By Noë Gold
Doctor Noe is a veteran cultural commentator, former Features Editor at the Hollywood Reporter and Founding Editor of Guitar World.
For the complete interview of Frank Zappa by Noë Gold for Guitar World, go to http://wiki.killuglyradio.com/wiki/Zappa%27s_Inferno
Today, in the New York Times I sadly read of the closing of this iconic marketplace on New York's 48th Street. Here's a slideshow of pics that used to line the walls:
There's more discussion about Jimi's relationship with Manny's in an interview with Manny Goldrich himself in the first of two historic volumes I produced for Guitar World, JIMI HENDRIX: THE ULTIMATE TRIBUTE (GW September, 1985), which is pictured right here:
Noe the G Founding Editor of Guitar World >"}}}}”> Noe Gold, aka Noe the G is the Founding Editor of Guitar World magazine. Among his most cherished achievements is the creation, with partner Bill Nitopi, curator of the Hendrix Collection Archives and an editor-at-large of Guitar World, of two humongous Special Issues: Vol. 6, No. 5 SEPTEMBER, 1985 SPECIAL JIMI HENDRIX TRIBUTE! and Vol. 9, No. 2 MARCH 1988 HENDRIX LIVES!: THE UNPUBLISHED HENDRIX, Vol. II.
As to Jimi's elctronics tech ... Know him? I worked the genius electronics whiz Roger Mayer ... see below:
... and I am the President of Guitar Galaxy! Check out our other fine products here:
The incredible "Roy Buchanan Telly Talk" DVD with a full-on master class session with the master of the Telecaster is available by just sending me an email: noemedia@pacbell.net
PS, we finally put up our "sneak-peek trailer version" of highlights for BlipTv and YouTube. Remember, this is a teaser, containing a fraction of the original footage on the DVD it is meant to promote. To get the full-scope, full-sound, complete experience, buy the DVD!
Here's how we look on BlipTv:
And here's the "Telly Talk Teaser" on YouTube:
We wanted to test the waters to see if there would be a demand for a similar kind of musician-with-guitar talk and demo in a Guitar Galaxy series with some of our old friends ... Billy Gibbons, Steve Stevens, Steve Vai, Joe Satch, Yngwie, Eddie Van H. (my kid goes to school with Wolfie) and Keef (I interviewed him last summer -- see this:) . ...
JC-017 Photo Credit: Jacob Cohl Keith Richards (left) and director Martin Scorsese (right) backstage at the Beacon Theater while filming the Rolling Stones concert film “Shine A Light.” Paramount Classics in Association with Concert Productions International and Shangri-La Entertainment Presents A Martin Scorsese Picture “Shine a Light” starring Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood. The film is directed by Martin Scorsese. The producers are Victoria Pearman, Michael Cohl, Zane Weiner and Steve Bing. The executive producers are Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood. This film has been rated PG-13 for brief strong language, drug references and smoking.
From my interview with Keith: Keith Richards is also a major fan of Scorsese’s and says he’s studied “every one of his movies. Some of them I know most of the dialogue,” he says. “All I heard was that Marty might be shooting the Stones, and I said, ‘Yeah!’ Given the opportunity to get a Stones show shot by a master, who’s going to say no?” Richards and the Stones have been no strangers to the cinematic treatment by film masters. Of the more than 18 documentaries that have been made about them, “Shine A Light” is one of more than half a dozen helmed by an “auteur.” There was 1968’s Jean-Luc Godard activist-arriviste take on the band, “Sympathy for the Devil: One Plus One”; Robert Frank’s very-limited release (it was shown publicly perhaps three times) documentary about their debauched life on the road, “Cocksucker Blues”; Peter Whitehead’s 1966 art-scene film “Charlie is My Darling”; The Maysles Brothers’ “Gimme Shelter”; and Hal Ashby’s “Let’s Spend the Night Together.” Film scholar that he is, Richards says “Don’t forget ‘Hail! Hail! Rock ’n’ Roll,’” Taylor Hackford’s documentary about a legendary Chuck Berry concert, in which Richards appeared and also co-produced. “To me, ‘Shine A Light’ is on a par with that film. It’s different because it’s a Stones show but it’s a very superior rock ’n roll film.” And why was that one so important to him as a performer and as an artist? “Actually, to me,” says Richards, “what was really intriguing was getting Marty’s take on it, and his vision. To me, the thing was that Martin Scorsese wanted to do something, and I thought, well, he must have something in mind that is beyond the usual sort of video scan. So I really wanted to find out what Marty wanted.” Who would have guessed that beneath the guise of the ultimate rock ‘n roll outlaw beat the heart of a cinematheque-denizen film scholar who wanted nothing more than to please a master auteur? “When you’re actually up there doing the work, you really pass all of that onto the director so that in a way, you just do what you do and try to do it as well as you can, and at the end you see whether you did it or not and then you stop to see – ahh! his vision of it,” observes Richards. “As it slowly unfolded with “Shine A Light” – Marty’s great use of old footage and live footage, for instance, had a great feel about it. It slowly dawns on you as you’re watching it. Otherwise, you have no idea. You can’t climb inside of somebody else’s brain.” At this point in the conversation, Keith says, "Lord knows, there's been people trying to get into my brain, but that was a necessity," referring to his own brain salad surgery.
From the Production Notes for the movie "Shine A Light" Noe Gold, aka Noe the G is featured for his interviews with Mick and Keith in the Mahalo Daily show’s report on the Martin Scorsese Rolling Stones movie “Shine a Light,” which opens stateside April 4, 2008.
>"}}}}));> Noe Gold, aka Noe the G is now a regular contributor to Fancast.com, an entertainment news website sponsored by the movie-obsessed Fandango service. His blog kicks off with his interviews with Mick and Keith in a report on the Martin Scorsese-Rolling Stones movie 'Shine a Light,' which opened stateside April 4, 2008: bigpicture.fancast.com/2008/04/fancast_interview_mick_jag....
>"}}}}):;> Noe was interviewed about how he came to talk to Mick and Keith on the Mahalo Daily show's episode here: daily.mahalo.com/2008/04/04/md093-shine-a-light-exclusive...
April 4, 2008 -- Mahalo Daily, (http://daily.mahalo.com/) ranks consistently in the top five podcasts on iTunes. We recently put out a video which reached 350,000+ views on YouTube, and was most viewed for several days.
There will be more from my Mick & Keef conversations here.
So whaddayasay, Guitar World flickr-ites? should we do it? will there be an audience for this sort of thing?
Originally uploaded by sofarsocute ... which I hope to include in my book about the Jimi photo hunters. Every day it seems, I get more incredible shots that have not been previously published (I DID TWO ENTIRE SPECIAL ISSUES OF 'EM A FEW YEARS BACK--see below*)
This one, "In Concert in Vancouver! 'Vanilla Fudge' opened the show and had a standing ovation with 'Set me free,'" is by Pierre Geumet, who goes by sofarsocute on Flickr. Pierre is a way cool photog and world traveler based in Vancouver.
The issue in question was Sept. '85, the first of two monumental Hendrix tributes, and the discussion of two V's Jimi was associated with can be found here (basically the left-hand and the right-hand parts of this magazine spread):
PS, Bill Nitopi, who Stevie Ray Vaughan called "The Keeper of the Frame," Has this to say about our collaboration on these Guitar World Special Issues: Thanks Noe, Nice photos... Yea, it's been 20 years since it came out... but we started working on that GW issue in Jan. 87. Historic, no one has ever come close to that in any type of publication. I still remember the look on the face of Dennis Page coming into your office upon realizing we spent almost $10.000 on photos for a single issue. GW '88 is still looked upon by collectors as the greatest accumulation of Hendrix photos in a single magazine or book. Thanks again, Love ya, Bill How do ya like that, peoples peoples peoples.
My son Dylan — and some of his classmates — appeared in a short film, a Public Service piece, over the summer that was entered in a competition on the web. The film is called “Sneeze” and it offers a glimpse at the rapid and pervasive ways in which the flu virus is passed on and contracted from one unsuspecting stranger to another throughout a city.
My son Dylan Z. Gold stars as the kid at the birthday party for his grandma.
The Stolen Dreams films can now be seen on mtvU’s website!
Stolen Dreams films on mtvU! The Best Film On Campus site, presented by mtvU, celebrates and awards the creativity of student films. The Stolen Dreams films have their own festival homepage, and each Stolen Dreams director has a profile. The link is gone but you can see it on the aforementioned MTV site.
The films are by filmmakers from UCLA. The videos are on YouTube too -- just search for "stolen dreams."
The Stolen Dreams films are stimulating, provocative, and something worth sharing and talking about with others. A voting feature was part of the original site. Instead, all 8 films were judged by a panel of industry professionals who narrowed the field to four semi-finalists. A separate judging panel of industry leaders then selected the Grand Prize winner. This judging process took place on Thursday, October 23rd. Please watch the films and take a moment now to share your thoughts on the health care and financial security crisis in America by using the comments feature that is positioned on individual film pages.
Noe the G and the Guitar World crew, composed of John Peden, photographer, Perry Margouleff, guitar maven, Bob Davis, Peter Mengaziol, the techno-wiz, went on a guitar safari to Les Paul's house in Mahwah, NJ, where we got the royal tour of all his wondrous gadgets as we prepared an article about the "Wizard of Waukesha."
When I went back into my files from the days of Guitar World (check those way-cool Les Paul gold-top minis me and Bob Davis are holding), there was one snap I couldn't find. It was a gathering for Les Paul Tuesdays (at Fat Tuesdays downtown Manhattan) that pre-dated the Iridium sessions you see chronicled in this awesome shot (see previous blog entry below) by my Flickr mate "Big Frank" Caico (http://www.frankcaico.net/Blog) on August 24, 2008 here -- just use this URL: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3193/2792662219_d75da82a1f.jpg
The snapshot I was looking for was from this incredible night of music attended by all the illustrious fans of Les, with Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page -- two original Yardbirds -- among them.
The interesting thing about it was that Beck and these other guys chose to just hang out and talk amongst themselves, but Jimmy Page was effusive in his homage to Les.
You see, Jimmy Page worshipped the ground Les walked on. In an encounter with the man at his hotel room at the fabled Plaza not much before the fab night at Fat Tuesday's, Jimmy demonstrated this filial adulation. The room was darkly lit, there was a faint smell of incense about ... coming from a little shrine Jimmy had set up on the dresser. There, festooned with all manner of shamanistic geegaws and bathed in a sepulchral light, was a framed picture of the immortal Les Paul!!
You see, Jimmy not only played a Les Paul -- he was in constant thrall of one.
I have no doubt that when the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame honors Les on November 15, that Jimmy Page will be there.
Right after I posted this I googled "Wizard of Waukesha," which is not only the title of a documentary about the man, but also the name of a tribute November 15 to this all-time genius:
Electric-guitar pioneer Les Paul has been chosen as the honoree for the 13th annual American Music Masters series, presented by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, Case Western Reserve University and Gibson Guitar Corp.
"Les played a big role in the pervasiveness of the guitar in popular music and in rock 'n' roll particularly," said Terry Stewart, president and CEO of the Rock Hall.
Paul's search for "this golden sound" changed the course of music history, Stewart said.
"The Wizard of Waukesha: The Life and Legacy of Les Paul" is set to culminate at 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 15, with a tribute concert at Playhouse Square's State Theatre in Cleveland.
Now, here's the real bizarrity of this story: I was cruising around YouTube and I found this cool performance by Les at the Iridium club in New York City from July 7, 1997 www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hz2HWjM9UQ and guess what? I was there!!!! you can tell (if you know me) by my distinctive laugh at 1:24 into the track.
I wish I could add my voice to the laugh track in Cleveland come Nov. 15.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LES!
Of course, this is about Gibsons, but Peden and I did a lot of hard travelin' on our guitar safaris, notably our adventure with Roy Buchanan, whose story (and beloved guitar) is hinted at here: Roy Buchanan's Telecaster named Nancy on Flickr.
You could do worse than to buy my DVD, produced and directed by Noe the G and filmed by John Peden. Find out more about it here on Noë’s blog: doctornoemedia.blogspot.com
From the sublime (Guitars, rock n roll, Rolling Stones, Marty Scorsese. Roy Buchanan) to the ridiculous: John Kricfalusi.
This blog harkens back to my first love: animation. I did a stint at the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan back in the 70s, where I met geniuses like John Canemaker ...
... and my esteemed prof Gil Miret, and where I renewed my relationship with my longtime collaborator on the esoteric film magazine Cineaste, Bill Plympton
Later on in my career I wrote about animation for The Hollywood Reporter. Since I'm back with that outfit now, and specializing once again in animation (I'll be writing a bunch of stuff for the forthcoming Global Animation Special Issue (coming 10/3/08) and the Oscar Watch: Animation Special Issue (out 11/19/08), here's a hearkening back to this roundtable I redacted back in 1998 with John Kricfalusi, Friz Freleng, Joe Barbera and Bill Hanna.
Cheers,
Noe Gold
aka Doctor Noe
aka Noe the G
Noe Gold wants you to see a photo
The Masters (Old and Young): Joe Barbera, John Kricfalusi, Jim Hanna, (seated) Friz Freleng
(If the link doesn't work, try copying and pasting it from this email into your browser's address bar.)
Here is the history of my concept of the first Hollywood Reporter Roundtable:
The Masters: Joe Barbera, John Kricfalusi, Jim Hanna, (seated) Friz Freleng. From a proof sheet by Aldo Mauro.
Roundtable for The Hollywood Reporter conducted by features editor Noë Gold in 1998 when all these gents were still with us.
... And John Kricfalusi has posted the entire Roundtable transcript on the ASIFA website in two parts here ... (sorry, the link is busted to pt. I)
Animation: John Kricfalusi and Noe Gold conduct the first Hollywood Reporter Roundtable with legendary animators Joe Barbera, Bill Hanna and Friz Freleng.
“Here is the first installment of a 1992 interview conducted by John Kricfalusi and Noë Gold with Bill Hanna, Joe Barbera and Friz Freleng. Rarely do we have the opportunity to listen in as directors speak filmmaker to filmmaker. Although the candidness of some of the comments may surprise you, I think you'll agree that this may be one of the most illuminating interviews on the subject of animation ever conducted.” -Stephen Worth
INTRODUCTION by John Kricfalusi: “There has lately been a lot of talk of an animation Renaissance. Where is it? It hasn't happened. ... There certainly is a great upsurge of interest in cartoons, especially from adults. We all want it to happen. Animators want it to happen. Studio Executives want it to happen and most importantly; the public wants it to happen. ... In the 1940s, men like Bill Hanna, Joe Barbera, Friz Freleng and their contemporaries, Bob Clampett, Chuck Jones and Tex Avery, brought animated cartoons to their height of glory...”
Noe Gold from the Hollywood Reporter and I met with Joe Barbera, Bill Hanna and Friz Freleng in Mr. Barbera's office. ...
and here ...
NoeTHR-FrelengHannaBarberaKricfalusi-1992-Pt2
ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive: Biography: John K Interviews ...
www.animationarchive.org/2006/05/biography-john-k-intervi...John K. interviews Friz & friends Pt II
Animation: John Kricfalusi and Noe Gold conduct the first Hollywood Reporter Roundtable with legendary animators Joe Barbera, Bill Hanna and Friz Freleng.
This is a continuation of an interview by John Kricfalusi with Bill Hanna, Joe Barbera and Friz Freleng. If you missed it, please see Part One of John K Interviews Bill, Joe & Friz
INTRODUCTION by John Kricfalusi: Noe Gold from the Hollywood Reporter and I met with Joe Barbera, Bill Hanna and Friz Freleng in Mr. Barbera's office. ...
FRIZ & BILL AT HARMAN-ISING
Noe Gold: You gentlemen worked together at one point, didn't you?
Bill H: Friz and I worked together in 1930 for a company called Harman & Ising.
Friz F: And that was the beginning...
Bill H: The very beginning... Leon Schlesinger engaged them as a company to produce cartoons for them. After about two or three years, he decided to produce them himself, and that is when Friz and I parted company. I stayed with Hugh and Rudy, and Friz went to work with Leon.
Friz F: I knew I had to make a choice. It was either MGM or Leon Schlesinger. But they started making pictures with Jack King and Tom Palmer, and when I saw what what they made, I threw up. I figured it would be a cinch to make pictures better than that. Leon Schlesinger said I could have my own crew. Warners loved what we were making- Bosko in "Sinkin' in the Bathtub" and all that. ...
I'm revisiting this cover story I did for the Sun Newspapers about director Brian Robbins because he has a new movie opening July 11, "Meet Dave." This is the very movie that was then known as "Starship Dave" when I visited with Brian on the set.
So to see my original interview with the guy, go here ...
This is from a cover story by Noë Gold for the Sun Newspapers (Studio City, Sherman Oaks, Encino CA). Brian Robbins, director of Eddie Murphy’s smash comedy Norbit, takes us on the set of his next Murphy vehicle, Meet Dave. Photo by robertevans.com
Fender Exhibit: Roy Buchanan's Telecaster 3-22-08 Keith Richards photo by John Peden
A blow-up of John Peden's photo of Keith for the cover of Guitar World magazine bends his B-string over a massive array of Telecaster firepower including Roy Buchanan's "Nancy," a prime example of the stripped-down, bare bones instrument that is so expressive in the hands of a master like Roy.
Richard Smith, author of "Fender - the sound heard around the world" now works for the Fullerton Museum Center 301 N. Pomona Ave, Fullerton Ca. 92832 (714) 738-6545. He always has an exhibit on Fender but for 2008-10 there is a new exhibit on the Telecaster. The gala opening of the exhibit, entitled “Solid Design: Leo Fender’s Telecaster” was March 22, 2008 7-10 p.m., and the exhibit will run through Fall, 2010. From the exhibit catalog: “In early 1949 Leo Fender started seriously designing a standard guitar model for his Fine Line of Fender Electric Instruments. At first the guitar was called the Esquire, then the Broadcaster and finally the Telecaster. Sixty years later it is one of the most popular guitars in the world, an instrument built for working men and women musicians who defined the blues, country and pop styles.
There's a whole set of photos from the Tele exhibit here.
Featured on a monitor throughout the night was the documentary by Noe Gold and John Peden, "Roy Buchanan Telly Talk." A full-on "director's cut" documentary version of "Telly Talk" is in the works.
Watch this space for news of further developments: see the "About my DVD" section to the right.
Noe Gold, aka Noe the G is featured for his interviews with Mick and Keith in the Mahalo Daily show’s report on the Martin Scorsese Rolling Stones movie “Shine a Light,” which opens stateside April 4, 2008.
And there's a whole story behind the photos like this one on my Flickr page -- go to the Shine A Light set and read those cool captions. They tell a story.
Mahalo Daily Interviews with Mick Jagger and Keith Richards by Noe Gold for the "Shine A Light" Production Notes
Noe Gold, aka Noe the G is featured for his interviews with Mick and Keith in the Mahalo Daily show’s report on the Martin Scorsese Rolling Stones movie “Shine a Light,” which opens stateside April 4, 2008. We recently put out a video which reached 350,000+ views on YouTube, and was most viewed for several days. You can see some examples of our shows here:
Today we interviewed Noe Gold regarding his work on the SHINE A LIGHT film. In the episode, we are featuring interviews with Mick and Keith that were taken for the Production Notes (with express permission from Paramount).
We recently put out a video which reached 350,000+ views on YouTube, and was most viewed for several days. You can see some examples of our shows here:
The piece that mahalo.com ’s producer Michael is talking about was designed to be a kind of companion piece to the “About the Film” section on Paramount’s http://www.shinealightmovie.com/main.html website. If you navigate over there, besides art work, clips and other goodies, you may find the text for the complete Production Notes for the movie. It was supposed to be a kind of behind-the-scenes of the process of putting together an elaborate Production Notes package, which this one in particular of all the many Notes packages I worked on, turned out to be. It’s that process -- and the elaborate process of making the movie itself that the show explores. I’ll be posting some more from the interviews I did with the filmmakers to put together this Production Notes package right on my blog,
I’ve just now seen the movie for the fourth time, and it keeps getting better and better. Some of the features Lon Harris and I discussed in the interview for the show: Keith’s rapport with Marty, Mick’s auteurship of the concert, Buddy Guy’s performance and that of Jack White.
To start at the beginning, you must see this excellent painting by my friend Peaceswirl, a lovely folk artist in Bayou Country: http://www.flickr.com/photos/peaceswirl/2368233466/
That'll take you to these two entries on today's blog!
Now you'll want to go to my latest addition to my Flickr page here for more of the story (or just keep scrolling to the next entry where I recount it):
Now that I've done all that, might as well put it all up on my blog (http://doctornoemedia.blogspot.com/).
Hold the presses! I did locate the issue in question - it was Sept. '85, the Hendrix tribute, and the photo spread on the pink Strat is right here on page 54:
The discussion of two V's Jimi was associated with can be found here (basically the left-hand and the right-hand parts of this magazine spread):
It all started with an innocent footnote to that lovely painting of Jimi on peaceswirl's Flickr page. It was there that I said,
"Paul, thanks for the story that fills in some blanks on that pink Strat (and of course thanks PeaceSwirl for another cool painting - you should put it up on www.flickr.com/groups/hendrixgroove/)
I actually published a black-and-white old publicity photo of Jimi with the Sidewalks in an issue of Guitar WORLD. Don't remember if it was the Unpublished Hendrix special issue, the Hendrix Lives special issue, or the one with Billy on the cover where John Peden and I did a really cool photo odyssey of all Billy's axes -- I'll have to dig that up. But I do have it somewhere.
So this is the story Paul Macrae told about the Pink Strat:
It's in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame now, but it's had a number of adventures. Legend has it that this guitar was a gift from Jimi to Billy Gibbons back in 1970. Before Z Z Top BG played in a band named The Moving Sidewalks and they opened for Hendrix on his last tour.
Obviously this guitar was one of Gibbons' prized possessions, but at some point it was stolen. In 1976 ZZ Top took a break from touring and recording. It was when they returned to the public eye in 1979 that they first showed their long beards.
During their time in seclusion they found it easy to move anonymously in public because of the beards. One night Gibbons was hanging out in a local bar here in my neighborhood watching the weekly blues jam when he noticed Jimi's Pink guitar being played up on the stage.
So when the group had finished their set Gibbons approached the guitar player, not as himself, but as Joe nobody with a long beard, and made an offer on the guitar. Of course he didn't mention that the guitar once belonged to Jimi Hendrix either.
$150 dollars later he walked out with Jimi's pink guitar in tow.
... which I'll insert here just before I give you the lowdown on the Fullerton Museum Fender Telecaster exhibit featuring my "Telly Talk" footage of Roy Buchanan. That will be my next post, but for now, here's something I came across on a lovely site called mahalo.com. It's the entire 2008 Oscar telecast in 60 seconds. Here goes ...
John shot this at the gig Roy did after we taped him for the Guitar Galaxy video "Roy Buchanan Telly Talk" (http://doctornoemedia.blogspot.com/), but the guitar he's playing is actually a Telecaster from John's collection, since "Nancy" was back at the shack for the photo session.
And, stay tuned for this … Richard Smith, author of "Fender - the sound heard around the world" now works for the Fullerton Museum Center 301 N. Pomona Ave, Fullerton Ca. 92832 (714) 738-6545. He always has an exhibit on Fender but for 2008 there will be a new exhibit on the Telecaster. The gala opening of the exhibit, entitled “Solid Design: Leo Fender’s Telecaster” is scheduled for March 22, 2008 7-10 p.m., and the exhibit will run through Fall, 2010 (http://www.ci.fullerton.ca.us/depts/museum/exhibits/leo_fender_exhibit/default.asp).
From the exhibit catalog: “In early 1949 Leo Fender started seriously designing a standard guitar model for his Fine Line of Fender Electric Instruments. At first the guitar was called the Esquire, then the Broadcaster and finally the Telecaster. Sixty years later it is one of the most popular guitars in the world, an instrument built for working men and women musicians who defined the blues, country and pop styles.
“’Solid Design: Leo Fender’s Telecaster’ will showcase this instrument, the first commercially successful solidbody electric guitar, an instrument that changed music history. Numerous examples from the early years will be on display. There will also be a noticeable celebrity component in the images and presentation, including Telecasters once owned by stars. The exhibit points to players such as George Harrison, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Roy Buchanan, James Burton, Don Rich and Mike Bloomfield. These musicians—Tele players all—created some of the most potent music imaginable.”
Among the Roy B. artifacts will be his guitar called “Nancy,” which we immortalized in a special Collector’s Choice centerfold of Guitar World magazine. In a spotlight area of the exhibit will be some of the Roy Buchanan “Telly Talk” footage and there will be copies of the DVD in the bookstore gift shop. Guitar Galaxy is planning a special “Director’s Cut” documentary edition of the DVD, which will have more photos like the one at left and photographic details (not footage, ’cause that’s all he wrote) about Nancy and the photo spread we shot for Guitar World on that occasion, as well as personal testimony from some Tele players such as Jeff Beck, Robbie Robertson, Seymour Duncan and others who were touched by or intimate with Roy.
Join the Fullerton Museum Center in celebrating the opening of TWO exhibits, including a NEW exhibit in the Leo Fender Gallery! Take this special opportunity to view “Solid Design: Leo Fender’s Telecaster” and “The Delta Blues Project.” It will be an evening celebrating music, art, and everything in between! $20 Admission/Free for members. Food/Entertainment by Kid Ramos. Call (714) 738-6545 for more details.
The photo is by John Peden for the Collector's Choice photo session for the magazine centerfold.
But as an added treat while we had Roy and his ax in the studio, I interviewed him and we rolled videotape. Twenty-five years later, the results of that videotape can be seen on a commercially available DVD known as "Roy Buchanan Telly Talk."
Roy Buchanan Telly Talk!
Some more details about our setup for videotaping Roy. In the video he is playing the Telecaster that he is most identified with, called "Nancy". This Tele is well known to Roy freaks. The other thing is we had him playing through a 4X10 Fender Bassman amp, model 5F6-A considered by many that know to be the BEST guitar amp ever made by any company. It can be glimpsed in a few of the shots. We also used a 1961 brown Fender outboard spring reverb unit model 6G-15. We employed two good Nakamichi microphones, one for vocal and the other on the amp. Roy definitely liked the tone of this rig (who wouldn't ?) This set up along with the relaxed vibe of the shoot and Noë the G’s knowledgeable questions contributed to a very short but successful video.
... and there's more info on it on my blog here: http://doctornoemedia.blogspot.com/2008/01/sound-on-rebound.html#links
The November 1982 centerfold. I have a copy but I'm looking for an original issue ... I edited the text and wrote/did the interview and accompanying article.
The ax was made for me by Grover Jackson. It is a Charvel Jackson Strat with Dimarzio pickups, gold hardware and a Floyde Rose. The company he rode to glory in the '80s and '90s has recently been conglomerated into the benign despot of the guitar world, Fender Instruments. Which is a good thing for all concerned.
Checked out the Fullerton museum last week, with my son Dylan, pictured here. Browsing around in all that history and monolithic iconography (see here- just click on the picture:) got me to thinking about my next project -- contributing something to an exhibit there coming up in March, organized by Richard Smith, author of Fender: The Sound Heard 'Round the World. The show will be about Telecasters. One particular one, belonging to the late Roy Buchanan, was photographed by John Peden, who also shot numerous other Fenders for Richard's book). The guitar was named Nancy, and in 1982 I had the honor of moderating a video interview cum master class with Mr. Buchanan as he arrived in John Peden's studio for the photo enshrinement of Nancy in Guitar World magazine's Centerfold Collector's Choice feature.
See the caption for more info on this session, which did make it to guitar freak audiences via the DVD medium.
