Ricky Byrd has a new album out, NYC Made, and the session ace and former Blackheart is feeling pretty good about all things guitar right now. Yes, he admits, he should practice more – he should have learned to read music, too.
But in this quickfire interview with Guitar World, reflecting on the first songs he learned, first electric guitar, and the one he would save if the house went on fire, he says he has done all right. And it’s hard to argue with that.
Not to say there hasn’t been some drama along the way – we’ll let him tell you about that hectic night supporting the Scorpions…
What was your first guitar?
“I was around nine when I saw the Rolling Stones and the Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show. I was instantly attracted to George Harrison and Keith Richards’ guitar playing, so I asked my mom if I could get a guitar. She was working at a handbag company, and her boss gave her a gift – for me – on my birthday, a no-name acoustic.
“That little acoustic was how I first learned to play guitar. The second guitar I got, which was my first electric, didn’t even have a name, but it was from a store called Lafayette Electronics. It looked like a Gibson ES-335, but it was cheap and came with a little amp.”
What was the first song you learned to play?
“The Turtles’ Happy Together, because it had a riff I could learn. I wound up doing a show-and-tell at my public school in the Bronx where I grew up, and I played Happy Together. I noticed the girls were all smiling at me, and being 10, I was like, ‘Well, now – that is interesting!’”
What was your first gig?
“I was in a band called Ruff Stuff, and we started playing in our local neighborhood place that was like a coffee, wine and cheese place. It had a stage in the front, and the gig was for a dance. We played all kinds of British stuff. I don’t think we even got paid.”
Ever had an embarrassing moment on stage?
“There was this one time when I was with Joan Jett. We were opening for the Scorpions at an indoor stadium in Spain, and the crowd got a little rowdy. Something went down as somebody had stolen some equipment from the opening act that played before us.
I was a Marshall guy back then with Joan. Now I literally cannot listen to Marshalls
“Somehow we got blamed for it, so the crowd went crazy and somebody threw a 9-volt battery, and it hit me right above my eye. We stopped the show, and Joan and I just stood in the shadows. I remember me and her looking at each other going, ‘I’m not going back out there.’”
What’s your favorite piece of gear?
“I was a Marshall guy back then with Joan. Now I literally cannot listen to Marshalls. I use a lot of small old Fender amps.
“That all came about after I went to see Jeff Beck play at the Iridium in New York, Les Paul’s old club. Jeff was using two small Fender Pro Junior amps – 15 watts, two knobs – Volume and Tone and that’s it. So I went on eBay and found one. I just mic it up and it’s loud as shit. And I can carry it with two fingers.”
The building is burning down. Which guitar from your collection would you save?
“It’d have to be two guitars, because how could I choose? It would be my ’75 blue sparkle Les Paul Deluxe that I used on the I Hate Myself for Loving You tour I did with Joan Jett – and my ’69 Gibson Hummingbird.”
When was the last time you practiced, and what did you play?
“I have an ’87 Martin HD-28 in my den. I always pick it up and play it, and that’s what I was doing last night. But I don’t call it practice; I just sit there and play blues or anything like that. I also kind of just sit down with the guitar and play stuff that might be something that could turn into a song.
“I really don’t sit down and practice scales; I’ve never been that kind of guy. But I’ll put on an Albert King record and play along with it.”
What aspect of the guitar would you like to be better at?
“Probably practicing, because I’m just lazy with that. But I play how I play. I’ve been playing for 50 years, and though I’m pretty good, I could be better. The blues player, Walter Trout, he played in New York a while ago and I went and jammed on a song with him. But I realized I came up cold.
“I was thinking about what I was going to play next as opposed to just shutting my eyes and playing. And that’s what comes with practicing. It becomes just a natural response. You hear the next beat coming, you know what to play, what not to play.”
Over my career, I don’t think I have done too badly. I’ve done well with the ability to not be able to read music, though it could have helped
What guitar-centric advice would you give your younger self?
“I never learned to read music, so maybe I should’ve learned how to read. I do these big events where there might be charts – but I can’t read the charts! So I write it down and learn the songs on my laptop. I sit in my den and just learn the songs.
“And if I feel it’s something I’ll get confused about, I’ll write a chord chart, a cheat sheet. Over my career, I don’t think I have done too badly. I’ve done well with the ability to not be able to read music, though it could have helped in certain situations.”
- NYC Made is out now via Wicked Cool.
- This article first appeared in Guitar World. Subscribe and save.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
