Plays Hawaiian Guitar, Banjo, Ukulele and Guitar

by Roy Smeck

Overview

The only problem with this album is the use of the word "play" in the title. Sure, with most musicians it can be called "playing" an instrument. With Roy Smeck, what he does on Hawaiian guitar or just plain old regular guitar is more like a consecration. His banjo work is more like a reordering of molecules. "Ukulele Bounce" sounds like a man playing a ukulele, and very well at that, but creates more of a historical impact as one realizes recordings from nearly a quarter of a century are represented on this collection. Colorful lettering by none other than R. Crumb just adds to the class of the whole affair. Smeck was a technical genius of stringed instruments and also an explorer. He created sounds behind the bridge and nut, and on the body of the instrument as well. Listeners might be used to these types of techniques from avant-garde music, but the real innovators in this type of playing were musicians such as Smeck. He used these techniques in the course of so-called "normal" music, but the fact that it is neither atonal nor really weird shouldn't make one think it isn't exciting or interesting to listen to. His early pieces were pretty straight from the Hawaiian style, Smeck tinkering energetically around the edges of what might be acceptable to the "aloha" crowd while establishing his mastery of the genre's traditions. Exposure to jazz players such as Eddie Lang apparently inspired him to sit the guitar up straight in his lap and attack it with a plectrum, which is the same way he took on the banjo. The results are imaginative and frequently wild, perfect musical miniatures with such a visual presence one might think they were landscape paintings. Some of the titles add to the fun: "Tough Pickin'," "Guitarese," "Slippery Fingers," and "Nifty Pickin'." Smeck plays wonderfully whether the track was recorded in the '20s, '30s, or '40s. That's no surprise, seeing how he was the fellow who described his ascension in the music industry thusly: "I didn't play any better for 1,250 dollars than for 150 dollars." Which goes to show that even he considered what he did "playing," no matter how miraculous it sounded. Nobody ever played any better than he did, either. ~ Eugene Chadbourne

Product Details

Release Date:	09/15/1992
Label:	YAZOO
UPC:	0016351015228

Tracks

1. 12th Street Rag
2. Frettin' Blues
3. Shuffle Off to Buffalo
4. Limehouse Blues
5. Nifty Pickin'
6. Tough Pickin'
7. Slippery Fingers
8. Steel Guitar Rag
9. Tiger Rag
10. Guitarese
11. Farewell Blues
12. Ukulele Bounce
13. Bugle Call Rag
14. Laughing Rag

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Roy Smeck   Primary Artist

Technical Credits

Billy Meyers   Composer
Larry Shields   Composer
Eddie Edwards   Composer
Elmer Schoebel   Composer
Douglas Furber   Composer
Euday L. Bowman   Composer
Robert Vosgien   Digital Mastering
Nick LaRocca   Composer
Roy Smeck   Artwork,Composer
Harry Da Costa   Composer
Henry W. Ragas   Composer
Al Dubin   Composer
Tony Sbarbaro   Composer
Philip Braham   Composer
Nick Perls   Mastering
Harry Warren   Composer
Stephen Calt   Liner Notes
Joan Pelosi   Design
Robert Crumb   Design
Stefan Grossman   Art Direction
Jack Pettis   Composer