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Duane Eddy

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Duane Eddy was an American guitarist, born in 1938 in Corning, New York. He started playing the guitar at the age of five, after hearing the singing cowboy Gene Autry. The family moved to Arizona, where he formed a duo with his friend Jimmy Delbridge. In Phoenix he met the disc jockey and songwriter Lee Hazlewood, who began producing his records. Eddy was not happy with his singing voice and therefore played the melody on the low strings of his Gretsch guitar, with a deep, reverberating tone that became known as twang.

Music and breakthrough

In 1958 Movin' n' Groovin' reached the American chart. He borrowed the riff from Chuck Berry, and a few years later the Beach Boys took it over again for Surfin' U.S.A. Rebel-'Rouser, with a saxophone by Gil Bernal, followed, then Peter Gunn, Cannonball, Shazam and Because They're Young. His debut album Have 'Twangy' Guitar Will Travel stayed in the album chart for 82 weeks. His band, with saxophonists Steve Douglas and Jim Horn and keyboardist Larry Knechtel, later supplied musicians to Phil Spector's Wrecking Crew. Eddy also acted in films, and in the 1970s produced for Phil Everly and Waylon Jennings.

Influence

His instrumental guitar sound, bare, low and heavily reverberant, was one of the first recognisable guitar sounds of rock and roll. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 and died in 2024.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Peter Gunn and notice the low, reverberant guitar line that carries the melody. Can you hear how the guitar sings without needing a voice?

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

See also

Categories: Artists