Missing Link

Good afternoon to all,
hope your day is going well,

Today we bid farewell to the man widely considered to be the inventor of the guitar "power chord", Link Wray, a rockabilly pioneer once banned from U.S. radio play due to "alien use of the guitar". That fact alone, in itself, makes him one of the coolest individuals to ever pick up a guitar, scaring the heck out of parents everywhere. Imagine a rock & roll world without the power chord! It might be safe to say that rock & roll wouldn't have survived without it's introduction, even if it did, it surely would have been something completely different from what we've come to know and expect.

I had a chance to see him perform in a small club, with only 100 people in attendance, or so. Mr. Wray went out on stage seemingly with the intent of giving those 100 people something to talk about for the rest of their lives, he gave the performance his all, interacting with the crowd, claiming that small stage as his own, giving a lesson to any of us guitar players who might be there, it was clear that we were in the presence of greatness. I didn't have a chance to meet him, as I have some of my other guitar heroes, but I did happen to get one of his used guitar picks, I treasure it to this day. I remember coming home from the show that night, picking up my guitar, wondering if I should use that guitar pick, I did, trying to play a Link Wray song, hoping that some of the magic might rub off. I still sounded the same, but that guitar pick seemed to somehow want to play that song, so in a way it was magic.

Today, when I heard of his passing, I once again picked up my guitar, grabbed that guitar pick, and immediately realized how long it had been since I had tried to play his music, though like before, that guitar pick sure seemed to want to play that song, the magic hadn't diminished with time, just like the legend of Link Wray.

Once again, I can imagine that the great band in the sky, realized they needed a great guitarist, and Link went home to join. Rest well Link, I never met you, but somehow felt I knew you, each time I tried to play your songs. You will be missed.