Since 1978, Roth has released 20 mostly instrumental albums on his Aquinnah label, showcasing his virtuosity in fingerpicking, strumming, and slide. Though best known as an electric guitarist\u2014he even wrote Masters of the Telecaster<\/a><\/em>\u2014his love for acoustic guitar runs deep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n His latest Aquinnah release, Playing Out the String<\/a><\/em>, is an acoustic collection of folk and blues nuggets (\u201cWalk Right In,\u201d \u201cDiddy Wah Diddy\u201d), Norman Blake tunes, Roy Orbison\u2019s \u201cBlue Bayou,\u201d Fred Neil\u2019s \u201cEverybody\u2019s Talkin\u2019,\u201d and a moody instrumental take on \u201cPancho and Lefty.\u201d He closes with his own bluesy title track.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Throughout, Roth showcases an impressive lineup of acoustic guitars\u2014one, two, or three depending on the song\u2014including a 1960 Stella 12-string, George Bowen custom OM, 1968 Martin D-28, 1957 Martin 00-17, 1934 Gibson L-00, 1930s National steel, and a Santa Cruz OM\/AR (his signature model).<\/p>\n\n\n\n I caught up with Roth by phone from his home in southern Connecticut to discuss the new album, his approach to instrumental storytelling, his ever-evolving collection of instruments, and his pioneering work in guitar education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When do you know it\u2019s time to make an album? Are these songs you\u2019ve had in mind for a while, or do they come together organically?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n After a big electric album like Super Soul Session<\/a><\/em> with [bass guitar legend] Jerry Jemmott, I like to follow up with a more introspective acoustic record. I\u2019ve done five of these now, usually between what I\u2019d call big projects\u2014both in terms of the musicians involved and the budget.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The acoustic stuff is very personal for me. A lot of these songs were ones I\u2019d wanted to record for years instead of just playing in the living room. Take \u201cWalk Right In\u201d\u2014whenever I\u2019d pick up a 12-string, that\u2019s what I\u2019d start playing, always with a little humor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On the album, it\u2019s surprising which songs get a vocal treatment and which are instrumental. \u201cPancho and Lefty,\u201d for example\u2014a story-driven song\u2014works amazingly well as an instrumental.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s something I do a lot. I even did a full Bob Dylan acoustic instrumental album [How Does It Feel?<\/a><\/em>].<\/p>\n\n\n\n I also did an acoustic Stones album [Paint It Black<\/a><\/em>] and an acoustic Simon and Garfunkel record [Subway Walls and Tenement Halls<\/a><\/em>]. Lyrics are secondary to me in terms of what I respond to. I take in a song as a whole\u2014lyrics, sound, everything. If a song has a compelling guitar part at its core, that\u2019s what usually draws me in.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n So many Dylan songs have such beautiful and memorable melodies.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Exactly. I even talk in the liner notes of that Dylan album about how he doesn\u2019t get credit for his melodies. I think he\u2019s always been careful about making sure he had good melodic content, but I go even further and do songs like \u201cDesolation Row.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The beauty of lyrics is that you have to keep on creating something new every time it turns around, so I do that with the guitar, too. The last thing you want to do is make it sound like Muzak. You want to really sound like you\u2019re singing through the instrument.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How do you \u201ccast\u201d an album, guitar-wise?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s not only the guitar that I like using, but it\u2019s also what ends up recording the best on that day. I might come in with a \u201930s Gibson L-00, but it takes time to pair it with the right mic and listen to it play back. It may work to me just sitting down with my guitar, but as soon as I\u2019m in the studio, I might end up using a relatively new Santa Cruz guitar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How many guitars do you typically have in the studio?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n For this album, I had six or seven acoustics. I recorded with Alex Salzman, a wonderful engineer I\u2019ve worked with for years at his studio, Salz Media. I feel completely at home there\u2014he puts as much thought into recording as I do into playing, and he loves working with fine vintage mics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I always have a 12-string, an old Stella, and a National steel on hand, but it really comes down to what fits the song. If I\u2019m layering two guitars, I make sure they\u2019re distinct\u2014one might be more woody and the other more stringy. I love finding those combinations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How many guitars do you own?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I have about 15 really good acoustics and a lot of electrics. The collection tends to shrink when you need money or realize, \u201cI haven\u2019t touched this guitar in five years.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I have a couple of beautiful Santa Cruz instruments, including the Arlen Roth OM\/AR model in both mahogany and rosewood. I love my Martins, too\u2014one standout is a mid-\u201950s all-mahogany 00-17 that sounds fantastic. I also have a wonderful custom OM made by the late George Bowen in California, which he delivered to me in Connecticut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Recently, I found an unbelievable 1954 Guild F-40 sunburst acoustic. It\u2019s not on this record since I finished the album before I got it, but it\u2019s definitely going to have a lot to say on the next one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When arranging a song, your influences can come from many versions. \u201cDiddy Wah Diddy\u201d made me think of Ry Cooder, while \u201cRandall Collins\u201d and \u201cBlue Bayou\u201d have been covered widely. What shapes your approach to these songs?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Just the fact that the song touches me, and there are songs that have really stayed with me. I was trying to look for some other stuff as well, and that\u2019s when I came across [Norman Blake\u2019s] \u201cRandall Collins.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n [With Blake\u2019s \u201cChurch Street Blues\u201d] I knew I wouldn\u2019t match Tony Rice\u2019s hardcore bluegrass approach, but I heard something that blurred the line between bluegrass and blues. Blake has a gift for writing timeless songs, and I wanted to tip my hat to him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I also love the Brownie McGhee song \u201cGonna Move Across the River.<\/em>\u201d To me, it all weaves into an American roots guitar tapestry. My goal is just to get these songs across to people\u2014to say, \u201cI love this for a reason, and I hope you hear it in my interpretation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Early in your career, did you ever dive deep into studying artists like Mississippi John Hurt or Blind Blake, or focus intensely on a specific genre?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Only in dribs and drabs. I\u2019d take in the whole genre and then get snapshots of an artist like Son House, Robert Johnson, or Blind Blake\u2014but never to the point of obsession. I like to jump around and pull influences from everywhere. For example, one time I spent a weekend in Toronto with John Prine and Leon Redbone\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now there\u2019s a duo I\u2019d like to hang out with!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Yeah, for sure! Oh, and Jack Elliott was there too. I mentioned to Leon, \u201c<\/em>Y\u2019know, Ry Cooder recorded \u2018Diddy Wah Diddy,\u2019\u201dsince I loved his version as well. He just said,\u201cOh, really?\u201d\u2014never breaking character. Like, \u201cOh, that guy did it too?\u201dMeanwhile, he\u2019s casually pulling bottles of wine from his attach\u00e9 case, just being fully Leon Redbone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He had that incredible ability to evoke something from 70 years ago. Both he and Prine did \u201cDiddy Wah Diddy\u201d so well that I wondered, is this overplayed? Should I really do this song? But then I thought, what the hell? Maybe I\u2019ll introduce it to some people who haven\u2019t heard it before. <\/p>\n\n\n\n What was your first acoustic guitar?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I started out on some pretty bad instruments I picked up from record shops. But when I was studying a bit of classical guitar in New York City, my teacher recommended a wonderful nylon-string Favilla. I still remember the smell when I opened the case. I only had it for a few months, though\u2014my teacher kicked me out when I got an electric guitar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Heresy!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Apparently. It was a four-pickup Ideal guitar from Japan. I was 11, it was 1964, and my dad and I bought it at Den\u2019s Music, a little shop on 48th Street [in New York City]. And Charlie Watts was there! He gave me an autograph and signed it,\u201cCharlie Watts of the Rolling Stones.\u201d They were playing their first New York show that night at the Academy of Music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When touring with so many great musicians, did you primarily play electric, acoustic, or a mix of both in a given show?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It really varied. With Simon and Garfunkel, I must have had seven guitars onstage, switching between acoustic and electric. I even had one guitar with picks stuffed into the strings to create a kalimba or steel-drum effect, which I used on \u201cCecilia.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n With someone like John Prine, I played lead guitar and pedal steel. He\u2019d start with an acoustic set before we moved into the electric set. With folk artists like Eric Andersen or Tony Bird\u2014an incredible Malawian singer I loved playing with\u2014it was all acoustic. One of my main guitars for those gigs was a beautiful 1939 000-18 I bought from Ry Cooder. Best guitar I ever owned. Every time I get another guitar, I\u2019m chasing that sound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Do you still have it?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n No, I sold it. It was already falling apart\u2014the top needed to be replaced\u2014but I played it for 30 years. Even when I did the Rolling Thunder Revue<\/em>movie with Dylan, he borrowed that 000 from me. I remember he put a big belt-buckle gash in the back, which I was always proud of\u2014\u201cLook, Bob Dylan did this.\u201d [<\/strong>Laughs<\/em>] Before playing it, he asked, \u201cNo strap?\u201d I said, \u201cSorry, no strap, Bob.\u201d Joan Baez warned me, \u201cYou\u2019re going to regret lending it to him without one.\u201d But I said, \u201cCome on, let him use it. It\u2019s beautiful.\u201d And he loved that guitar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What are your thoughts on today\u2019s guitar pedagogy? With so much available, is online learning now the norm?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n With Hot Licks, I showcased real personalities\u2014players who had spent decades honing their craft before ever making a video. Some were legends, while others, like Scotty Anderson and a young Eric Johnson, deserved more recognition. I wanted to give them that exposure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most instruction today feels rote\u2014just \u201cplay these notes\u201d without depth. I worked with real legends\u2014Junior Wells, Lonnie Mack\u2014letting the music speak. You don\u2019t remember licks; you remember your teacher. That\u2019s what Hot Licks was about\u2014self-taught musicians passing on their experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Teaching also forced me to analyze my own playing. Someone would ask, \u201cWhat was that thing you did?\u201d and I\u2019d realize, \u201cOh, I\u2019m pushing the B string with two extra fingers.\u201d I was figuring it out as I taught it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I started with audio tapes, working with Happy Traum at Homespun, who got me my first book deal with Oak Publications for my slide guitar book\u2014still widely read today. By 1984, just as I started to work on [the soundtrack for the movie]Crossroads<\/em>, we moved into video. I kept doing both\u2014if Tal Farlow did a video, he also did two audio tapes. Same with Steve Morse. I wanted to cover all angles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n What\u2019s the latest thing you\u2019ve learned, or the most recent artist who caught your ear and made you want to explore their work?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s not about one person\u2014I just follow what inspires me. Late at night, I\u2019ll sit down and think, why not try an acoustic instrumental of this? Lately, I\u2019ve been drawn to Depression-era music like \u201cUp a Lazy River\u201d and \u201cBrother, Can You Spare a Dime?\u201d\u2014songs that spoke to hard times and individuality, much like today. I also love Tampa Red, Blind Blake\u2014who\u2019s in a class of his own\u2014and I\u2019m diving into Blind Lemon Jefferson\u2019s diverse catalog. His playing was so personal, and I ask myself, \u201cHow can I bring that forward without sounding like a throwback?\u201d It\u2019s always a balance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You don\u2019t want to just copy them.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n No, but at the same time, I just love doing that. That\u2019s the challenge. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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