What: I played guitar for the Japanese noisabilly band Guitar Wolf.When: May, 2006.
Where: Chicago, Illinois.
How: My very last night living in Chicago and Guitar Wolf was playing at a club. I’d nabbed their first two LPs (sounding like a rockabilly band recorded on broken equipment) and spun them on the radio in Boston. I loved these records. Anyway, some friends came with me to give me a proper send-off in that packed club. We were right up front against the stage and I had drawn a big “A” on one of my hands and a “♠” on the other in a plea that the band would play “Ace of Spades” by Link Wray. When the three members of Guitar Wolf came out they took no notice of the marks on my hands or that their instruments were totally out of tune. They were brilliant, a sheer cacophony of 1-4-5 riffs in total disarray. I pulled a dirty hanky from my pocket, wrote “Jack the Ripper” (another Link Wray classic) on it and flung it at the guitarist at the end of one song. It landed on the head of his feedbacking guitar. He looked at it and passed it to the head of bass player’s instrument, who then passed it on to one of the drummer’s sticks and the band played my request.
The crowd was already going nuts when Guitar Wolf jumped into “Kick Out The Jams” by the MC5. Midway through the song the guitarist threw his guitar down and came after me, grabbing me by the arms. I tried to run but he pulled me onstage, strapped his guitar around my neck and yelled the words, “Jam on it!” into my ear. He held his guitar pick in the air, slowly bringing down into my outstretched palm. As soon as I had that pick between my fingers, I struck up the MC5’s three unforgettable chords, adjusting the pitch for the de-tuned guitar while my friends danced up a storm at my feet.
Memorable moment: Saying “bye” to the drummer after the show while he was throwing up in an alleyway.
Legacy: Guitar Wolf have since launched their own clothing line and starred in the Japanese zombie horror movie Wild Zero. Check it out:
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