I love rock ‘n roll. Put
another dime in the jukebox, baby. (Or, as the case may be, download the
classic song from iTunes for .99 cents.)
Most of my readers know me
for fashion, style, cinema and the like, and maybe a handful of you know me as
the daughter of Don Wilson, founder of the surf-guitar band The Ventures and
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Inductee.
It was that connection which
led me to meet Lisa S. Johnson, a very talented shutterbug specializing in
macrophotography of guitars. And not just any guitars… the ones used to play
the songs we will never forget. Like the 1967 Fender Jazzmaster my dad played
on so many Ventures records and on the road for over 40 years before it was
sold at Julien’s auction last year. But not before Lisa photographed it for her
upcoming coffee table art book, 108 Rock Star Guitars.
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The guitar at auction. Photo (c) Lisa S. Johnson
L to R: My sister Jill, Dad, me, and my brother Tim
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| Author and photographer Lisa S. Johnson showing off a mock up of her 108 Rock Star Guitars book (due out in the fall of 2013) |
At a special press event in
Malibu to announce the launch of 108 Rock Star Guitars, Lisa presided over a
truly eye-opening slide show preview, giving the inside stories – from memory –
behind each guitar’s nicks, cuts, wear marks, color schemes, and named off the
songs we know them for and how the ‘sound’ was actually achieved. Fascinating
stuff. She also told us about her travels from the backstage hallways of some
of the world’s most famous concert venues, to the artist’s private homes.
Photos include Les Paul’s personal
ax (the legendary, iconic and highly influential guitarist wrote the
introduction to 108 Rock Star Guitars shortly before he passed on), Jimmy
Page’s red double-neck played on Stairway to Heaven, and six-stringed works of
art belonging to Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, Lou Reed, Slash, Jack White,
Nancy Wilson, Ace Frehley, and Robby Krieger of The Doors, who was a guest of
honor at the launch event. That’s a lot of guitars. 108 in total!
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| Robby Krieger & Lisa S. Johnson |
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| Extra special cake (with leopard pattern cake inside!) by Cakeheads |
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| Cutting the cake with Wayne Kramer, Warren DeMartini, Robby Krieger, Lisa S. Johnson |
Why 108? Lisa is a true
devotee of yoga, and in the yogic tradition the prayer bead string, the mala,
has 108 beads on it. Much like the Catholic rosary, the beads are used to count
mantras. She feels a spiritual connection to her work, right down to the title
of her book, is imperative – there are many more connections to the number 108,
which are explained by Lisa in interviews elsewhere. (Even I had an almost
otherworldly connection to “108” on the day I attended the event: my car’s
mileage turned over to 108 miles soon as I pulled into the driveway.)
Cue the Twilight Zone theme.
No wait. Make that, The Twilight Zone theme with some kickass guitar:
= = =
108 Rock Star Guitars is now
available for pre-order. Go to RockStarGuitars.com
