Joseph Edward Moretti (10 May 1938 – 9 February 2012) was a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

guitarist renowned for his work on seminal UK

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 ...

records such as

Vince Taylor Vince Taylor (14 July 1939 – 28 August 1991), born Brian Maurice Holden, was an English-American rock and roll singer. As the lead singer of Vince Taylor and His Playboys, sometimes called Vince Taylor and the Playboys, he was successful prim ...

's "

Brand New Cadillac "Brand New Cadillac" (also recorded as "Cadillac") is a 1959 song by Vince Taylor, and was originally released as a B-side. Featured musicians on the released recording were: Joe Moretti (guitars), Lou Brian (piano), Brian Locking (bass) and B ...

" and

Johnny Kidd & the Pirates Johnny Kidd & the Pirates (known simply as The Pirates after their reunion) were an English rock band led by singer/songwriter Johnny Kidd. Their musical journey spanned the late 1950s to the mid-1960s, during which they achieved considerable ...

' "

Shakin' All Over "Shakin' All Over" is a song originally performed by Johnny Kidd & the Pirates. It was written by leader Johnny Kidd, and his original recording reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart in August 1960. The song is sometimes credited to Frederi ...

". He later lived in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

until his death from

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

. Moretti also worked with

Gene Vincent Vincent Eugene Craddock (February 11, 1935 – October 12, 1971), known as Gene Vincent, was an American rock and roll musician who pioneered the style of rockabilly. His 1956 top ten hit with his backing band the Blue Caps, "Be-Bop-a-Lula", is ...

, Vince Eager,

Lesley Duncan Lesley Anne Cox (née Duncan; 12 August 1943 – 12 March 2010) was an English singer-songwriter, best known for her work during the 1970s. She received much airplay on British radio stations such as BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 2, but never achi ...

Nero and the Gladiators Nero & the Gladiators were a British instrumental rock and roll band in the early 1960s. The group was led by keyboard player Mike O'Neill as "Nero", and had two minor hits in the UK, " Entry of the Gladiators" and "In the Hall of the Mountain ...

, Ronnie Jones and The Nightimers,

Eddie Calvert Albert Edward Calvert (15 March 1922 – 7 August 1978) was an English trumpeter successful in the 1950s. Between 1953 and 1958 he achieved seven instrumental hits on the UK Singles Chart, including the two chart-toppers " Oh, Mein Papa" in ...

, Johnny Duncan's Bluegrass Boys,

Tom Jones Tom Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Tom Jones (singer) (born 1940), Welsh singer *Tom Jones (writer) (1928–2023), American librettist and lyricist *''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', a novel by Henry Fielding published in 1 ...

, Colin Hicks & The Cabin Boys, and

Chris Farlowe Chris Farlowe (born John Henry Deighton, 13 October 1940) is an English rock music, rock, blues and blue-eyed soul singer. He is best known for his hit single "Out of Time (Rolling Stones song), Out of Time" written by Mick Jagger and Keith Ric ...

Career

Moretti moved from his birthplace of

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in November 1958 with his wife Pina, and instantly became part of the burgeoning rock and roll scene based around

The 2i's Coffee Bar The 2i's Coffee Bar was a coffeehouse at 59 Old Compton Street in Soho, London, that was open from 1956 to 1970. It played a formative role in the emergence of Britain's skiffle and rock and roll music culture in the late 1950s, and several m ...

in Soho. There he found opportunities backing up singers such as

, Vince Eager, Colin Hicks & The Cabin Boys and other skiffle acts and nascent rock n' roll outfits. It was in the 2i's, in early 1959, that Moretti discovered guitarist-singer

Tony Sheridan Anthony Esmond Sheridan McGinnity (21 May 1940 – 16 February 2013), known professionally as Tony Sheridan, was an English rock and roll guitarist who spent much of his adult life in Germany. He was best known as an early collaborator of th ...

had quit Vince Taylor's band, The Playboys, and was asked to take his place. Moretti toured with Taylor in the UK and cut "Brand New Cadillac" in the spring of 1959. Shortly after, Moretti left the band to take up with Johnny Duncan's Bluegrass Boys. The following year, 1960, Moretti was to play guitar on another session after being called into the studio by Johnny Kidd & the Pirates' guitarist Alan Caddy to play leads on two songs: UK number one single "

" and its follow-up "Restless". It was Moretti who created the special signature sound to "Shakin' All Over" by sliding a cigarette lighter up and down the fret-board of his guitar.

Session work and uncredited appearances

Throughout the 1960s Moretti continued to tour and record with artists such as

, Ronnie Jones and The Nightimers and

. In addition, Moretti was in demand 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 ...

and, along with other UK guitarists such as

Big Jim Sullivan James George Tomkins (14 February 1941 – 2 October 2012), known professionally as Big Jim Sullivan, was an English guitarist. Best known as a session guitarist, he was one of the most in-demand studio musicians in the UK in the 1960s ...

, future

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...

guitarist

Jimmy Page James Patrick Page (born 9 January 1944) is an English musician and producer who achieved international success as the guitarist and founder of the Rock music, rock band Led Zeppelin. Page began his career as a studio session musician in Lo ...

and Vic Flick, often played guitar at a recording date without being credited. Moretti claims to have played guitar on hits for Jet Harris and Tony Meehan (" Scarlet O'Hara" and " Applejack") and

Donovan Donovan Phillips Leitch (born 10 May 1946), known mononymously as Donovan, is a Scottish musician, songwriter and record producer. He emerged from the British folk scene in early 1965 and subsequently scored multiple international hit singles ...

's hit record "

Mellow Yellow "Mellow Yellow" is a song written and recorded by Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. Released in the US in 1966, it reached No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Outside the US, "Mellow Yellow" peaked at No. 8 in the UK in early 1967. Content ...

". It is now accepted that he played guitar on at least two more UK number one records:

' "

It's Not Unusual "It's Not Unusual" is a song written by Les Reed and Gordon Mills, first recorded by a then-unknown Tom Jones, after it had first been offered to Sandie Shaw. He intended it as a demo for her, but when she heard it she was so impressed with ...

" and

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

cover " Out of Time".

Death

Moretti died from lung cancer in February 2012 in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

, aged 73.

Partial discography

Singles

*"Pledgin' My Love"/"

" - Vince Taylor and his Playboys (April 1959) *"

"/"Yes Sir, That's My Baby" -

(August 1960) *"

In the Hall of the Mountain King "In the Hall of the Mountain King" () is a piece of orchestral music composed by Edvard Grieg in 1875 as incidental music for the sixth scene of act 2 in Henrik Ibsen's 1867 play ''Peer Gynt''. It was originally part of Opus 23 but was later ex ...

" -

(July 1961) *"

" -

(January 1965) *"Snakes and Snails" -

Alma Cogan Alma Angela Cohen Cogan (19 May 1932 – 26 October 1966) was an English singer of traditional pop in the 1950s and early 1960s. Dubbed the "Girl with the Giggle in Her Voice", she was the highest paid British female entertainer of her era. Ch ...

(July 1965) *" Out of Time" - Chris Farlowe (June 1966) *"Aggravation" - Chris Curtis (June 1966)

Albums

*''Own Up'' -

Twice as Much Twice as Much was a British musical duo, composed of Dave Skinner (born David Ferguson Skinner, 4 July 1946, London) and Andrew Rose (born Andrew Colin Campbell Rose, 12 March 1946, Edgware, Middlesex), harmony singers who wrote much of their own ...

(1966) *''Oscillation 67!'' - The Leading Figures (1967) *''Don Partridge'' -

Don Partridge Donald Eric Partridge (27 October 1941 – 21 September 2010)Report of death

(1968) *'' Would You Believe'' -

Billy Nicholls William Morris Nicholls Jr (born 15 February 1949) is an English singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and musical director. He was born into a musical family, his father Billy Nicholls (Sr.) being a double bassist and big band singer ...

(1968) *''Pick Up a Bone'' - Rupert Hine (1971) *'' Sing Children Sing'' -

(1971) *'' Barbados Sky'' -

Typically Tropical Typically Tropical were a British band comprising two Trojan Records audio engineers, Jeff Calvert and Max West. They are best known for their 1975 number one hit record "Barbados" and for writing the 1978 disco hit " I Lost My Heart to a Stars ...

(1975)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moretti, Joe 1938 births 2012 deaths Scottish rock guitarists Scottish male guitarists Scottish session musicians Scottish male songwriters Musicians from Glasgow Scottish emigrants to South Africa Deaths from lung cancer in South Africa British male songwriters