Search - Roy Buchanan :: Guitar On Fire: The Atlantic Sessions

Somebody count that man's fingers. He must have at least 40.

Phil Farmer | 10/26/1998

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Like fellow Washington D.C. guitarist Danny Gatton, lightning fast Roy Buchanan defies description. His talented (to say the least) musicmanship covers many styles. On this albumn he touches all the bases with originals and covers of James Gang era Joe Walsh, Neil Young, Booker T. and the M. G.'s (with a scorching "Green Onions" cover that includes original members of that band) and even Hendrix. Buchanan's play is sometimes reminisent of Jeff Beck on this albumn as well. It might seem presumptuous for Buchanan to take on such heavyweights but the truth is he has few equals. He plays is always controlled although often seems off the scale. This is due of course to his limitless talent as a guitarist. Sadly like the afore mention Gatton, another guitarist of epic proportion, he too took his own life cutting short a more than brilliant career."

Burnin

Russell Diederich | Littleton, CO United States | 12/18/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"From the first steep bend of "Ramon's Blues" to the last haunting note of "The Messiah Will Come Again" this album is packed with the incredible guitar work of Roy Buchanan. Aptly named "Guitar On Fire", this album is full of fast licks, screaming solos and bluesy tunes. This compilation covers three albums from the late seventies of the late, great Tele-master. It's unfortunate that Buchanan was, and remains, pretty much unknown because his guitar work is spectacular. Most of the songs on this album are instrumentals, which showcase his ability with the axe. "The Heat of the Battle", provides a taste of things to come as he mixes up his solos with the melody. The song, like all his work, is full of raw power and energy. The music flows from his fingers at jaw dropping speed. He's not all about speed though. On "Hidden" he slows it down and plays airy notes with massive amounts of delay, and sliding between notes to give it a spacey feel. The great bassist, Stanley Clarke, provides the low frequencies on the tune, as well as a couple of others. Buchanan covers tunes by Booker T., Joe Walsh, Neil Young and Hendrix. He does a great job on "Green Onions" with the M.G.'s behind him. It was unfortunate that Buchanan took his life so early. He played as if he was born with a guitar in his hand, and was able to coax sounds of that beat up Telecaster that others would be hard pressed to do even if they were running it through a band saw. This man was a shear force in his playing. He could play loud, or soft, quick or slow. I haven't heard anyone like him. If you're a fan of guitar, then check Buchanan out. You'll be pleased."

Blues master

purple magical smurf | Astoria, NY United States | 03/21/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"when we talk about the blues there is no one that compares to roy except maybe jimi hendrix. Fly night bird is worth the price of this album alone, it is the greatest blues solo i have ever heard in my life, and one that will grab your soul, stretch it, give u goose bumps, make u cry, and feel the mans pain,wow blew my mind, i nearly fell back off my chair when i first heard this shiznit....RIP ROY the greatest blues man to ever have lived *uck bb king, roy is the master while the others are commercial frauds"