Jump to content

Bert Weedon - R.i.p.


Symptoms

Recommended Posts

Yep, he's gone ... but he lasted 'till he was 91 and what a full life he had playing with all the greats. Not only did he influence all the modern guitar Gods but also ordinary players.

I went for guitar lessons for years (1960s) to a guitar teacher in Bedders called Georgie Peel (he lived in a Council house off Stead Lane) but Bert's book Play in a Day made it an impression on me. I wasn't a good player but I still bash out a few chords now ... the old fingers don't move too well these days.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yup, played the odd tune: http://www.bertweedon.com/discography.htm ;)

Some photos, some taken only last year: http://www.bertweedon.com/features.htm - raising the interesting question: was there anyone in British entertainment he didn't know, or hadn't worked with?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 months later...

Yep, he's gone ... but he lasted 'till he was 91 and what a full life he had playing with all the greats. Not only did he influence all the modern guitar Gods but also ordinary players.

I went for guitar lessons for years (1960s) to a guitar teacher in Bedders called Georgie Peel (he lived in a Council house off Stead Lane) but Bert's book Play in a Day made it an impression on me. I wasn't a good player but I still bash out a few chords now ... the old fingers don't move too well these days.

I remember George Peel - he used to cycle everywhere and if I am not mistaken he was a 'bookies runner'. But the guy who taught me to play guitar was a Jack Dickson who lived at Grange Park. He's favoured instrument was the banjo and he couldn't half rattle it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 year later...

Heh heh!!....noo THAT'S a blast from the past!....[Play in a day!]

R.I.P.Bert.

In 1959,I started Choppington high pit,straight from school,aged 15 years.

I never had the inclination to want to go drinking,as I had a tyrant for a Father,who treated my Mother really bad in the old days,and during the war,by going away on drinking sessions and gambling his pay away so Mother had nowt to bring us four kids up with.

SO,when Duane Eddy released "Rebel-Rouser",on 78 rpm!,and on Shellac!,all i ever wanted to do was to play guitar.

Then when Bert Weedon released "Guitar Boogie Shuffle/ Bert's Boogie"..[both sides of the disc],my Brother and Me invented

Air Guitar!!!

The last straw was when The Shadows released "Apache"....I HAD to get a guitar to play like Hank!

Along the way,I bought Bert's "Play in a day" book,[i still have it!],and although I coudn't grasp reading the dots,I learned a lot from it about techniques,tremolo's etc,and also chord shapes.

Every guitar hero over the years,incl. Clapton,Knopfler,Brian May,and even Hank Marvin,have all confessed to having bought that little book when they first started to learn to play!

50-odd years later,I still enjoy playing all The Shadows music to backing tracks,and I finally,only recently,nailed the sound of Hank's "rippling" echo ,as on "Wonderful Land" etc.

I love plonking away with arthritic hands,that have been ravaged with injuries through nearly thirty years of coalmining!

Might sound terrible to the listener,but I don't care two hoots....it's magic to me!

Pleased to know that we have a few muso's on here apart from Myself!

Be gud if we could all have reet gud jam together wudn't it?!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Although I was universally known as Wilma throughout the pit, there was only one miner at Choppington High pit who DIDN'T call me that,and i can't recall his name,,but he was a real canny fella,very warm natured,and he used to greet me during shift changeover with...."Halllllowwwww Bert,are ye still playing that twangy guitar?"!!![mekking thi motion of holding a guitar and swinging his arm up and doon as if he was strumming a guitar!]

That was aboot 1962 if my memory is correct,the year a met me Wife at the Clayton Ballroom,only it was on a wednesday neet,and it was a roller-skating neet!

So instead of dancing the neet away,we skated thi neet away,and went yem buggaad!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create a free account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now


×
×
  • Create New...