Roy Buchanan
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Roy Buchanan (September 23, 1939 - August 14, 1988) was an American guitar and blues musician. He is noted for his use of note-bending, staccato runs, and pinch harmonics. Buchanan was a pioneer of the Telecaster sound.
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[edit] Early career
Roy Buchanan's musical career began in Pixley, California. His father was in the main a sharecropper (not a Pentecostal preacher as Buchanan himself had claimed). Buchanan told how his first musical memories were of racially-mixed revival meetings his family would attend. "Gospel," he recalled, "that's how I first got into black music". He in fact drew upon many disparate influences while learning to play his instrument (although he later claimed his aptitude was derived from being "half-wolf"). He initially showed talent on the steel guitar before switching to the standard instrument in the early 50's.
In 1957, Buchanan made his recording debut, playing the solo on Dale Hawkins' "My Babe" for Chicago's Chess Records. Three years later, Buchanan headed north to Canada, where he took charge of the guitar role in Ronnie Hawkins' band (a group later to gain fame as The Band). The group's bass player, Robbie Robertson, studied guitar under Buchanan, and took over the lead guitar spot when Buchanan left the group.
The early 60's found Buchanan performing numerous gigs as a sideman with multiple rock bands, and cutting a number of sessions as guitarist with musicians such as Freddy Cannon and Merle Kilgore.
[edit] Recording career
Buchanan's 1962 recording with drummer Bobby Gregg, "Potato Peeler", first introduced the trademark Buchanan pinch harmonics. An effort to cash in on the British Invasion caught Buchanan with the 'British Walkers'. In the mid-'60's, Buchanan settled down in the Washington, DC area, playing as a sideman before starting his own groups. One of these groups was called The Snakestretchers, an allusion to Buchanan's disdain for the vagaries of the band experience. The Snakestretchers became a semi-permanent combo for Buchanan starting in this period, with whom he made his first acclaimed recording as a front man. Danny Gatton was another respected Telecaster master who lived in Washington, D.C. at that time. Both musicians gained reputations as under-appreciated guitarists.
In 1971, riding on word-of-mouth reputation that included praise from John Lennon, Eric Clapton, Merle Haggard, and an alleged invitation to join the Rolling Stones, Buchanan gained national notoriety as the result of an hour-long Public broadcasting television documentary. Entitled "The Best Unknown Guitarist In The World", the show rejuvenated a contract with Polydor and began a decade of national and international touring. He recorded five albums for Polydor (one went gold) and three for Atlantic Records (one gold), while playing most major rock concert halls and festivals. Finally, Buchanan quit recording in 1981, vowing never to enter a studio again unless he could record his own music his own way.
Four years later, Buchanan was coaxed back into the studio by Alligator Records. His first album for Alligator, When a Guitar Plays The Blues, was released in the spring of 1985. It was the first time he was given total artistic freedom in the studio; it was also his first true blues album. Fans quickly responded, and the album entered Billboard's pop charts and remained on the charts for 13 weeks. Music critics, as well as fans, applauded Roy's efforts with favorable reviews.
His second Alligator LP, Dancing on the Edge, was released in the fall of 1986. The album, featuring three songs with special guest, rock'n'soul vocalist Delbert McClinton, won the College Media Journal Award for Best Blues Album of 1986.
He released the twelfth LP of his career and his third for Alligator, Hot Wires, in 1987. In addition to Donald Kinsey (formerly with Albert King and Bob Marley), keyboardist Stan Szelest, and Larry Exum (bass) and Morris Jennings (drums), this album includes guest vocals by veteran soul singer Johnny Sayles and blues singer Kanika Kress.
[edit] Tone and Technique
Buchanan used a number of guitars throughout his career, although he was most often associated with a 1953 Telecaster guitar he named 'Nancy', which he used to produce his trebly signature tone. Rarely did Buchanan utilize 'stomp boxes' although later live performances utilized a digital delay. The 'sound' of Buchanan is essentially an overdriven Telecaster to a Fender amp on 10.
Buchanan taught himself many guitar styles, including the 'chicken pickin' style. He sometimes used his thumb nail rather than a plectrum and also employed it to augment his index finger and plectrum. Holding his thumb at a certain angle, Buchanan was able to hit the string and then partially mute it, suppressing lower overtones and exposing the harmonics, a technique now known as 'pinch harmonics'. Buchanan had the ability to execute pinch harmonics on command, and could mute individual strings with free right-hand fingers while picking or pinching others.
Having first trained as a lap steel guitarist, Buchanan would often imitate its effect and bend strings to the required pitch, rather than starting on the desired note. This was particularly notable in his approach to using double and triple stops. Staccato hammer-on/offs and volume/tone knob sound effects were also used by Buchanan.
[edit] Live Performances
Buchanan honed his live technique through many years of playing dance halls and bars. Buchanan played Carnegie Hall several times, and is perhaps the only lead guitarist to have consistently headlined there for over 15 years.
Buchanan encouraged a tradition of 'roots' performances that grew out of country, blues, and especially rock and roll. He often stuck around long after shows to talk with loyal fans. Many live CD's were released after his death.
[edit] Legacy
Buchanan's long-standing alcohol and substance problems worsened with time, culminating in a domestic dispute with his wife at their Reston, Virginia home in 1988. She called the police, who arrested Buchanan. Several hours later Buchanan was found hanged in his cell. His cause of death was officially recorded as suicide, a finding disputed by some of Buchanan's friends and family.
Roy's musical career took him from underground club gigs in the sixties and seventies to national television, gold record sales, and worldwide tours in the eighties with the likes of Lonnie Mack, the Allman Brothers, Willie Nile.
Even posthumously, he has the respect of many guitarists and a large number of fans, particularly for his unique sound. Buchanan was noted for the ability to get 'wah wah' and 'violin swell' effects from his Telecaster by use of the instrument's knobs and plectrum. Finally, he was a pioneer in the use of pinch harmonics, and some of rock's most notable guitarists acknowledge Buchanan's mastery of the technique.
[edit] Discography
- Buch & The Snakestretchers, 1971, BOYA
- Roy Buchanan and the Snakestretchers, 1972, BOYA
- Roy Buchanan, 1972, Polydor
- Second Album, 1973, Polydor
- That's What I Am Here For, 1974, Polydor
- In the Beginning, 1974, Polydor
- Live Stock, 1975, Polydor
- Rescue Me, 1975, Polydor
- Street Called Straight, 1976, Atlantic
- Loading Zone, 1977, Atlantic
- Live in U.S.A. & Holland 77-85 - Silver Shadow CD 9104
- You're Not Alone, 1978, Atlantic
- Live in Japan - 1977 (Rel 1978) Polydor MPF 1105
- My Babe, 1981, AJK
- When a Guitar Plays the Blues, 1985, Alligator
- Live - Charly Blues Legend vol. 9 85-87 - Charly Schallplatten GMBH - CBL 758*
- Dancing on the Edge, 1986, Alligator
- Hot Wires, 1987, Alligator
- Early Years, 1989, Krazy Kat
- Sweet Dreams: The Anthology, 1992, Polydor
- Guitar on Fire: Atlantic Sessions, 1993, Rhino
- Charly Blues Masterworks: Roy Buchanan Live, 1999, RedX entertainment
- Deluxe Edition: Roy Buchanan, 2001, Alligator
- 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: Best Of Roy Buchanan, 2002, Polydor
- American Axe: Live In 1974 [Live], 2003, Powerhouse Records
