Leslie West
I've been working with Leslie West Since
1986 when he first showed up at East Coast Music
Mall my original old Connecticut store.
I have Built Leslie probably 15 guitars over the
years and I am proud to say he still uses them
on stage quite a bit. He Especially Likes
The
Headless Ones !!!!
I first met Leslie briefly at Woodstock in 1969
with Felix Pappalardi. Thirty years to the day
later we were both there again for the 30th
anniversary where he played my guitars the whole
show except for one song. Leslie is probably my favorite
guitarist from that era, (The Late 60's & 70's)
That's the Clapton, Hendrix, Beck, Page era,
Today
41 Years Later Leslie Has Remained True To His
Music, He Still Rocks Hard. He Unquestionably
Has The Best Vibrato In The Business & His Tone
Is Amazing !!
Eric Clapton
is a great player, but today he has
really mellowed out and has not remained true to
his finest hour. sadly his music is bland & thin
sounding compared to Cream. He has definitely
gone "Middle Of The Road." I can't blame him too
much, If he had stayed true to his roots he
would not be as big today as he is.
Jeff Beck has
gotten incredibly better but his music has
actually gone a little over my head. He's so far
ahead of me that I find it hard to comprehend
and I don't feel as connected to it as the early
stuff. His sound has also changed drastically.
Technically he is far better than he used to be,
but I'll listen to early Beck till I die.
All those incredible early
Yardbirds songs were actually all Jeff Beck,
Many people, myself included, thought that it
was Clapton at the beginning. Truth be told
Clapton left the band before the Yardbirds had
even one hit. I am pretty sure that was him on
Smokestack Lightning but that song was
definitely recorded well before their first hit
"For Your Love"
Jimi Page has
gotten so sloppy that it's almost embarrassing,
He still used those antiquated designed guitars
from the 60's and is a shadow of what he was on
Zeppelin 1 & 2.
Jimi
Hendrix of course is not around, I
shutter to think what he would have done with a
Floyd Rose Tremolo & some of today's hot
electronic technology. I can just imagine Jimi
Hendrix on
a
36 fret guitar or perhaps using a Trans
Trem... It Boggles The Mind !!!!!! (The Open
Mind, That Is). Hendrix being the gear freak
that he was would have definitely progressed
with the times and would never have gotten stuck
in the mud like so many other 60's musicians.
If Hendrix had one of the
newer more improved guitars that are available
today. I'll bet he would have still been
cranking out new concepts and ideas,
Incidentally Jimi Hendrix
played Bass Guitar for Leslie West, I have
photos to prove it, The photos are not great or
I would have posted them here.
Leslie West is
Still Alive & Kicking, He Can Be Ornery &
Cranky, But I Will Always Love Him For His Great
Music, No Matter What He Does. One of my most
treasured personal prized possessions is the
Steinberger guitar he gave me in 1994 when he
switched over to playing my
LSR Headless
guitars.
You Must
See Leslie West Before You Die,
His You-Tube performances are
poorly recorded and they don't come close to the
live experience. He
did several tours with Ginger Baker & Jack Bruce
as A "Cream" reunion act and I think that on 85%
of the songs he surpassed Clapton. He is an
amazing guitarist who's music has endured for 45
years.
Eddie
Van Halen has said repeatedly that Leslie
was one of his biggest influences, I can hear
Leslie in a lot of Eddie's music, I can also
hear the Leslie signature Squeal in many of
Billy Gibbon's licks too. Every major guitar
player today has borrowed a little something
from Leslie West !!!!Personally he was my
greatest influence when I was on the circuit in
the 60's & 70's before I started making &
selling guitars.
Building custom guitars for Leslie West has
always been one of the most rewarding things in
my life. Currently he is endorsing another
company, But he is still playing my guitars at
most of his shows. Ed Roman guitars is too small
to be able to pay endorsers to play our guitars
and Too small to sell enough volume where the
royalties amount to a high money. In today's
economy endorsements are a way of life even for
the most honorable musicians.
It's a shame that Leslie is not known by many of
the younger players, I usually have to mention
the song he is known for, "Mississippi Queen"
Then they recognize him. Leslie is truly one of
the greatest guitar players of all time, He
plays with incredible emotion & feel, I would
definitely call him one the all time most
under-rated guitarists of all time !!!!!!!!
Ed Roman
June 2005
Leslie West
The Man, The Myth, The
Legend