Uploaded June 2023 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
Welcome to my Talking Guitar podcast featuring Columbia Records producer John Hammond discussing the life and legacy of jazz guitar pioneer Charlie Christian.
One of the greatest talent scouts in the history of recorded music, Mr. Hammond signed and/or worked with a who’s-who of musical artists -- Bessie Smith, Benny Goodman, Billie Holiday, Teddy Wilson, Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, Bruce Springsteen, and Stevie Ray Vaughan among them. For fans of guitar music, one of Hammond’s greatest accomplishments was arranging to have Charlie Christian join Benny Goodman’s band in 1939. Playing alongside Goodman, Charlie demonstrated the potential of the electric guitar, then still in its infancy. Our interview took place on November 24, 1981, a few minutes after I finished my phoner with John Hammond’s brother-in-law, Benny Goodman.
For more insights into Charlie Christian, check out my podcast with Barney Kessel (youtube.com/watch?v=JZl81y7f7qc&t=11s). Transcriptions of these interviews were published in the March 1982 issue of Guitar Player magazine.
I hope you enjoy these unique, never-before-released recordings.
To help us continue producing podcasts, hit this link and send some much-appreciated support our way: paypal.me/TalkingGuitar.
Thanks to engineer/producer Nik Hunt for enhancing the sound of the 42-year-old master tape. Be sure to check out the other historic interviews on the Talking Guitar YouTube channel. For dozens more guitar-intensive podcasts, interview transcripts, and articles, visit Talking Guitar magazine at jasobrecht.substack.com/.
#charliechristian #bennygoodman #jazzguitar #electricguitar #jazzguitar
This podcast is copyright 2023 by Jas Obrecht. All rights reserved.
Welcome to my Talking Guitar podcast featuring Columbia Records producer John Hammond discussing the life and legacy of jazz guitar pioneer Charlie Christian.
One of the greatest talent scouts in the history of recorded music, Mr. Hammond signed and/or worked with a who’s-who of musical artists -- Bessie Smith, Benny Goodman, Billie Holiday, Teddy Wilson, Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, Bruce Springsteen, and Stevie Ray Vaughan among them. For fans of guitar music, one of Hammond’s greatest accomplishments was arranging to have Charlie Christian join Benny Goodman’s band in 1939. Playing alongside Goodman, Charlie demonstrated the potential of the electric guitar, then still in its infancy. Our interview took place on November 24, 1981, a few minutes after I finished my phoner with John Hammond’s brother-in-law, Benny Goodman.
For more insights into Charlie Christian, check out my podcast with Barney Kessel (youtube.com/watch?v=JZl81y7f7qc&t=11s). Transcriptions of these interviews were published in the March 1982 issue of Guitar Player magazine.
I hope you enjoy these unique, never-before-released recordings.
To help us continue producing podcasts, hit this link and send some much-appreciated support our way: paypal.me/TalkingGuitar.
Thanks to engineer/producer Nik Hunt for enhancing the sound of the 42-year-old master tape. Be sure to check out the other historic interviews on the Talking Guitar YouTube channel. For dozens more guitar-intensive podcasts, interview transcripts, and articles, visit Talking Guitar magazine at jasobrecht.substack.com/.
#charliechristian #bennygoodman #jazzguitar #electricguitar #jazzguitar
This podcast is copyright 2023 by Jas Obrecht. All rights reserved.



![Tom Petty: The Complete 1986 Guitar Player Interview on Songwriting and Rhythm Guitar
Rock music lost one of its premier songwriters and rhythm guitarists when Tom Petty passed away on October 2, 2017. For decades Petty fronted the band that bore his name – Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.
One of the qualities I most admired about Tom was how he stood up for himself. He was unwavering in his all-or-nothing fight to control his artistic freedom and integrity. Like his musical heroes John Lennon and Keith Richards, he was devoted to rhythm guitar, which is one of the major themes of our interview. Over time he evolved into one of rock’s preeminent songwriters, crafting enduring songs that deal with social outcasts, love, heartbreak, resilience, and especially American individualism. It’s fitting that when the iconic Traveling Wilburys initially came together as a self-described “band of brothers,” Tom Petty received equal billing with Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Roy Orbison, and Jeff Lynne.
At the time of our interview, the Heartbreakers had just finished a world tour with Bob Dylan and Tom had begun work on what would become the Let Me Up (I’ve Had Enough) album. Our conversation took place mid-afternoon on May 27, 1986. Just before the interview was to begin, a publicist informed me that I could only have fifteen minutes with Tom and that I was forbidden to bring up the topics of sex and drugs. Tom, it turned out, would have none of that. A few minutes later he came into the room and pulled his chair so close to mine that our knees touched. He locked eyes with me and we got right to it. He ignored the time restriction, speaking for nearly 50 minutes.
An edited version of this interview appeared in the August 1986 issue of Guitar Player magazine. A complete transcription is included in my book Talking Guitar: Conversations With Musicians Who Shaped Twentieth-Century American Music [UNC Press, 2017].
Thanks to Nik Hunt for enhancing the sound of the decades-old master tape. We hope you enjoy this unique recording.
You can help us continue to produce Talking Guitar podcasts of historic interviews by sending a donation c/o https://paypal.me/TalkingGuitar. Thank you!
Be sure to check out the other historic interviews on the Talking Guitar YouTube channel. For dozens more guitar-intensive podcasts, interview transcripts, and articles, visit Talking Guitar magazine at https://jasobrecht.substack.com/.
#tompetty #tompettyandtheheartbreakers #mikecampbell #rhythmguitar #songwriting #nikhunt #guitarplayermagazine
This podcast is copyright 2023 by Jas Obrecht. All rights reserved.
©2022 Jas Obrecht. All right reserved. Tom Petty: The Complete 1986 Guitar Player Interview on Songwriting and Rhythm Guitar](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/8p4lcPvbPWM/mqdefault.jpg)






