Happy Leap Year, everyone!!! I guess it's a good day for me, since I came across this new post by my friends over at LYNAY-S blog:
..."Roy Buchanan: Not well known. One of the best guitar players out there. Interpretation of words to notes was his specialty and makes his music speak more clearly than most
orators. This song makes me cry for some reason. [Much] of his music does. He
died mysteriously in a Virginia jail. Two days before my birth. Watch
the whole thing. Serious."...
Until this morning, Roy Buchanan had never made it onto my radar. Don't ask me how, since Rolling Stone magazine rated him as one of the greatest guitarists of all time, and people as infamous as John Lennon and Les Paul sought to hear him play. Legend has it, that Mick and the gang offered him the opportunity to play in the Rolling Stones when Brian Jones left the band back in '69. In spite of his extraordinary talent, things just didn't seem to go Roy's way. Buchanan never received the notoriety that a person, as gifted as he was, deserved....maybe it was due to his alcohol and drug abuse that seemed to continually get him in trouble... or maybe it was because many perceived his vocal stylings as inferior. Either way, it truly is a shame.
In 1988, after being jailed for public drunkeness, reports state that Buchanan was found in his cell hung by his own shirt- an apparent suicide. There have, also, been other reports revealing aspects of his deceased state which would indicate that Buch's death was not self inflicted. Some have even gone as far as accusing the police of beating him to death and then staging his suicide. Whatever the case may be, it sure does add an element of mystery to Roy Buchanan's story. I'm intrigued.
Check this out and experience his guitar gently weeping...
...and since leapyears only happen once every four years, I'll throw another one in for free...
...and finally, here's a slow burnin' take on a Neil Young tune...take it on the road with ya and enjoy.
"Roy Buchanan: Down By The River"
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i'll stand by serious and follow it up with a low, sustaining wow.
ReplyDeleteI read an article that was reprinted a few years ago in which he said he tries to speak using pinch harmonics. When you hear his signature long and sustained pinch in "The Messiah Will Come Again" He's literally pronouncing "HELP" with the tones of the guitar. Incredible.
ReplyDeleteWe showed the Live in Austin City Limits DVD to Aaron, and his direct quote was "How have I never heard of this guy?" Maybe that should've been on his gravestone.
wow...HELP...that's GREAT!!!! Thanks for the info and the heads up.
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