You’d think Woody’d be able to afford his own guitar…
Sweet Jesus, this is the one I really didn’t want to have to write.
Mick Green, the man whom I regard as probably the most influential guitar player in the UK (with the possible exception of Hank Marvin) has passed away after an extended illness. EVERY SINGLE ENGLISH GUITAR PLAYER YOU CAN THINK OF owes him a debt – Townshend, Richards, Beck, Clapton, Page…anyone you’d care to name. He was first, he was best…and every single player who came after readily acknowledged that fact. In 1962, when Jagger, Richards, Lennon and McCartney were really just noisy teenagers, he was (well, to be honest, he was a teenager, too!) touring with the foremost “real” rock’n’roll band in the UK, Johnny Kidd and the Pirates. He was the natural bridge between the chicken-pickin’ of Scotty Moore and Cliff Gallup, and the powerchording of the Kinks and the Who. He was also a primary influence for a couple of my contemporaries that tore the roof off – Wilko Johnson and Futoshi Abe.
I’d go so far as crediting Mick with the salvation of rock’n’roll in the UK – coming home from a residency in Vegas with Englebert Humperdinck (!) in 1975 and agreeing to reform the legendary Pirates (Johnny Kidd’s backing band – remember “Shakin’ All Over”?) for a one-off gig at Dingwalls . That did as much to kick off the punk thing as any single event before or after. That gig led to their playing at the New Musical Express Christmas party, which led to a record deal, whcih led to….well, history.
Please, everyone, go to Mick’s website and sign the guest book. Show’em how we feel.
Heaven just got a little louder….
EDIT 01/13 – It’s a measure of the man how many pickers have offered their condolences in that guest book. In amongst the heartfelt messages from John and Frank (the rest of the Pirates) , and from the students at the middle school where Mick had been teaching guitar, are messages from some genuine heavyweights – Albert Lee, Chris Spedding, Pete Townshend, Sonny Curtis….and I`d like to thank Mick`s son Brad for borrowing my “heaven just got a little louder“ for the eulogy. I`m honoured (stunned, more like) to the point of speechlessness.
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