Deke Dickerson includes this photo in his amazing gallery of armless and one-armed musicians: http://dekedickerson.com/weird-armless.php
While you're there make sure to check out the video clips of Roy Thackerson, The Fingerless Fiddler. Roy and I did some picking together on a number of occasions when he spent some time in Albuquerque a few years back. He is one heck of a showman and he demonstrated a routine for me that he would use to clean up at open mic talent shows. He'd go onstage with his guitar, brace the headstock on his knee and start playing the most awful version of "Wildwood Flower" possible with his unique overhand style, full of clams and with a clunky rhythm. In that he has no fingers the audience would be hesitant to boo him, in fact he'd get pity applause. Roy would then proceed to get better and better, until he was tearing up and down the neck, flatpicking like Doc Watson. The place would explode and Roy would invariably collect the prize money at the end of the evening. It was brilliantly funny, with impeccable comic timing. It is difficult for a musician to convincingly play poorly, Roy has it down.
Deke Dickerson includes this photo in his amazing gallery of armless and one-armed musicians: http://dekedickerson.com/weird-armless.php
ReplyDeleteWhile you're there make sure to check out the video clips of Roy Thackerson, The Fingerless Fiddler. Roy and I did some picking together on a number of occasions when he spent some time in Albuquerque a few years back. He is one heck of a showman and he demonstrated a routine for me that he would use to clean up at open mic talent shows. He'd go onstage with his guitar, brace the headstock on his knee and start playing the most awful version of "Wildwood Flower" possible with his unique overhand style, full of clams and with a clunky rhythm. In that he has no fingers the audience would be hesitant to boo him, in fact he'd get pity applause. Roy would then proceed to get better and better, until he was tearing up and down the neck, flatpicking like Doc Watson. The place would explode and Roy would invariably collect the prize money at the end of the evening. It was brilliantly funny, with impeccable comic timing. It is difficult for a musician to convincingly play poorly, Roy has it down.