We continue our look back at the music of 50 years ago…..
The 1970’s were a golden age for guitar players. The record stacks were filled with thrilling music from the greats…Clapton, Page, Beck, Allman and countless more. The styles varied and if you had to choose a favorite it was tough. I was always partial to clean lines and solid tone. Larry Carlton’s work with Steely Dan and, later in the decade Mark Knopfler’s great stuff on the early Dire Straits records was catnip for me.
And then there was Roy Buchanan. He’s another guy I didn’t discover until I dug into the stacks at 90FM…but boy did I dig in. He released an LP in 1977 called “Loading Zone” that I played to death. In 1972 he released his 2nd Lp simply called “Roy Buchanan”.
It’s really two different albums in one. His usual great blues work on instrumentals like “John’s Blues”, “Petes Blue” and “The Messiah Will Come Again”. But it also included a number of countryfied cover tunes featuring the vocals of his old friend Chuck Tilley.
The version of Hank Williams “Hey Good Lookin” is pretty straight forward but he also gives us a heartfelt version of ” I Am A Lonesome Fugitive” (made popular by Merle Haggard), and the novelty tune “Haunted House”. What sets these apart are Buchanan’s guitar breaks. He also does a beautiful instrumental version of Don Gibson’s “Sweet Dreams”.
The backing of his old DC buddies Dick Heintze, Pete Van Allen, Ned Davis & Teddy Irwin is solid but stays in the background so we can get a good listen to Buchanan”s beautiful tone. One minute shredding, the next bending the strings in a long, slow moan.
I can name you alot of different 70’s guitar players that I dug and many would be at the top of my list depending on what day it is…but Roy Buchanan is never far from #1.
Comments