own a Gibson Howard Roberts I actually wanted to hear some of his stuff outside of jazz albums. It took me several passes through Google before I found out that he might have played lead guitar on the theme from Bullitt. Glen Campbell did a week's worth of interviews in the UK for Radio 2 a couple of years ago, and he was very modest, making it sound as though all he did in the Wrecking Crew days was strum along on acoustic. Now I've seen some footage of him playing lead on Galveston, so I know there must be more to his playing than that. Just not found much beyond Galveston as yet... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
57classic Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 As for G Campbell, love his songs but he's not in Jerry's class. In the spirit of friendly disagreement, there are some clips on You Tube of both playing together which, IMHO, disprove the above statement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanvillRob Posted February 19, 2011 Share Posted February 19, 2011 Bob, I live in Reno. I quit playing trombone completely in 1988, and some time later got serious about guitar (I dabbled since I was a kid.) Reno/Tahoe used to have a lot of really good guitar players working in the clubs here, guys who could sight read music well (a must in the house orchestras), play jazz, and "comp" over standards. I happened to be checking out Benedetto Guitars' "players" page, and was surprised to count three players who used to live/work in the Reno/Tahoe area: Brian Brian, my brother lives in Silver Springs. I go there maybe once a year for Dog Shows. When there last year, got together with him for a jam session. He's actually a pretty good guitar player. My nephew lives in Tahoe. He's the manager for "The Naked Fish" sushi restaurant. He's been there for many years. Many years ago I played in an orchestra. My sight reading was always sketchy, but I made it through okay. I wish I'd kept at it. I can't read well enough now to evey keep up. Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brians356 Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 Mojorule, I don't know what guitar stuff is on record from Campbell, except for anonymous session work he did on a lot of albums in the early to mid-60s. Everybody's probably heard he ghosted a lot of the intricate guitar tracks on the Beach Boys early albums. In particular, Glen mastered the electric 12-string, and probably played it a lot on some jangly pop recordings from the era, and almost certainly on Beach Boys albums. I'm thinking of the 12-string prominent in "California Girls", which Glen featured in a medley in his live show. (He posed with a Mosrite 12 on a couple of album covers.) My own reference is from what I heard him do live on stage, or in his dressing room with visiting pickers, in the '70s and '80s. Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mojorule Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 In the spirit of friendly disagreement, there are some clips on You Tube of both playing together which, IMHO, disprove the above statement. I've not tried searching them as a combination on YouTube, so that's an interesting tip to follow up on. Thanks. Mojorule, I don't know what guitar stuff is on record from Campbell, except for anonymous session work he did on a lot of albums in the early to mid-60s. Everybody's probably heard he ghosted a lot of the intricate guitar tracks on the Beach Boys early albums. In particular, Glen mastered the electric 12-string, and probably played it a lot on some jangly pop recordings from the era, and almost certainly on Beach Boys albums. I'm thinking of the 12-string prominent in "California Girls", which Glen featured in a medley in his live show. (He posed with a Mosrite 12 on a couple of album covers.) My own reference is from what I heard him do live on stage, or in his dressing room with visiting pickers, in the '70s and '80s. Brian Thanks for the knowledge, however inferred, Brian. I knew he'd done some Beach Boys, but no specifics, and wasn't aware of the 12-string mastery. All very interesting, and a bit like Jimmy Page-spotting on British tracks of the same period! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brians356 Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 Ok, you brought up Jimmy Page spotting: Ever seen the film "Blow-up" (1966)? http://www.allmovie.com/work/blow-up-60942 Jimmy page and Jeff Beck (uncredited Yardbirds) playing really gnarly and loose, a raveup in a London dive. Pretty pathetic performance of a throw-away tune, really. Beck must have departed shortly after, and he looks like he needed a rest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mojorule Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 Ok, you brought up Jimmy Page spotting: Ever seen the film "Blow-up" (1966)? http://www.allmovie.com/work/blow-up-60942 Jimmy page and Jeff Beck (uncredited Yardbirds) playing really gnarly and loose, a raveup in a London dive. Pretty pathetic performance of a throw-away tune, really. Beck must have departed shortly after, and he looks like he needed a rest. Well I did own the soundtrack (or do, but don't have it with me in Hungary), and I have seen the scene in question (though never the entire film somehow - probably walked in on a late-night showing of it on TV, fortuitously hit that scene which comes near the end, but unluckily missed the rest). Oh, and I've seen the famous tennis without balls scene as well! Beck was playing some knackered out old archtop with one pickup if I remember rightly, and Page the white Tele that he got from Beck, and which subsequently gave us Led Zep I. My memory is of quite a powerful performance, though it's probably more down to Page's rhythm playing than Beck's almost throw-away feedback-fuelled leads. Interesting in that Page gets a fairly Zeppelinesque tone from his AC30 (purportedly also used for some Zeppelin things, but not one of the two amps normally associated with his playing from 1969 through 1971). I wouldn't write 'Stroll Along' off too quickly as throw-away material btw. As far as I recall, it was not a Yardbirds original, and has a certain pedigree in the history of rockabilly, which would explain its appeal to both Beck and Page given the stuff that originally got them into guitar. I really like that sort of brutalist rock with minimal chords, and it's interesting to consider that Antonioni originally wanted to book the Velvet Underground for the club scene. I think that between them Antonioni and the Yardbirds decided on a fairly appropriate substitute for the faster early Velvets material which might have been used had the director managed to get his original choice of band. Just imagine what a soundtrack combining Herbie Hancock and 'Waiting for the Man' or 'Run, run, run' might have sounded like... I'd best go and see if I can find the scene on Youtube, and work out if my memory serves me well, or whether I now find that I agree with your verdict! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mojorule Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 OK, checked it out. Still powerful to my mind, though I misremembered the feedback (not much of it), and forgot the all-important guitar smashing (but then I've seen so much footage of the Who, Hendrix and others doing the same that such things have ceased to register in the way that they probably would have done with cinema audiences in 1966). Oh and the title: 'Stroll On' and not 'Along'. Actually the guitar smashing is lacklustre - not exactly done with elan by Beck. But Page's playing is good. Powerful, but actually not as powerful as this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufzRV3xspYA White Teles all the way though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mojorule Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 And here's the original. Lovely jump blues, but not got that raw power to my mind. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ci4EQDD4CqA Blow-up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zeza1xeWKM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onewilyfool Posted February 23, 2011 Author Share Posted February 23, 2011 here's glen messing around http://www.youtube.com/user/gongdrum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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