Rainer Ptacek

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Rainer Ptacek (June 7, 1951 – November 12, 1997) was a Tucson, Arizona-based guitarist, singer, and songwriter. His unique guitar technique, which incorporated slide, finger-picking, tape loops, and electronic manipulation, earned him admiration of some notable musicians such as Robert Plant (Led Zeppelin) and Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top). The tribute album to him, The Inner Flame, included participations by Plant, Jimmy Page, and Emmylou Harris among others, and was indicative of his reputation as a "musician's musician". He was diagnosed with a brain tumor in early 1996, and died nearly two years later of the illness that had recurred.

Ptacek was born in East Berlin to a family of Czech descent. His family fled East Germany for the United States when he was 5. They eventually settled in Chicago, where young Ptacek was first exposed to the blues music. He moved to Tucson in the early 1970s, where he founded Giant Sand with Howe Gelb. When the band decided to move to New York, he decided to stay in Tucson to make sure that he would not disrupt his then-new family. He began his own musical career, most often solo, but sometimes as a part of the blues trio Das Combo. Although he never became popular even in Tucson, he was becoming more and more recognized professionally. Gibbons was so impressed with the singer-guitarist that he arranged to have Kurt Loder review one of Ptacek's tapes in Rolling Stone. [1] Plant, similarly impressed, flew Ptacek to England for the sessions for B-sides to supplemement the singles from Fate of Nations. [2]

He was diagnosed with brain tumor and lymphoma in February 1996. He did not have medical insurance, and his bills were mounting. Gelb and Plant organized sessions for a charity album. The resulting record, The Inner Flame: Rainer Ptacek Tribute, featured Ptacek-penned songs performed by Gelb (with Giant Sand), Plant, Page, Harris, Evan Dando, Victoria Williams, Vic Chesnutt, Kris McKay, PJ Harvey, The Drovers, Madeleine Peyroux, Jonathan Richman, and Bill Janovitz (Buffalo Tom). The cast of artists was impressive, especially considering Ptacek's limited popularity.

Intense chemotherapy sessions put his tumor into remission, and Ptacek resumed his concert activity vigorously, beginning with a guest performance in Greg Brown's show in November 1996. By this time, media attention was more focused on him than ever before. Just as when it seemed as though he had beaten his disease, it recurred in October 1997, and he died three weeks later. He was 46.

[edit] Discography

The Mush Mind Blues. (Circa 1984, casette)
Barefoot Rock with Rainer and Das Combo. Released on casette in 1986, re-issued on CD in 2000.
Worried Spirits. (1992)
Nocturnes. (1995)
D.Y.O. (1995)
The Texas Tapes. (1995, with Das Combo)
The Inner Flame: Rainer Ptacek Tribute. The tribute/benefit album mentioned above, released in 1997. Ptacek is also a participant in most of the tracks.
Alpaca Lips. (2000, posthumous release)
Live at the Downtown Performance Center. (2000, posthumous release)
The Farm. (Posthumous release)