Herbert Maurice William Weedon, OBE (10 May 1920 – 20 April 2012) was an English guitarist whose style of playing was popular and influential during the 1950s and 1960s. He was the first British guitarist to have a hit record in the UK singles chart, in 1959, and his best-selling tutorial, ''Play in a Day'', was a major influence on many leading British musicians, such as

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

, Brian May and

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...

. He was awarded an OBE in 2001 for his "services to music".

Biography

Weedon was born in Burges Road, East Ham,

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

(now part of the London Borough of Newham). He began learning classical guitar at the age of 12, and decided to become a professional musician. In his teens during the 1930s, he led groups such as the Blue Cumberland Rhythm Boys, and Bert Weedon and His Harlem Hotshots, before making his first solo appearance at East Ham Town Hall in 1939. He worked with leading performers including Stephane Grappelli and George Shearing, and performed with various big bands and orchestras, including those of Ted Heath and Mantovani. He joined the BBC Show Band directed by Cyril Stapleton in the 1950s, when he began to be featured as a soloist. Biography on official website
Retrieved 20 April 2012 He also worked as a

session musician A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a reco ...

on many early British

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

and other records for artists such as Marty Wilde, Tommy Steele, Billy Fury, Adam Faith and Kenny Lynch, and worked as an accompanist to visiting American singers such as

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

, Judy Garland and

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, alternatively billed as Nat "King" Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's career as a jazz and Traditional pop, pop ...

. It is estimated that he performed on over 5,000

BBC Radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927. The service provides national radio stations cove ...

broadcasts."Bert Weedon obituary".
''The Guardian''. London. 20 April 2012. He was also seen regularly on British television in the 1950s, including some of the most popular children's television programmes. In 1959 he was asked by Top Rank Records to make a record as a solo guitarist. He became the first British guitarist in the UK singles chart, with "Guitar Boogie Shuffle" in 1959, and was cited as an influence by many

stars A star is a luminous spheroid of plasma held together by self-gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night; their immense distances from Earth make them appear as fixed points of ...

, including

, Brian May,

, George Harrison,

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...

Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is the co-founder, guitarist, keyboardist, second lead vocalist, principal songwriter and leader of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s an ...

, Keith Richards, Sting, Hank Marvin, Robert Smith,

Mike Oldfield Michael Gordon Oldfield (born 15 May 1953) is an English retired musician, songwriter and producer best known for his debut studio album ''Tubular Bells'' (1973), which became an unexpected critical and commercial success. Though primarily a gu ...

, Mark Knopfler and Jimmy Page. As well as his hits and TV appearances at a crucial time in modern music history, Weedon's best-known contribution to British guitar style is his tutorial guide ''Play in a Day'', first published in 1957,"Bert Weedon".
''The Daily Telegraph''. London. 20 April 2012. Retrieved 20 April 2012 which many stars claim was a major influence on their learning and playing. It sold over one million copies. He also wrote a follow-up, ''Play Every Day''. His playing style focused on both rhythm and melody, and was influenced by the

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

guitarists of the 1950s, notably

Les Paul Lester William Polsfuss (June 9, 1915 – August 12, 2009), known as Les Paul, was an American jazz guitarist, jazz, country guitarist, country, and blues guitarist, songwriter, luthier, and inventor. He was one of the pioneers of the solid body ...

. Weedon placed a lot of emphasis on control of tone, and wanted to make the guitar the star of his music. The style became best known through the music of the Shadows, especially Hank Marvin. The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band mentioned Weedon in their song "We are Normal" on their album, '' The Doughnut in Granny's Greenhouse'' (1969). In November 1976, Weedon made number one, for one week, in the UK Albums Chart with '' 22 Golden Guitar Greats'', a

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one Performing arts#Performers, performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from ...

of guitar solos released on the Warwick label. McCartney commented: "George and I went through the Bert Weedon books and learned D and A together." According to Clapton, "I wouldn't have felt the urge to press on without the tips and encouragement Bert's book gives you. I've never met a player of any consequence that doesn't say the same thing."McCormick, Neil (21 April 2012)
"Farewell Bert Weedon, the man who helped make stars of John Lennon and Paul McCartney"
''The Telegraph''. London. Retrieved 21 April 2012. Brian May stated: "There's not a guitarist in Britain from my generation who doesn't owe him a great debt of gratitude."

Personal life

Married to Maggie Weedon, he had two sons, Lionel and Geoffrey, eight grandchildren (including Tors members Matt and Theo), and a great-grandson. As a Water Rat, Weedon was highly active in charity work and

fundraising Fundraising or fund-raising is the process of seeking and gathering voluntary financial contributions by engaging individuals, businesses, charitable foundations, or governmental agencies. Although fundraising typically refers to efforts to gathe ...

, especially for children and disabled people, and was elected King Rat in 1992. He was awarded an OBE in 2001 for his services to music. Weedon died on 20 April 2012, aged 91, following a long illness.

Legacy

Neville Marten, editor of ''Guitar Techniques'' magazine, commented that Bert Weedon's contribution to the guitar world cannot be overstated: "With 'students' that number Eric Clapton, Brian May, Sting, Pete Townshend, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and countless others, Weedon could well be described as the most genuinely influential guitarist of all time." In 1999, he performed at the Pipeline Instrumental Rock Convention in London.

Discography

Chart singles

Releases

Albums (Top Rank label)

* BUY026: ''Kingsize Guitar'' * 35/101: ''Honky Tonk Guitar'' Fontana 6438 031 Rockin' at the Roundhouse 1970

Singles (all labels)

* DB 3264: "April in Paris" / "Everything I Have Is Yours" With Max Jaffa"78 (Columbia: 1953) * DB 3343: "Dancing Duck" / "Golden Violins" With Max Jaffa"78 (1953) * DB 3484: "Petite Ballerina" / "Sally" With Max Jaffa"78 (1954) * R 4113: "Stranger Than Fiction" / "China Boogie" 78 (Parlophone: 1956) * R 4178: "The Boy with the Magic Guitar" / "Flannel Foot" 78 (1957) * R 4256: "Theme From ITV’s 64,000 Question" / "Twilight Time" 78 (1957) * R 4315: "Soho Fair" / "Jolly Gigolo" 78 (1957) * R 4381: "Play That Big Guitar" / "Quiet Quiet Shh!" 78 (1957) * R 4446: "Big Note Blues" / "Rippling Tango" 78 (1958) * SAG 2906: "Fifi" / "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" As The Rag Pickers"78 (Saga: 1959) * JAR-117: "Guitar Boogie Shuffle" / "Bert's Boogie" 7"/78 (Top Rank: 1959) * JAR-121: "Sing Little Birdie – Quickstep" / "The Lady is a Tramp – Quickstep" 7"/78 (1959) * JAR-122: "Petite Fleur – Slow Foxtrot" / "My Happiness – Slow Foxtrot" 7"/78 (1959) * JAR-123: "Charmaine – Waltz" / "It's Time to Say Goodnight – Waltz" 7"/78 (1959) * JAR-136: "Teenage Guitar" / "Blue Guitar" 7"/78 (1959) * JAR-210: "Jealousy – Tango / "Tango Tango" 7"/78 (1959) * JAR-211: "Stardust – Slow Foxtrot" / "Summertime – Slow Foxtrot" 7"/78 (1959) * JAR-221: "Nashville Boogie" / "King Size Guitar" 7"/78 (1959) * JAR-300/TRS-1523: "Big Beat Boogie" / "Theme from a Summer Place" 7" (1960) * JAR-360: "Twelfth Street Rag" / "Querida" 7" (1960) * JAR-415: "Apache" / "Lonely Guitar" 7" (1960) * JAR-517: "Sorry Robbie" / "Easy Beat" 7" (1960) * JAR-537: "Ginchy" / "Yearning" 7" (1961) * JAR-559: "Mr Guitar" / "Eclipse" 7" (1961) * JAR-582: "Ghost Train" / "Fury" 7" (1961) * JKP3008: "Weedon Winners" EP * POP 946: "China Doll" / "Red Guitar" 7" (

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice is an entertainment trademark featuring a dog named Nipper, curiously peering into the horn of a wind-up gramophone. Painted by Francis Barraud in 1898, the image has since become a global symbol used across consumer elect ...

: 1961) * POP 989: "Twist A Napoli" / "Twist Me Pretty Baby" 7" (1962) * POP 1043: "Some Other Love" / "Tune For Two" 7" (1962) * POP 1077: "South of the Border" / "Poinciana 7 (1962) * POP 1141: "Night Cry" / "Charlie Boy" 7" (1963) * POP 1216: "Dark Eyes" / "Black Jackets" 7" (1963) * POP 1248: "It Happened in Monterey" / "Lonely Nights" 7" (1964) * POP 1302: "Gin Mill Guitar" / "Can’t Help Falling in Love 7" (1964) * POP 1355: "Tokyo Melody" / "Theme From 'Limelight'" 7" (1964) * POP 1381: "Twelve String Shuffle" / "Colour Him Folky" 7" (1965) * POP 1485: "High Stepping" / "East Meets West" 7" (1965) * POP 1535: "Kick Off" / "MacGregor’s Leap" 7" (1966) * POP 1592: "Stranger Than Fiction" / "Malaguena" 7" (1967) * 6007 012: "Rockin' At The Roundhouse" / "40 Miles of Bad Road" 7" (Polydor: 1970) * GRS 1015: "Watch Your Step" / "Safe and Sound" As The Bert Weedon Quartet with Roy Edwards Vocal"7" ( Grosvenor: 1972) * 2058 832: "Rocking Guitar: (a) Guitar Boogie Shuffle/(b) See You Later Alligator/(c) What’d I Say/(d) Shake Rattle and Roll/ (e) Blue Suede Shoes/ (d) Rock Around The Clock" edley/ "Bella Ciao" 7" (Polydor: 1977) * 2058 891: "Blue Echoes" / "Romance" 7" (Polydor: 1977) * ACS2: "Kisses in Spring" / "Plaisir D’amour" 7" (Celebrity: ND) * OOSP 405: "Theme From Gallipoli" / "Blue Echoes" 7" (Polydor: 1977) * POSP 41: "Cavatina" / "Song for Anna" As Savillia"7" (Polydor: 1979)

References

External links

Bert Weedon official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weedon, Bert 1920 births 2012 deaths English pop guitarists English blues guitarists English jazz guitarists English male guitarists Officers of the Order of the British Empire People from East Ham Top Rank Records artists Fontana Records artists Parlophone artists Polydor Records artists