Friday, May 09, 2008

Leo Kottke, 12-string guitars, and a wonderful Paul Siebel song

In 1973 I bought, simply as a result of seeing a poster of the cover, Leo Kottke's live album My Feet Are Smiling. This led to hours, days, weeks, years of messing around with open tunings, bottlenecks (including a mild injury sustained while trying to cut the neck off a wine bottle). And the purchase, eventually of a Guild 12-string which I still regret selling. I've since had a Simon and Patrick 12-string and am currently in a kind of guitar-orientated fugue-state (having sold three recently on eBay) which will probably result in the purchase of another double-six. But not an Eko Ranger 12, which, as a 16-year-old, I considered the best guitar in the whole wide world...

As for the song....this is the incredibly poignant Louise, written by the hugely interesting but essentially tragic songwriter Paul Siebel . His excellent and only)albums Woodsmoke and Oranges and Jacknife Gypsy are available as a double pack - try eBay or Amazon.

Kottke, despite a host of trials including partial deafness and tendonitis, is still playing and touring. He is just fantastic. So much acoustic instrumentalism can be samey and tedious. Not Leo.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Tom, are you sure you don't want an Echo Ranger? I'm sharing a room with one as I type and it is in good, nay pristine nick.