Author Archives: sixstrstories
Rewriting The Record For The Electric Guitar Again
One sentence. “On September 23-25, 1935, Leon McAuliffe, a brilliant player from Tulsa, Oklahoma, whose phrasing could have well influenced Charlie Christian, featured both electric steel and electrically amplified Spanish guitar on the first recordings of Bob Wills’s Texas Playboys.” … Continue reading
Sparklers: “Autumn Leaves” by Kenny Burrell
This is a new category here at sixstr stories. It will feature recordings of outstanding performances by noteworthy guitarists – or outstanding guitarists giving noteworthy performances – for your listening pleasure. It was inspired by whatever god oversees the shuffle … Continue reading
Rewriting The Record For The Electric Guitar
The book was called: Discography Of Western Swing And Hot String Bands, 1928-1942 by Cary Ginell and Kevin Coffey. It had been published in 2001. I found it one afternoon a few months ago in the Performing Arts Reading Room, … Continue reading
A Photo a Week Challenge: Music
This is my first time entering a photo challenge. But when I found the nancy merrill photography blog and the topic of her weekly photo challenge, one image immediately came to mind. I took this photograph on Father’s Day in … Continue reading
This Historic Day In Music: Sara Carter
Sara Carter was born Sara Elizabeth Dougherty on this day, July 21, in 1898, just north of Copper Creek, Wise County, Virginia. She was one of five children born to William Sevier and Nancy Elizabeth (Kilgore) Dougherty. One day when … Continue reading
A Day In Boston, Highlights & Traditions – a no-str story
Boston, Massachusetts. Friday, June 22, 2018. Morning: looking up from the deck of the U.S.S. Constitution. Afternoon: looking down through a window at the top of the Bunker Hill Monument. Snacking under a tree on the Rose Kennedy Greenway in … Continue reading
“There Are (Songs To Be Sung)”
5/9/93 That’s the date in the top right hand corner of page 273 of the first volume of my songwriting notebooks. Page 273 also contains the finished lyrics – four verses and a chorus – of the song I eventually … Continue reading
Quotations Marked 7
“How do you calculate the influence of a song in your life? We have songs that carry enormous meaning for us, songs we want played at our weddings or at our funerals, songs that every time we hear them, every single … Continue reading
“Deep River Blues” – Page 1 & Page 2
On April 7, 2013, I wrote a post about the song “Deep River Blues.” In that post, I included a transcription – in standard musical notation and guitar tablature – of my Doc Watson-inspired, finger-picking arrangement of “Deep River Blues.” … Continue reading
This Historic Day In Music: “Bull Frog Moan”
Lonnie Johnson and Eddie Lang needed another side. How so? Well… In 1929, the standard format for the commercial release of recordings was a flat disc made of shellac resin and measuring 10 inches in diameter. The 78 RPM playback … Continue reading
