Remembering The Most Recorded Guitarist In History: Tommy Tedesco

11/10/2011
. (Gibson) On this day in 1997, American session guitarist Tommy Tedesco died of lung cancer at age 67. Described by Guitar Player magazine as the most recorded guitarist in history, he recorded with The Beach Boys, Everly Brothers, The Supremes, The Monkees, The Association, Elvis Presley, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Zappa, Sam Cooke, Cher, and Nancy and Frank Sinatra. He also played on many TV themes including Bonanza, The Twilight Zone, M*A*S*H and Batman. Gibson looks back:

"When that red light goes on, whether it's running a race or playing guitar, whatever it is, all the adrenaline goes through the body. Some guys are at their best then, some say they're at their worst. I'm at my best with the pressure." So said Tommy Tedesco, the most famous session guitarist in entertainment history, who passed on this day in 1997.

It was Tedesco's ability to find musical magic from notes on paper with no advance preparation that helped make him the go-to picker in Hollywood for more than 30 years.

Dubbed "the most recorded guitarist in history" by Guitar Player magazine, Tedesco started young. Raised in Niagara Falls, New York, he started playing guitar when he was just a 7-year-old kid, and he was playing gigs as a professional musician before he was a teenager. more on this story

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