“Dickey called me: ‘Hey, Les, come by for a steak, and bring your guitar.’ He already had the verse of Jessica, but he needed a bridge…” Meet Les Dudek, the ghost guitarist on Allman Brothers classics who dated Cher and joined Journey for two hours

Les Dudek takes a solo on a black Strat as Cher stands to his right.
(Image credit: Robin Platzer/Images/Getty Images)

“I’m a legend that nobody knows,” says guitarist Les Dudek. “Through my career, it’s like I’ve always been right on the edge of being known and unknown.”

Dudek’s frank assessment is pretty spot-on. During much of the ’70s, the Florida-raised guitarist always seemed this close to stardom. There were tours and record dates with Boz Scaggs and Steve Miller, among others, and at one point Dudek found himself in the studio with the Allman Brothers Band.

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