My
Unpublished Letter To Rolling Stone Magazine On Behalf of
Lolly Vegas
September 9, 2003
by
Mark Guerrero
(This letter was in response to Rolling Stones' issue on
"The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time," which was
published on
September 18, 2003. I emailed it to Rolling Stone Magazine
on September 9th, 2003. To my disappointment, they didn't
publish my letter, so I thought I'd publish it myself.)
Rolling Stone,
I'm a singer/songwriter/guitarist, who's been playing guitar
for 40 years. Your issue on the "100 Greatest Guitarists
of All Time" was interesting, but like most such lists,
the order of guitarists and many included or excluded
can be reasonably debated. I would like to mention a
great guitarist that should have been prominent on the list
who was omitted. His name is Lolly Vegas, singer/songwriter
and lead guitarist for the legendary Chicano/Native American
band, Redbone. In the 60s, he was an in-demand studio
musician in Hollywood, playing alongside Leon Russell, Glen
Campbell, Hal Blaine, and all the top players of the day. Lolly played on many hit records and was frequently hired
by great producers such as Phil Spector and Lou Adler.
His guitar playing on Redbone recordings is innovative, funky,
and unique. (Check out the ending section of "Maggie"). Lolly
was one of the first to play his guitar through a Leslie organ
speaker and his use of the electric sitar on Redbone's
mega hit "Come and Get Your Love" was brilliant.
He has inspired and influenced many guitar players over
the years. Unfortunately, due to a stroke, Lolly cannot
play guitar anymore, but his many recordings embody his genius
on guitar. Lolly Vegas should not be forgotten.
Click
here
to go to the Redbone store at amazon.com
