Life on the Fretboard with Michael Watts

Rob Luft is a rising star of the European jazz guitar scene whose intricate and lyrical playing melds textures from around the world into a striking musical voice. Rob is an extraordinarily creative person and a bit of a chameleon, home with everything from soulful standards and improvised fusion madness to Balkan time signatures and the joyful lines of Congolese soukous. He has even composed and performed pieces for electric guitar with a full orchestra, which is very cool and unusual, to borrow a phrase from Martin Simpson.

We talk about Rob’s formative years - growing up in the rich cultural mix of South East London and his early exposure to mind-blowing music by the greats of the jazz scene. The first live gig he ever saw pretty much sealed the deal...you’ll find out why.

We discuss the blank canvas that is the electric guitar and the use of effects in jazz - which leads to a poetic diatribe from Rob on the subject of loud footswitches and his love for ancient Boss pedals.

Rob shares the challenges of playing in different contexts, from a perfectly timed 45-minute free jazz set to high-volume open-air festival gigs where all your fancy chord voicings disappear into the wind.

We discuss the importance of playing the lyric of the song and living a life untainted by the seductive power of the pentatonic blues scale. Rob speaks eloquently on the subject of ear training and sight reading. It could save your life someday!

I really enjoyed this conversation. Rob is thoughtful, quick and (thanks to years working at a radio station) has impeccable mic technique!

I also captured Rob’s impromptu performance of the Johnny Green classic "Body and Soul." I hope you enjoy it!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDa3qpLPgkI

You join us on a beautiful summer’s day at my studio in the Sussex countryside. It was one of the only really hot sunny days that we had in 2024 and at the start of this chat you’ll hear a familiar sound at this time of year

https://robluft.co.uk

https://www.instagram.com/robluftjazz/

Thank you for listening and thanks to Jason Verlinde and the Fretboard Journal team, my sponsors Microtech Gefell Microphones. Life On The Fretboard is a Michael Watts production for Fretboard Journal - accept no substitute. 

To support Life On The Fretboard please click here https://michaelwattsguitar.com/tip-jars/4745

Michael Watts:  YouTube https://www.youtube.com/user/michaelwattsguitar

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/michael.watts.guitar/

Website https://michaelwattsguitar.com

https://www.fretboardjournal.com

Claire Tole-Moir is Head of Popular Culture at Bonhams, the world-famous auction house in London.

On a daily basis, she is in direct contact with some of the most iconic and culturally impactful works of modern art, sculpture, photography, film and artist memorabilia of the last century. 

So if you fancy a Man Ray photograph; a golden ticket from the original Charlie and The Chocolate Factory film; if you’ve got your eye on John Lennon’s mosaic swimming pool; or maybe Roger Moore’s silver Dupont cigar lighter, Claire and her team can make that happen for you. All you have to do is submit the winning bid. 

And then, there are the guitars…

Let me tell you about the guitars! We’re talking serious instruments owned by iconic musicians: The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Joy Division, Radiohead, Judas Priest, Jeff Beck, Slash, Peter Green...the list is ever-growing. 

Which to my mind begs the question: What’s it like, being responsible for the sale of guitars that have changed the history of modern music and impacted our global culture on a seismic level? 

Well, there’s only one way to find out! 

I met up with Claire Tole-Moir at Bonhams in Knightsbridge London. There was a palpable sense of excitement as it had recently been made public that Bonhams is about to handle the sale of one of the most immediately recognizable guitars on earth, Rory Gallagher’s extraordinary Fender Stratocaster! Yes, THAT STRAT!

I think you’ll agree that’s pretty awesome. So join us now at Bonhams in the heart of London to find out more. 

This episode is sponsored by Guitar Tech Courses - an online treasure trove of information created by British luthier James Collins which will guide you through the set up and maintenance of your beautiful instruments. Follow the affiliate link here and you can also support the podcast. https://www.guitartechcourses-academy.com/p/guitar-pro-setup/?affcode=1348382_dohdjpdf

Speaking of which - thank you to everyone who has used the Tip-Jar link to make a donation.

Life On The Fretboard is a one-man show: I do literally everything and your support is as encouraging as it is appreciated. If, and only if, you have enjoyed this episode then please do consider making a donation via this link https://michaelwattsguitar.com/tip-jars/4745

You can see more about this and future auctions at Bonhams right here: 

Bonhams Popular Culture https://www.bonhams.com/department/COL-ENT/popular-culture/

Bonhams Popular Culture Instagram https://www.instagram.com/bonhamspopularculture/

Claire Tole-More Instagram https://www.instagram.com/claire.tole.moir/

Michael Watts:  YouTube https://www.youtube.com/user/michaelwattsguitar

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/michael.watts.guitar/

Website https://michaelwattsguitar.com

Lord of the Les Paul and Mariscal of the Marshall Stack, Scott Gorham shot to worldwide prominence with the legendary rock band Thin Lizzy. He created what would become known subsequently as “The Twin Guitar Attack” - a harmonised lead guitar style developed alongside players such as Brian Robertson and Gary Moore, driving home the larger-than-life persona of frontman and bass player Phil Lynott.

At the height of their powers, Thin Lizzy were a world-straddling colossus of a band - hard rocking for sure but real songwriters, too. And just incredible live!

I caught up with Scott at what used to be Olympic Recording Studios in Barnes (Led Zeppelin, Queen, Lizzy ... they all made records there). It’s now a cinema complex and restaurant with a private members club hidden away for those in the know. 

We talk about Scott’s early exposure to the guitar and live music, his relocation from California to London, and an audition for Thin Lizzy which I suspect would have broken most of us.

We discuss the iconography of Gibson’s Les Paul model. In particular, the heavily supervised shopping trip for the mini-humbucker Deluxe model with which Scott has become synonymous. We go deep on the semantics of scratch plates, amplifiers the size of a family SUV, and what happens when your guitar gets famous without you. 

But it wasn’t all gold tops, champagne and caviar, life in Thin Lizzy could be tempestuous and Scott is candid about the darker times including how golf helped with the pain of recovery from addiction. Hey, if it works… right?

We talk in depth about Scott’s secret double life as a visual artist, discuss two of the rarest materials in the universe and share a fond hope that benevolent extraterrestrial life might just have our backs after all.

Now, what no-one knew - because he had kept it a secret from the world - is that Scott Gorham is an extremely skilled artist and some of his extraordinarily detailed pencil drawings from the Thin Lizzy period have been rediscovered and are now available as fine art prints. He’s had his first gallery showing and it’s all going rather well.

You can see more here: https://scottgorhamworld.com Take a look at Pain, Curiosity and Apocalypse, three works that we discuss in detail. 

Be advised - the language gets a little fruity as we progress. It doesn’t get too awful, but listeners with delicate sensibilities or the under-fives should proceed with caution.

This episode was brought to you by the kind sponsorship of Guitar Tech Courses. Founded by British luthier James Collins (himself a graduate of the prestigious Galloup School of Guitar Making in Michigan) and an accredited repair technician for Gibson guitars for several years now, Guitar Tech Academy offers an online archive of instructional videos covering the maintenance and set-up of just about every modern guitar design from the wrap-around bridge of a '54 Goldtop to Bigsbys, Strat and Tele bridges, acoustics and archtops, too. It’s all there.

James will guide you through the theory and practice of setting up your guitar for your playing - follow this link https://www.guitartechcourses-academy.com and sign up today - you will never have sounded better!

Join me next time for a chat with Superstar auctioneer Claire Tole-Moir of Bonhams London, who has been responsible for the sale of iconic instruments used by Eric Clapton, Peter Green, Slash, Ian Curtis and many more!

A Fretboard Journal Podcast. 

https://www.fretboardjournal.com

Derek Gripper plays Malian Kora music on a vintage Hermann Hauser classical guitar...and if that doesn’t get your attention, nothing will! 

John Williams himself describes feeling that this was, and, I quote, "absolutely impossible until I heard Derek Gripper do it." So that’s pretty cool. 

We talk about his work translating the music of this beautiful African harp to the nylon string guitar, and the extraordinary instruments he has used in his quest to make the music in his head come to life including 8-string guitars, fanned frets and interchangeable magnetic fretboards. Yes, he has gone deep here! 

Also discussed are Derek’s visit to the Hauser Guitars workshop to choose a career-defining instrument from their archive, his trust in embracing the "less good idea" and his love of single purpose technology, from Rolleiflex medium format cameras to his vintage Nagra reel-to-reel tape recorder. 

Speaking of recording, I also managed to record Derek playing my new guitar using this beautiful piece of technology and mics by Microtech Gefell and Royer. The results are right here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpYW9sq0aR0

Derek Gripper is a true iconoclast - as comfortable with Bach as he is with Toumani Diabaté. He has a truly orchestral sound when playing solo and fills concert halls around the world regularly. He is also one of the most quick-witted and funny people I've met. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did.

Learn more about Derek Gripper

https://www.derekgripper.com

https://www.instagram.com/derek_gripper/?hl=en

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsINJ-6YFJvRbxFbJd0z4_g

Your Host, Michael Watts

https://www.michaelwattsguitar.com

https://www.youtube.com/user/michaelwattsguitar

https://www.instagram.com/michael.watts.guitar/

To support this podcast please donate here https://michaelwattsguitar.com/tip-jars/4745

A Fretboard Journal Podcast. 

https://www.fretboardjournal.com

Canadian-born Jocelyn Gould is a JUNO award-winning guitarist, vocalist, composer and professor of jazz studies who performs at the highest international levels.

Jocelyn is one of those musicians that I could listen to for hours. She is a force of nature, too. She tours constantly. I was delighted to fly back from Norway in time to catch up with her in the days around her debut at one of London’s top jazz venues in Soho. 

Like many people, I first encountered her work online and was impressed with her lyrical phrasing and beautiful touch. However, it was at the Rocky Mountain Archtop Festival in 2022 - when I filmed a session with her on Bob Benedetto’s contribution to The Blue Guitar collection - that I got to experience her extraordinary musicality firsthand. It left a lasting impression and here is the resulting video. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A102bF5BS88

We started what was to become an epic three-day hang in London but then took a train to the picturesque market town of Frome at the end of the Mendip hills in Somerset. 

After a wonderful afternoon with Mick and Dan of That Pedal Show, we took a walk through the cobbled streets of Frome before enjoying a frankly sensational dinner at a French brasserie. After that, we made our way back to our accommodations - a slightly eccentric pub slash castle affair - ideal conditions for recording this in-depth podcast interview. 

We talked about Jocelyn’s childhood fascination with guitar, the challenge of learning to learn individuality in music, setting lofty goals, and the almost telepathic levels of communication enjoyed by jazz musicians at the highest level. And then, just like that, Jocelyn was off to Barcelona to play with another pickup band before returning to Winnipeg to launch her new YouTube podcast. Like I said, it’s non-stop! 

Jocelyn is up for another Juno award for her latest album, Sonic Bouquet. You should check it out...it’s wonderful. For now, you join us for a moment's reminiscence about the cherry clafoutis we had just encountered. 

https://www.jocelyngould.com

https://www.instagram.com/jocelyngouldmusic/

This episode of Life on the Fretboard was brought to you by the kind sponsorship of Elixir Strings https://www.elixirstrings.com. I use Phosphor Bronze 12-53s on all my acoustic guitars

To support this podcast please use this Tip Jar link https://michaelwattsguitar.com/tip-jars/4745

Your Host, 

Michael Watts https://www.michaelwattsguitar.com https://www.youtube.com/user/michaelwattsguitar https://www.instagram.com/michael.watts.guitar/ 

Learn more about the Fretboard Journal and our new, 53rd issue here: https://www.fretboardjournal.com

Adrian Utley is one of the most versatile and creative musicians the UK has produced. His work with artists such as Jeff Beck, Patti Smith and Glenn Branca is testament to this. 

Shooting to prominence in the mid 1990s with Portishead, Adrian’s beautifully judged, nuanced playing - with its unique jazz and soul sensibilities - set the band apart from their contemporaries in what would become known as the trip-hop scene. 

Dummy, Portishead’s debut album, would go multi-platinum. The band continues to have a lasting influence in terms of production values, musicianship and sheer style.  

Adrian accepted an invitation to join me for this episode of Life on the Fretboard after an online conversation about our shared love of the work of Fred Frith - a pioneer in the improvised and exploratory music scene. 

Shortly after, I was invited to film an original 1958 Gibson Flying V. Those of you familiar with my work will understand my trepidation to go it alone with a guitar that was so far out of my comfort zone, so I asked Adrian if he’d like to join me in exploring one of the rarest and pointiest electric guitars known to humanity. I was a little taken aback at the speed with which he accepted. I made a video of us exploring that Flying V: https://youtu.be/VM95mN7eDC0

Once we had finished with the pointy beast, we sat down to record this conversation. Adrian shares his memories of working with Jeff Beck and Glenn Branca and we talk about Adrian’s love of all guitars, from vintage L-5s to dumpster-find acoustics. We also chat about learning to love limitations, the Fender Jazzmaster, the best footwear for wah-wah pedal usage, and that solo from the song "Glory Box." 

Here's a reminder if you need one https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnMTK8EdsOc

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Be advised there is adult language throughout. 

This episode of Life on the Fretboard was brought to you by the kind sponsorship of Elixir Strings https://www.elixirstrings.com. I use Phosphor Bronze 12-53s on all my acoustic guitars

We are also brought to you by Microtech Gefell Microphones https://www.microtechgefell.de 

I used a pair of their M300 small diaphragm models to record this interview and you’re hearing my voice on the M930 model.

To support this podcast please use this Tip Jar link https://michaelwattsguitar.com/tip-jars/4745

Your Host, 

Michael Watts https://www.michaelwattsguitar.com https://www.youtube.com/user/michaelwattsguitar https://www.instagram.com/michael.watts.guitar/ 

Learn more about the Fretboard Journal and our new, 53rd issue here: https://www.fretboardjournal.com

Barrie Cadogan (also known as "Little Barrie") is one of the world's first call electric guitarists when it comes to classic soul, rock, punk, and rhythm & blues. He has worked with some of the biggest indie artists performing today including Morrissey, Paul Weller, Edwyn Collins, Liam Gallagher, and Primal Scream.

That’s a hell of a CV by anyone’s standards, but Barrie is perhaps best known for the theme music from the Netflix show 'Better Call Saul.' That glorious guitar intro? That was him! Quite simply, he is very cool. He inhabits a world of pristine big E vintage Levis, Cuban heels, and 1960s Jazzmasters; bespoke hatmakers name their latest designs after him; and, if you are planning a global stadium tour and you need a guitarist that will bring the goods, then you had better make sure that you have Little Barrie on speed dial. I caught up with him at the private, by-appointment-only premises of Guncotton Guitars in London. (More from them later as they have generously sponsored this episode!)  We talked about our shared love of seminal Manchester band The Stone Roses and watching 'Sounds of The Sixties' on British TV which for many musicians of our generation had a similar impact as that of the Ed Sullivan show in the USA. Barrie shares his experiences as a young musician moving to London some 20 years ago, his realization that a Marshall half stack may not be the ideal bedroom practice amp, the dangers of applying a Jackson Pollock-style paint job to a guitar, and Bobby Gillespie’s eccentric hiding place for demo CDs. He also shares his love of Japanese architecture and his recent reunion with a guitar that got away from him years previously. I think we can all relate to that. This interview was recorded on a hot summer’s day in London. As I sank into the vintage Charles Eames furniture and pressed record, I remember feeling very happy to be there. I hope it shows...and I’m glad to be able to share this with you. Barrie Cadogan https://www.littlebarrie.com

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVn9XB03wI5dM4d0Vbl-i2A https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ozUXaDjc4mfVyDIWCJH4E?autoplay=true

https://www.instagram.com/littlebarrie/

  This episode is brought to you by the kind sponsorship of Guncotton Guitars in London https://www.guncottonguitars.com https://www.instagram.com/guncottonguitars/  and Microtech Gefell Microphones https://www.microtechgefell.de  Your Host Michael Watts https://www.michaelwattsguitar.com https://www.youtube.com/user/michaelwattsguitar https://www.instagram.com/michael.watts.guitar/ 

To support this podcast please use this Tip Jar link https://michaelwattsguitar.com/tip-jars/4745  

Bruce Springsteen and Thurston Moore adore his work and rightly so...Wizz Jones is a lynchpin of the UK folk blues guitar scene and has been since the early 1960s. When London was an epicenter for artists from the USA such as Big Bill Broonzy, Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee, Paul Simon, James Taylor, Jackson C. Frank, and Bob Dylan - Wizz was right there.

Wizz was also there to hear some of the first notes Davey Graham played in DADGAD tuning, to witness the impact of a young Bert Jansch on the UK guitar scene, and to run sessions at the legendary Les Cousins club in Soho’s Greek Street. It’s not there anymore, of course. That end of Soho is now a preponderance of private members clubs and bijoux eateries but back in the day things were a lot less salubrious and, judging from how Wizz tells it, a hell of a lot more fun.

Wizz talks about the early days of his life on the fretboard: When he was a young bohemian, the influence of Jack Kerouac on his generation, London’s Soho in the sixties when you could bump into everyone from Cat Stevens to Quentin Crisp, his travels around Morocco and France, and offers the benefit of his experience and wisdom with one important caveat.

Now in his 80s, Wizz can still be seen playing around London with his trademark 1963 Epiphone Texan. I caught up with him at RMS recording studios in London where Wizz has made several albums in the past. He was in characteristically fine form (the conversation is somewhat peppered with adult language). To my everlasting disgrace, I may have joined in, too. But that can happen when you’re hanging out with the cool kids.

You can support this podcast here: https://michaelwattsguitar.com/tip-jars/4745

Donate to Maui Strong here:

https://www.hawaiicommunityfoundation.org/maui-strong

Thank you to my sponsors for this episode:

Microtech Gefell Microphones https://www.microtechgefell.de and, you, the listener! 

Emma Tricca is a massively talented singer-songwriter, a poet, and beautiful fingerstyle guitarist. 

Italian by birth, Emma works between Rome, London and New York making gorgeous psychedelic folk rock records - her latest is called 'Aspirin Sun' it is out now and it’s rather wonderful. 

You may have seen Emma on tour with such luminaries as Robyn Hitchcock, Dinosaur Jr. or Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets - that wonderful band put together to play early Pink Floyd songs.  If not, then I hope this interview may serve as an introduction to some very beautiful music.

What I really enjoy about Emma’s work are the amazing textures she creates with her full band that also includes Dream Syndicate’s Jason Victor on electric guitar as well as Steve Shelley of Sonic Youth on drums and Pete Galub on bass. That is quite a line-up...in many ways the cream of the New York art rock scene. 

This interview was recorded on a hot day at the beginning of summer and I had invited Emma to visit me at home to get her out into the countryside and away from the heat and grit of London. And, In a Life on the Fretboard first, I had the pleasure of making some music with a guest - in this case one of Emma’s songs which I have been semi-obsessed with since I first heard it. The link to that is in the description below. I’m on Telecaster and Emma is playing my Gretsch White Falcon - I hope you enjoy it! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CK71DfcHPOc

You can support this podcast here: https://michaelwattsguitar.com/tip-jars/4745

Download Emma Tricca's latest record here https://emmatricca.bandcamp.com/album/aspirin-sun

Thank you to my sponsors for this episode:

Microtech Gefell Microphones https://www.microtechgefell.de

Mirabella Guitars https://www.mirabellaguitars.com

Will Ackerman is a visionary composer, fingerstyle guitarist and producer. As the founder of Windham Hill Records, he achieved international success with his own music and that of artists such as Michael Hedges, George Winston, Alex De Grassi and others. 

Windham Hill’s sumptuous, detailed sound is widely acknowledged to be a milestone in the evolution of the acoustic guitar. Let’s face it: When the first D-28 rolled off the Martin Guitar Company production line, they were hardly expecting Michael Hedges! In fact, no one was...least of all Will Ackerman. In this conversation, he shares some beautiful stories about meeting Michael for the first time and the recording sessions for Aerial Boundaries! 

We also get some extraordinary insights about the early days of Will’s career, hanging out with the Kingston Trio, kayaking with Steve Jobs, the correct way to kick priceless digital mastering equipment, and much more.

Many of you doubtless know that Will Ackerman was touched by tragedy at an early age. He talks candidly about this when we discuss his beautiful piece, "The Impending Death of The Virgin Spirit." Once again - this is REAL LIFE on the fretboard - but listener discretion is encouraged. 

I caught up with Will Ackerman during his visit to the beautiful English town of Royal Tunbridge Wells. The hotel where he was staying had been a favorite of Queen Victoria and its staff continue to uphold fastidious levels of excellence...even at one point interrupting the recording with a session of vacuum cleaning right outside the room. While I dealt with this Ackerman was left with a hot mic;  I have kept the results for posterity. 

To contribute directly to Life on The Fretboard please use this Tip Jar link https://michaelwattsguitar.com/tip-jars/4745

This episode was brought to you by the kind sponsorship of Mirabella Guitars https://www.mirabellaguitars.com/ , Microtech Gefell Microphones  https://www.microtechgefell.de/, Fretboard Journal and, you, the listener.

To learn more about Will Ackerman visit https://williamackerman.com/ 

Join me next time where I will be spending time with the extraordinary talent that is Italian singer/songwriter Emma Tricca. You may have seen her on tour with Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets or Dinosaur Jr. It's a fantastic conversation that I can’t wait to share with you.