Roy Buchanan Tone - Who's Got It?

[Don Mare]

I put in the call to Little Joe today - first thing he said to tell ya is "he loves playin it"!

Neck Date 56'
Body between 56 to 59
Bridge pickup reads 6.7k
Neck pickup died and is now lost - replaced with a 7.7k Seymour Duncan by Joe ( he likes it)
The neck was fretted while in Roys possession with Jumbo's ) Joe loves the frets!)
Volume and Tone is hard to turn and the shafts are bent he thinks?
Knobs are not the ones Roy had on it or is the pickgaurd - but Joe still has them all and said he will put it all back on ( pickgaurd and knobs and take photos for us.
Joe also said its got high action and you can "hit a note on this guitar light a cigarette -smoke it - and the note or chord will still be playing" Now thats a nice guitar!

Joe traded Larry Quinns 56' Esquire to Roy for the 56' Black Tele
thats how he got it - so it was not a flat out gift from Roy to Joe like I thought I heard before - Joe also mentioned that Judy told him "he was Roys best friend" just a few years ago - that meant allot to Joe.

Remember Roys Sunburst Strat? that still belongs to Gary Rodolf - Gary had a 55 tele and wore Hush Puppy Shoes too.. and thats who they would call when Roy was not available to play - they say he played just like Roy.. I will be calling Gary soon... I should have that number tomorow.


Now for some more Nancy news.
` Roy traded his Les Paul to CJ for Nancy - Roy would not give Nancy back after he played her. - would be nice to contact CJ - I'll try ... Elwood would know more info also, so I will try to contact Elwood as well

well thats the news

[HighTower]

Don,
Can you tell me where I might catch Little Joe gigging? I'm still not too far from DC and would love to hear them. BTW, I met Lindy today [great guy + plays some mean tele licks!) I told him you said "Hi".

[olewichita]

great info don... the bridge is a flat pole so that would indicate it's a pre 55 bridge pickup... tj

[Don Mare]

Originally Posted by olewichita

great info don... the bridge is a flat pole so that would indicate it's a pre 55 bridge pickup... tj

Little Joe says Elwood said it was the bass-tard Tele - so gosh - it may be a early pickup - who knows how that guitar came together - but I'll tell ya what - were going to make some calls and see if we can find out - why not right!,, if we don't no one ever will and sooner then we wish we that care may all be gone - then it will be lost forever! seems to me I've heard this story before - lol!

I may send Joe my gauss meter (if its a flat pole) so we will know,
if its a alnico -5 / or alnico -3 ?

[11 Gauge]

Originally Posted by olewichita

he also brought another real blackguard on the road regularly... as on live in japan... that's not 2324 but it still sounds 100% like roy...

I LOVE Soul Dressing on that album! For years, I thought it was Nancy, but I have some pics that seem to indicate that it was a Tele with a Strat neck pickup - those are my FAVORITE Roy neck pickup tones - they just seem to have an extra layer of greatness to them that Nancy couldn't provide (forgive me, please).

I also realized that it wasn't Nancy on LIJ when Roy would switch to the bridge pickup and you didn't get the clank followed by the squeal before he could shift stage position or mute the strings.

When I realized that the LIJ Tele stuff was a different Tele, that cemented it all for me - it was the man, not the machine.

Does anyone know the details of the LIJ Tele? Particularly the neck pickup?

[Don Mare]

It's no doubt that Roy could get his sound out of that array of different guitars over the years - But Nancy did sound different and to many Roy fans she was the guitar!
and she is different especially on the bridge.

Having to try to sound like Roy In my Tribute band - I've learned how to get that sound too
while having to use different Teles - Strats - Gibsons -
at that point its more at the way you set the amp - Treble WAY UP - and let the fingers do the rest -

No ones saying Nancy made the man -

but the Majority of Roys fans everywhere are saying Nancy sounded different and was Roys best sounding guitar.

its cool to go against the majority and pick out your own favorite guitars Roy used -
I love that the Black one and now the Strat Pickup Tele gets favored by some people!
Thats Awesome!
Don Mare

Oh yea... for that Strat pickups specs? - someone just may know -
I think Mac yasuda now owns that guitar - he did let me play another Tele owned by Roy it had Blend wiring - we cannot find any pictures of Roy playing it - I told Mac it may be the one that "had the Strat neck pickup in it" and has been put back to a chrome tele - I told Mac to take the pickgaurd off and see if the pocket was routed out for a Strat size pickup..

[11 Gauge]

A scan of the back of the sleeve:

[Ronkirn]

I hate to tell ya but the video above posted by MatteusNova was recorded in Germany... see the WDR in the upper right hand corner. That is the logo for Westdeutscher Rundfunk or WDR which translates to Western German Broadcasting.

He is not playing Nancy; the guitar he is playing belongs to and was modded by Bill Lawrence who was there at the time... At that time Bill and Roy were working together to introduce a guitar that would be a collaboration between the two and the guitar Roy is playing was the experimental platform for the innovations that would be incorporated in their guitar.

I point this out to reinforce that it's not the gear, it's the talent.... you put any good Tele in Roy's hands and you would hear that same familiar sound.

I don’t want anyone to think I’m trying to diss anyone’s pickups, there are many makers of great pickups out there, any of which will get you where you want to be. But it’s going to take longer than the 30 minutes to takes to change out the pups. How much longer? Ummm like years…. Long years sitting alone in a room practicing till your fingers hurt so bad you can’t stand it.

Bill’s reading this about now, as is Buck (Don) .. both would love for me or anyone else to say the road to Roy’s sound is only found through their respective gates. That would not be accurate… fact is, any quality pickup will get you there, IF you are willing to travel, it’s a long hard road to. Are ya up to it?


Ron Kirn

[Don Mare]

the thread is so long that I feel its no longer being read..??? at least this I am suspecting from the reply above .....
didn't we not already cover what that common argument above is saying?. but thanks for adding your thoughts and info anyways... I love it!

For whats its worth its never been about sales when it comes to my personal obsession with the Nancy guitar - Sales on Roy Buchanan pickups are 1 to 2 a month tops . its always been that way - it's also been highly over estimated as other company's have tried to jump on the Buchanan band wagon like its the next big Wave in sales - when its never been... Roy is not a goldmine! ask Aligator records -- sadly hes just not..

For me its about getting it right - and passing on that Nancy sound to those who want it
those who hear its different and those who are not fooled by other guitars sounding close but no cigar to Nancy - not that Nancy's better - but for sure shes different and
I feel the majority of Roy's fans understood and knew that - Ive played a ton of nice Blackgaurds some were very close but once I played Nancy again after playing those other Blackgaurds I knew she was all to her own - ONE OF A KIND - and her wiring and DC's account for the reasons that is true..

hey heres a link to the collection I think the Tele laying down next to Nancy may have been the one that once had the Strat neck pickup in it thats the one Mac owns along with Nancy -- also you'll see a few of Bills Teles there too the 73 may or may not be
but there is also a Tele like the ones EZ Wacj.of Swampkaster sell with Bills name on it with the hook tele headstock - which is now confusing me?? - so when I speak with Bill I'll ask whats up with that one??
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHtPh...eature=related

[tazzboy]

Did Roy sell Nancy before he died or was that guitar sold after his passing?

[Bob Davis]

I agree with what Ron said about Roys' tone, in that it's mainly in the hands and the heart!! Most folks loved Roys' 1977 Live in Japan LP and most folks assumed it was Nancy on that LP, but Nancy was home under the bed!! A guy named Chuck Mandes from Nashville told me he bought the guitar on the cover of that Live in Japan LP directly from Roy and I recall him telling me it was a '51 Tele.I always felt that the tone that Roy got on that record was as great as any recording he ever did with Nancy.I've always believed that a good portion of Roys' "sweet" tone came from the fairly high-action he'd run on his guitars so that there was little on no fret-buzz and you could bend notes right across the neck without the note fretting out. I don't think Roy ran super heavy strings, but I honestly believe that the high action helped a lot with his tone.Maybe it had to do with his starting out on pedal steel when he was a kid. If you listen to James Burton or Albert Lee you can tell that their action is very low, but that's "their sound" and it works for them. There was a period where Roy put a penny under the D&G string saddle to raise up the action even higher which really works. I've never thought that Nancy was any better or worse than most of the cool '53 Telecasters, but in Roys' hands, any guitar would sound good! Roy was gifted with perfect pitch and an uncanny ability to play a song after only hearing it one time.Even if he made a mistake or two, he'd cover them up so well and so fast that we'd absolutely miss it. Scott "the Cat" Anderson who sang for Roy from 1982 thru 1984 used to tell me that after shows they'd be in some hotel room somewhere and Scott used to ask Roy to play certain songs or specific solos in songs and without blinking an eye he'd play these incredible pieces. Scott said one night he asked Roy to play Francis' Beechers' solo in Bill Haleys Rock Around the Clock, and Roy played it note for note on the first attempt.It used to blow Scotts' mind, because none of us "regular" players can do that......there apparantly was some sort of gift or "connection" between Roy and his guitar.
Also, even back in June '71 Roy had Strats in his apartment as there are photos of Roy with these guitars. People were shocked in 1980 when Roy started playing a Strat, but Roy was a true Fender-guy for sure!!

Bob D.

[Don Mare]

Originally Posted by tazzboy

Did Roy sell Nancy before he died or was that guitar sold after his passing?

the collection was sold to Southworth guitars after by Judy Buchanan
the same store also owned Gattons 52 and deluxe reverb, some of the old customers that Played those guitars and a few of the workers have called here to talk about those guitars.. its been really cool!
heres a pic.



I have to admit -- sometimes when Roy Played the EMG guitars the Guild or Rodger Fritz
I was at a time fooled into thinking it was Nancy -
but if I was to play them no way could I do that - but I did play Nancy and she did sound like Nancy to me an 100's of others who have heard my clip at www.roybuchanan.org


and here is a awesome photo of Roy On the Guild!
http://bp0.blogger.com/_s3gZMSB07dc/...anan03-web.jpg

[Telemarkman]

Originally Posted by Ronkirn

I hate to tell ya but the video above posted by MatteusNova was recorded in Germany... see the WDR in the upper right hand corner. That is the logo for Westdeutscher Rundfunk or WDR which translates to Western German Broadcasting.

He is not playing Nancy; the guitar he is playing belongs to and was modded by Bill Lawrence who was there at the time... At that time Bill and Roy were working together to introduce a guitar that would be a collaboration between the two and the guitar Roy is playing was the experimental platform for the innovations that would be incorporated in their guitar.

I point this out to reinforce that it's not the gear, it's the talent.... you put any good Tele in Roy's hands and you would hear that same familiar sound.

It's definitely not Nancy - the guitar he played at Rockpalast, Germany, had a rosewood fretboard, a natural finished 70's/early 80's body with a 3-ply black, 8-hole pickguard. For all I know it may well belong to Bill Lawrence, but it sure doesn't sound anywhere near Nancy! I would never, ever be fooled into believing it was Nancy, even blindfolded and with only one good ear!

Ron, I agree 100% about Roy's talent and that the player is more important than the guitar and that you gotta practise till your fingers bleed, but there's no way Roy sounded the same on any of his other guitars that he did on Nancy - not in the 80's at least, and especially on that Rockpalast video (I have the whole concert on DVD, but rarely watch it - can't stand his tone ).

Maybe the black '56(?) comes close, and the '51(?) he used for the Japan tour sounds pretty close to me, but if you want to hear Roy and Nancy at their best live, nothing beats the LiveStock album and the ACL '76 DVD (except maybe for some bootleg CD). JMHO .

[GuitarJonz]

$65k for the entire RB guitar collection, including Nancy? That seems like such a bargain now, huh? What year was that?

[Bob Davis]

That footage of Roys' guitars for sale as a complete package was 1992 down in Houston. Judy sold all of Roys' guitars except the Fritz Brothers Bluesmaster which she eventually sold in 1995 as I recall. Can you imagine buying Roys' collection for $65,000.00 including Nancy?? John Sprung couldn't find anyone who wanted the whole collection at that price so he sold the guitars one at a time. I'd love to know what John Sprung and Gil Southworth gave Judy for all the guitars. I've heard it was a very low amount of money, but Judy was not only broke, but the IRS had put a lien on any incoming royality checks she was to receive until they were paid the $54,000.00 that Roy owed the IRS. It's always hard for me to grasp onto the fact that not only did Roy pass away completely broke, but he owed out a LOT of money which Judy had to come up with. In 1995 I bought a little Marshall Amp from Judy for $300.00 during a period where she was selling off the last of the musical-stuff she had on Roy including the Bluesmaster Telecaster. I think she got $5,000.00 for the Bluesmaster. She also had several guitar cases, anvil flight cases and bits and pieces of Roys' music that she sold off then. Since then it's been a struggle to survive for Judy.She married Roy in '61 and really never had an education.I heard she was a secretary for a while after Roy died. She's in her late sixties now I suppose and is not pushing to release any of the stuff in the vaults on Roy.Several people have tried to approach her to release live audio and video on Roy but she's very hard to deal with I've heard.Other than the recent release of Roys' Austin City episode, nothing from the Nancy-era has been released. Polydor has a LOT of ultra cool audio on Roy some of which appeared on the Sweet Dreams Anthology 2 CD set from '93 (?). Maybe someday more of that stuff might be available to the fans.

Bob D.

[olewichita]

ola bob,

too bad alligator didn't release the gossage/scheflin project... do you know if that unreleased 1960 version of after hours that was going to be on it is the fast version roy has mentioned in interviews... or is it the version from the zito tapes...

tj

[tele0053]

If I'm not mistaken the collection was sold collectively to both...
John Sprung & Gil Southworth, who are & were the 2 premier Vintage Guitar traders here in DC, from Roy's widow.
Sorry I missed the $ 65,000 purchase price part in the above entry but that was a good bit of cash for a lot of Roy's stuff back then (and besides the Nancy's & the old Fender amp type stuff the rest was considered..."who cares"). Roy was considered a cool guitar player's guitar player, but the old Teles seemed like the only ones (back then that were going to be worth a damn), anyway that's what I thought... when they were shown and offered for sale by Gill & John...Prices and Value are most certainly a product of change & age... price/wise on a lot of old things over 30 to 40 years, there's
A very thin line between antiques & junk....
In the 60's in either Manny's in N.Y. or Chuck Levins outside of DC in Wheaton MD. (I can't remember which) they had a big wodden barrel or box w/about 3 to 4 beatup 50's teles jammed in there like cheap Christmas Trash.
saying On the outside, Traded out USED Fender Teles,...$75 apiece or 2 for $125...take your pick....

[Don Mare]

Currently private offers on Nancy has exceeded $500,00.00k -
the magic number I heard that will take it is SIX...

not bad considering Minty 1958 -59 Flame Top Les Paul's go for that much,
and these are Les Pauls that were never celebrity owned...

As is Nancy is at Fender Museum ( FWIW. its a Privately owned museum )
it's on loan till 2010.. after that watch for it to show up at Christy's Auction - or disappear right into the hands of a private buyer -

[DMace]

Hey, Don,
I was just listening to some of the youtube videos of Roy and Nancy that you posted and I was struck by how even the volume level was from pickup to pickup on Nancy. If the neck pickup was a full-range pickup and the bridge was very low output, even broken, how'd he get the two to match up volume-wise on stage?

[Don Mare]

Originally Posted by DMace

Hey, Don,
I was just listening to some of the youtube videos of Roy and Nancy that you posted and I was struck by how even the volume level was from pickup to pickup on Nancy. If the neck pickup was a full-range pickup and the bridge was very low output, even broken, how'd he get the two to match up volume-wise on stage?

the secret is the treble is so bright that it sounds louder -
Junior Watson was here yesterday _ I had him Play my Nancy Clone, He was surprised by the Bridge even as low as it is.. it was still much LoUdEr Then the neck -

I do not think the bass is louder - but when we jump back to the bridge during a song its usually for one reason - more treble !