Leo Kottke

[Rickkkk]

Recently posted by Freeman Keller in another thread ... :

 

Last time I saw Kottke he had a sound hole p/u of some sort, but he had two cables so he must have been running a UST too.

 

... Believe it or not, I just picked up a copy of his 1969 "6 and 12 String Guitar" ... I had never heard it before, nor anything by Leo Kottke, for that matter.

 

Well, he's quite the player. What a style ... It's impressive, if not incredibly relaxing ... Does the rest of his recorded output pretty well stick to the same style ?

 

I'm curious ...

[Eppito]

His output is all over the place, but there are gems that should not be missed:

 

One Guitar, No Vocals - fantastic, highly recommended.

 

Greenhouse - there are some vocals on this one, but again, fantastico.

 

My Feet are Smiling - Leo live, not to be missed.

 

Mudlark - beautiful playing, on one track he uses a National.

 

Of course, if you want a great overview get the DVD Home and Away Revisited ($18.00 at amazon.com). Leo is in fine form throughout, plus you get to see a brief jam with Chet Atkins and Doc Watson. Don't even hesitate.

[sdelsolray]

Leo generally uses a mag pickup when playing live, although he's used other things - mics, other pickups, etc.

 

Leo's compositions over the decades have gone in many directions, many are very different than the folk/bluegrass/American Primitive style blend of the songs on the "6 & 12 String Guitar" album. It's quite an impressive compositional output. Perhaps it's appropriate to dissect Leo's work into three eras - early, middle and late.

 

 

You should listen to a few more of his albums to get a sense of the breadth of his work. Here's some suggestions:

 

Early:

 

"6 & 12 String Guitar"

"Greenhouse"

"Mudlark"

 

Middle:

"My Father's Face"

"A Shout Toward Noon"

 

Late:

 

"One Guitar, No Vocals"

"Try and Stop Me"

[Freeman Keller]

plus one on everything Eppito says.

 

Leo's first recordings are his signature ones - you have hit on his single best one. There is also a great anthology/box set. One Guitar/No Vocals is good, and there are gems in many of his other recordings. Some of the more recent ones are a little more experimental, and you will either like his singing or not (he describes his voice "like goose farts on a muggy day").

 

Leo Kottke was the single biggest influence in my playing and a lot of urban guitarists from the 60's and 70's. His style is an incredible driving fingerpicking, in both open and standard tuning, on both six and twelve strings, with and without a slide. Most of his songs are done with the guitars tuned down 2 or 3 steps from standard, then even lower for his open tunings. The Taylor signature 12 is braced for C# with some really phat strings, and absolutely roars.

 

Leo is as much fun in concert as he is in the cd player - the Home and Away video is really recommended. He sits and chats with the audience, usually on a stool with his leg tucked under while he retunes (this boy don't need no stinkin' chromatic tuner). Then he drops his head, closes his eyes, and rips off more notes in one song than I'll play in my life time.

 

Here are a few things on line, I've got a lot more if you are interested

 

http://www.tabpigs.org/thetabs/leokottke.html

 

http://www.scn.rain.com/alweb/leo.htm

 

http://www.fretplay.com/tabs/k/kottke_leo/machine-tab.shtml

[Cldplytkmn]

he's playing here next month... i'll be going.

[da mayor]

Funny, I was just thinking about Leo Kottke this morning. I have one album (can't remember the name at the moment) that didn't particularly move me. Incredible playing for sure, but didn't make me want to run out and get some more. So, I've been thinking I must be missing something here (and, truth be told, feeling somewhat like a musical cretin) and wondering what are good Kottke albums to get. So, if there were two or three Kottke album's you all thought should be on everyone's playlist, what would they be? Inquiring minds want to know.

[Freeman Keller]

The box set anthology. Pretty much covers his career and has a good stuffer about each song. Decide from there if you want more.

 

Or watch a few of his shows

 

http://www.guitarmusic.org/kottke/gvideo.html

[Rickkkk]

Excellent responses, everyone. Thank you all.

 

I'm inclined now to try out "One Guitar - No Vocal", thinking it will contrast his late period vs. the early period from the album I just bought.

 

Thanks again,

[brahmz118]

 

Originally posted by Rickkkk Excellent responses, everyone. Thank you all. I'm inclined now to try out "One Guitar - No Vocal", thinking it will contrast his late period vs. the early period from the album I just bought. Thanks again,

 

 

One fascinating thing about Kottke is that he ditched his fingerpicks mid-career, thinking that they caused a repetitive strain injury. I hope my facts are right -- I'm recounting this from memory.

 

6- and 12-String Guitar and My Feet Are Smiling (with Eggtooth, one of my favorite guitar tunes of all time) demonstrate his early raw sound. Lots of pick noise, some roughness in his timing.

 

After dropping the fingerpicks, he took classical guitar lessons. I believe his first bare-finger album was A Shout Toward Noon, and it's so soft at times it's almost unrecognizeable. It's also entirely on a 6-string.

 

But his finger strength increased, and his dynamics broadened, and eventually he returned to the 12-string. One Guitar No Vocals is in my opinion his bare-finger masterpiece.

 

My favorite early-period Kottke album is probably Guitar Music. 6 & 12 is great, but all those fingerbusters and the generally bright sound quality fatigue my ears after a while. Not even Jesu Joy of Mans Desiring provides enough of a break from the adrenaline rush. Guitar Music shows a little more depth -- for me the beautiful Side One Suite is worth the price of the whole album.

[WaveRay]

I agree with all of you. Leo has been my favorite since I saw hi first in Ft. Laud. a while back. I've probably seen him 6 or 7 times since. I love that man's show. As far a s his voice goes, I took it with the music but have since come to really be impressed by it. The older he gets, the cooler his voice gets. One album not mentioned is "Great Big Boy". This album has Leo singing quite a bit for him with most of the guitar in the background. Some most wonderful songs are on it, though. "Peppy, Hush" and "The Driver" are really great songs.

 

If you like his voice, get it.

There is nobody that plays the way he does.

 

Also try "The Essential Leo Kottke" Lot of great stuff on that, too.

 

 

 

Jeez, I love that man.

[Dave W.]

Years ago, when I started learning fingerstyle, I took my 12 string Yamaha down to a six string. All this 12 string talk has got me itching to put the other 6 back on and give it a try. It is really a very nice, solid top guitar. I will have to make a new nut, but I have been looking for an excuse to buy a good set of nut files anyway, some days it doesn't take much.

[daklander]

His is, IMHO, the best rendition of "Pamela Brown", bar none.

[bigmo66]

 

Originally posted by brahmz118 But his finger strength increased, and his dynamics broadened, and eventually he returned to the 12-string. One Guitar No Vocals is in my opinion his bare-finger masterpiece.

 

 

He has tremendous strength and probably the only player that could string his guitars with suspension bridge cables and still play.

 

Been a Kottke fan since the early 70's and have owned every album and some twice! I have seen him several times and it's always a treat. My wife thinks he's a bit odd and she's right, but one of the best.

[Terry Allan Hall]

First time I saw him (1978, Ft. Worth), I was so blown away that I've been a rabid fan ever since.

 

Not only is he a incredible guitarist/composer/singer, he's also one of the funniest people on earth when he's talking "in-between-songs".

 

An album not yet mentioned, but my favorite, is "Ice Water"...Check out "Morning Is The Long Way Home", "You Tell Me Why", "Tilt Billings And The Student Prince" (a storyline that all guitarists will be able to relate to!) and "Born To Be With You".