RIP Bert Weedon

[Geoff_W]

So sad to hear the news, RIP to a legend

Geoff

[Iain Purdon]

To my delight, even the BBC World Service flagship current affairs programmes have been covering this, to the strains of Guitar Boogie Shuffle, Nashville Boogie and a live heartwarming interview with Brian May.

Here are a couple of quotes:

"He was the most... I mean he will be so sadly missed by all his friends because he is one of the most generous and giving people I have ever met in my life. He was always teaching people, privately and publicly. You know, he didn't have any secrets from anyone and he was so supportive to us all. There's not a guitarist in Britain from my generation who doesn't owe him a great debt of gratitude."

"He was the guy who really kind of showed us that it was possible I think. In those days, it's hard to imagine really I suppose, but things were very different in those days. There wasn't any rock music in Britain before The Beatles, The Stones and that sort of stuff and everything to do with rock music was coming out of America. We only caught glimpses of it on Radio Luxembourg under the bed clothes pretending to be asleep. It was a very exciting time. But there was Bert who really was the only guy who had the expertise to stand behind these people or beside them and play along with them. So all these American artists who came to England would ask for Bert Weedon to play with them when they toured here or on their records if they were recording over here and of course he supported all that wave of great British artists like Cliff Richard, Marty Wilde, Adam Faith. He was the man."

(I should add that this was said live and off the top of his head and needs to be read in that context)

[rogera]

I was so sorry to hear that Bert had passed away.

Hearing his name takes me back to the 60s when the group I was playing for at the time used to meet in a music store on Saturday mornings and listen to the latest records. On one particular morning the shop assistant, knowing that we played in a group suggested that we listen to a new record that he had. It turned out to be a demonstration record of the Truvoice Echo Chamber by Bert Weedon with a commentary by David Gell who you may remember started his career as a DJ on Radio Luxembourg.

Needless to say, I was really taken with the record and had the shop assistant play it for me each time we went in for several weeks in a row. After a couple of months, I asked him what had happened to it and he said that it was a demo and would normally be returned but I was welcome to have it.

Many years later in 1994 I was sorting out some bits and pieces following a house move and found this record again. I got to wondering whether Bert would recall it and made a cassette recording of it and sent it off to him. About a week later I received a smashing letter from him telling me that it was something that he had forgotten about but which had brought back many happy memories.

I still have the record and probably some of you may also remember it. Anyway, RIP Bert and thanks for your terrific contribution to guitarists.

[ecca]

Put the soundfile of it up Rog, let's hear it.

[Martin Payne]

He got so many of us kick started in the music business. I'm sure he would be genuinely touched by the outpouring of affection and respect he's now receiving.

R.I.P. Bert - and thank you.

[Derek Mowbray]

At a time like this it is difficult to say something else which hasn't been said already, Bert was the first guitarist I was aware of, certainly the first one to come on television and play electric guitar as a solo artist.I remember him coming on a show hosted by a stuffy old band leader called Jack Payne who stated that he did not like electric guitars, I hope someone will do a decent documentary on his life sometime

[JimN]

Put the soundfile of it up Rog, let's hear it.

JN

[dave robinson]

Put the soundfile of it up Rog, let's hear it.

JN

Great stuff ! Thanks for posting this Jim.

[Bluesnote]

Sad loss indeed

I remember that 'Play in a day' book of his like it was yesterday. It was all we had in these days to learn our art. I remember studying his right hand and left hand techniques to the letter, a practice I still do to this day.
He's had a good long and successful life doing the thing he loved right up to the end and we should all be happy about that as was the case of Les Paul too
Many thanks Bert for your immense help in teaching us our trade

[Paul Childs]

I can remember back in 1981 at the Cornwall Coliseum, someone in the audience gave Hank a copy of Play In A Day.
There is a picture of it in Mike Reid's book The Story Of The Shadows.