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Aldo Nova’s 1981 classic Fantasy Video

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Earlier today I woke up to this classic 1980’s tune that was playing on my alarm clock radio. It was called Fantasy from Aldo Nova.

It’s one of those songs that you can’t get out of your head all day long. It’s like having a skip in a record playing part of a song over and over again! Am I the only one that this happens to?

So all that I could hear in my head all day was Fantasy and I kept thinking about that damn video! Spandex leopard suit singer Aldo Nova with his big hair and vintage Les Paul guitar with Marshall stacks as far as the eye can see. Ah, the dreaded 80’s look and the thing that really bothers me is that at the time, I bought right into that look.

This piece of 80’s nostalgia pop rock, brings me back to the days of practicing this song in my friend Domenic’s parents basement with our other friends Eddie and Jon. So this video is dedicated to those guys and the spandex leopard skin suits left over from that memorable time in our lives!

I hope you get a kick out of it everyone.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GylirgHFqeQ

Keep on Jammin’





Jose Feliciano, now that’s a blast from the past

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Every time you hear Jose Feliciano‘s name mentioned what is the first song that comes to mind? Chico and the Man. This man, who is probably one of the greatest ambassador of flamenco guitar, likely has a love hate relationship with this song that has made him a household name.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXdYrERzrWg

The Flamenco guitar sound in this song, to a young impressionable guitarist like me in the 70’s when it first came out, was extremely exotic. At the time I was exposed to pop 70’s tunes that were not all that multicultural in essence. From Arlo Guthrie to Led Zeppelin there was nothing that came close to the distinctive approach to playing guitar that it had on me.

Another thing that made the theme song Chico and the Man strike a chord with me was the words. It was the first time that I paid any attention to the words of a song. It fit in perfectly with the overall idea behind this 1970’s hit TV show. The subjects playing on the screen when it was playing helped the song make such an impression on any viewer.

I remember having my guitar in my lap, always in tune, when the show was about to begin. I tried my best to figure it out when it was playing on TV. This was before a VHS machine was commonplace in most homes. I had to start figuring out the bass line or basic chords of the song first. I wrote them down in a book very quickly and then added to the chords later on to fill out the sound of the song. Man those were the days!

If you don’t know how to play Chico and the Man on guitar then check out this link! The guy in this video, Chuck Davis AKA Harvey Clinger, is utterly hilarious. At first take, I thought that it was a joke but he does a fantastic rendition of the song at the end. After he start playing the song, I realized that the man knew exactly how to interpret this one!

So if you’re a guitar player, have you ever tried figuring Jose Feliciano’s Chico and the Man OR do you think you might give this one a go?

Keep on Jammin’

Hendrix’s Duo Sonic Guitar up for Auction

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According to the Guitar News Daily, the 1959 Fender Duo Sonic Guitar that Jimi Hendrix used for around 6 months while playing with the Isley Brothers is up for auction in the UK. The auction will take place on Tuesday, November 2nd, 2010. This was the first Fender guitar that Jimi Hendrix’s used.

Here is a great picture of him and his Fender Duo sonic when he was with The King Kasuals.

The article states that Jimi payed about $160.00 US for his Fender Duo Sonic. I got one when I was living with my parents in the 70’s and mine was around the same price as well. The estimate price of Hendrix’s Duo Sonic is pegged anywhere from $235,000 to $285,000 (Can). I don’t think that mine will fetch this price but it doesn’t hurt to dream now does it!

The Auction company is called Cameo Auction and the guitar will be sold in Lot # 429.

Description: MEMORABILIA: Hendrix: Jimi’s Blond (tan) ’59/ ’60 Duo-Sonic Guitar.

During Jimi nine-month stint from March to November 1964, with the Isley Brothers, when he was known as Jimmy James, Hendrix got his first Fender guitar – a blond (tan) ’59/ ’60 Duo-Sonic. The one Jimi used was manufactured as a short scale guitar 22 ? inches long, selling in those days for $160. The common blond (tan) finish was discontinued in 1964. He found the Duo-Sonic affordable and that it worked great for the funky rhythms he played while working as a backing musician with the Isley Brothers backing band.

Jimi had at one stage fitted his Duo-Sonic with an EpiPhone (Maestro) Vibrato unit but had later taken it off. The rumour is that this guitar went missing whilst on tour in the USA but contrary to this Jimi just tired of using it and it was put away for a while and resurfaced years later in Chas Chandler’s London studio. Chas discovered and managed Jimi. Chas later sold the guitar in 1982 for ?400 to Rod Weinberg, who in 1983 reunited the Animals for a world tour. In 1956, Fender introduced the Music Master and Duo-Sonic guitars as affordable “3/4-size” short-scale student models. The Duo Sonic was always a student level guitar. The Duo-Sonic is considered rare and has displayed growing collector value.

The Music Master and Duo-Sonic were essentially the same guitar, with the addition of another pickup (in the bridge position) and a toggle switch on the Duo-Sonic. Cameo specialist Auctioneers Lot Description

My electric Fender Duo-sonic, just like Jimi’s, is a short scale (sometimes referred to as a student model) electric guitar. Anyone who has ever played it raves about it. The neck is made of rosewood and very small (great for all you speed freak guitarists out there), ultra light and the single coil pick ups are tailor fit to obtain that ultimate funky sound! Another great guitarist who owns one is my high school mentor Scott Merrit. I stupidly sanded mine down while Scott cut out this neat hole in the upper part of the guitar that he used as a handle, it is really neat!

Keep on Jammin’

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