Arlen Roth | Truetone Lounge | 2020 Quarantine Edition 

Arlen Freaking Roth. This guy may be one of the underrated slide players ever. I saw an old Hot Licks tape of his that started with a group jam and I was within a hair of never touching a guitar again. Great Player

Wow talk about someone who has never stopped working! This was inspirational to say the least!

Can we double thumbs up this? Great interview with a legend.

What a joy to meet Arlen like this after following him for so long.

i taught lessons in a guitar store in the mid 80s. arlen's video was playing ALL THE TIME as background noise. i can replay it in my head to this day, note for note. love the interview!!

I missed this one when it posted last year, but have to say it might be my favorite interview yet. Arlen was HUGE as an inspiration to me. The best part is that all the players he mentioned were also a big part of my becoming a guitar player. What a joy to listen to him tell stories.

Great interview!..I took a few lessons from Arlen about 10 yrs ago while living in CT but moved away and lost contact..I wish I could find him again and take it to the next step..

Oh the hours spent with those hotlicks vhs tapes. Thank you Arlen!

Arlen looks so much like my dad. Geez! He’s taught us all so much.

I still have the Danny Gatton autographed VHS instructional VHS. I read that he autographed only a few? I used to call Danny a lot for tips. He would speak with me for an hour or two each time. Always a kind soul. I saw him live but was too shy to say hello. Big regrets.

Arlen Roth is synonymous with education on the guitar. I remember being a teenager with a Steve Morse cassette tape and tab about playing classical guitar I couldn't believe that anything like this existed but he made it happen with Steve. Then when all the video tapes came out with Danny Gatton Scotty Anderson and a myriad of other guys.. that just became the best resource... for all of us pre-internet guys and gals. He's such a great guy and player and he's become and always has been synonymous with the Telecaster in my book.

Thanks Zac, great presentation. You, like Arlen, are another branch of our Tree of Knowledge making available and keeping alive this garden of information. I first saw Arlen perform, with his daughter, back on Long Island at the Guitar Show at Five Towns Music College over 20 years ago. I've been hooked ever since. ✌️

I REALLY loved this. Arlen is a master storyteller, and such a character. I have had the pleasure of meeting him twice, and this felt like I was having coffee with one of my Uncles, who wanted to regal me with stories of his childhood.

Hey Zac, This has been great. I'll need to watch it again soon. I know Arlen from Guitar Player and his column there; his connection in 'Crossroads', and I've got his slide book (on Oak?). In 1983, one of our local music stores, here in Edinburgh, Scotland, had him do a workshop, showing us his slide damping technique, which we'd read about in GP. I remember his telling us that, growng up, all the young, aspiring blues guitar players were either into Mike Bloomfield or Danny Kalb (of the Blues Project), but he was into Bloomfield. Then, of course, there was all his great 'Hot Licks' teaching and the great people whose playing he'd shown a light on. Tal Farlow, Emily Remler were particularly memorable to me. It's great to hear about all of this in the context of his life. I love all the lttle details - like progressing from classical to slide; of recognising Charlie Watts in the music shop; of Buddy Guy; and of Stevie Ray trying to smooth things over. Some time ago I was looking for the Hot Licks series, having seen some of Arlen's lessons on the Gibson site. At that time I learned of the tragic loss of his wife and daughter. Having experienced some of that in my own life, I'm heartened to see that he's now managing to keep on. I'm sure it has not been easy, but he seems good. Thanks for this Arlen and Zac. Good choice and great interview Zac.

Thank you Zac for this documentation. Arlen Roth is a great guitar teacher and I have learned, despite myself, from his Gibson.com and Sam Ash RU-vid videos. His Hot Licks series is significant and still worthwhile. I saw him tear it up live at the 1995 Danny Gatton tribute concert at Tramps in Manhattan. Arlen was featured on a flame-painted Telecaster type guitar with Les Paul, Albert Lee, James Burton and son, Gov't Mule with Warren Haynes and Alan Woody, Marshall Crenshaw, Jon Paris, and more. I had to leave early because it was a work night. Tried to win a Danny Gatton model Telecaster signed by Les Paul for $10.00 USC, Nope. Fantastic show and a guitar guru who deserves more respect and revenue.

It's a great pleasure with Arlen! Thanks Zac

You can't define class but you know it when you see it.

Hi Arlen. Saw you in Toronto at a music show playing When a man loves a woman on guitar. Was blown away and still am. It was close to 30 years ago. You did a performance in a church for Long and McQuade a day later and were fabulous. Thanks you are awesome.

I listened Arlen and when his VHS tapes came out with his secrets, I had to know! I still carry over tones of his teachings! I still hear the stuff he is doing that I want to do! Ps...I still have the tapes!

Man zac, now you'll have to do a 2nd part on his amps and gear!!!

Thanks for that! HotLicks is pure gold. Arlen is such a great player and beautiful human being.

Fantastic stuff. I still have all the audio tapes I received in the mail in the mid 80's. It was magic to get these fantastic lessons in the mail in Trondheim, NORWAY!

To my mind, Arlen understands and embraces that there are more ways to be a working musician than "being a rock star". He understood early the importance of doing what you do and establishing yourself as you. This is invaluable IMO. And he also learned that the future belongs to the adaptable. He is an inspiration as a guitarist, but also as a model for living.

Considering the tough times Arlen has been through, I am stricken by his joy and humor! This was absolutely wonderful! Thanks Arlen- and Zac - for what you do for us🙏. Great hang Zac!

Arlen Roth hot licks!! My first instructional guitar video I ever watched as a late teenager!! Thank you Arlen, learned so much watching your video's!!

Arlen is such a great soul. Legend!

This has to be the easiest interview you've ever done! He's got more energy than a two year old on a sugar high! Really enjoyed his stories.

This morning watching this warmed my heart , charming, funny and an all round great talent . Thank you both . He also nailed British pubs ...

Arlen Roth's books, cassettes and eventually VHS tapes and DVD's taught me how to play guitar. The HOTLICKS cassette series were a godsend to me living in a small rural town with no guitar instructors. My first book by Arlen was "Nashville Guitar" by Oak Publications back in the mid 70's. I bought it at our local Walmart of all places...lol! The big thrill for me as a 16 year old back then was that is had a tear out plastic 33-1/3rpm record with examples of the steel guitar licks. You didn't have to read music to learn the licks! Those licks served me well over 35+ years playing professionally. I still have that book today. I eventually got to meet Arlen, my guitar hero, at a NAMM show in Nashville during the 90's and that was a thrill for me. Thanks for all the great learning materials and the great albums. Arlen, you're the man!

I was 17 going on 18 and wanted to play just like Brian Setzer :-) Had to have the Hot Licks vid. It was a game changer. So many great vids from Arlen. Just watched the Junior Wells vid, which was recommended here. I can't say enough good things about that video. Thanks again for bringing all this music history up again.

I thank Arlen Roth for his Hot Licks tapes which were instrumental (?) in improving my playing. A great teacher which is a considerable skill / even an art. Thanks so much for this fascinating interview with a great musician :-)

Arlen is brilliant, gives you a good grounding in the basics, something lacking in a lot of young players who want to be like Yngwie Malmsteen and miss out on the pleasure of playing musically and melodically, by that I mean rhythm and melody combined. With feel. I still haven't learnt everything from Arlen and I been playing for 28 years! Great interview too loved it

Took a few lessons with Arlen while he was still with his parents in the Bronx, then a few on Central Park East. Still have tapes of those lessons. I was amazed at how his 53 tele and 52 goldtop sounded so like each other in his hands. I remember him loving Buzz Feitens rythm playing.

Great interview,Zac. Arlen has wonderful stories. His instructional videos are timeless and a great player and teacher.

Like a friend from the past....... glad your doing well......and thanks for all your tips that I’ve been using for years. Aloha Mr Roth

I learned a lot from the Arlen cassette tape series ‘ lead guitar’ and advanced lead guitar . I had one of his albums that had ‘the poor side of town ‘ on it . Great teacher / musician ! His teaching really formed the core of my playing . Thanks for featuring him .

Great interview! Arlen seems to be a great guy. He had great times and stories but it’s very sad for all the heart ache in his life. He seems like an old soul that would be an awesome friend to people! God bless!

Can't wait to watch this properly this weekend. Thank you.

Met Arlen at a guitar show in Pennsylvania, maybe 15 years ago. He was standing behind the Hot Licks table, I think it was...I may be wrong. I walked up to him and started chatting, of course, about guitar playing. He showed me a little bit on guitar, playing in his stylish fashion. When he finished, I turned around and there was a massive mob that had accumulated behind me, drawn to his playing like moths to a flame.

Just watched this again and first I want to say how much I appreciate your interviews because you are not just very knowledgeable on the the subjects and the people you interview but you lead with the right questions and allow people to speak . You seem to know exactly when to introduce the next topic . These are best interviews. You allowed Arlen’s character to come across and I was extremely lucky to study with him around the time he was transitioning from audio to video lessons . Being in close proximity to him was influential in re shaping my personal expectations, raising the bar as they say. He influences his students by not just the mechanics of a particular technique but in the joy of utilizing them and finding ways of fitting them to your own vision. His sense of humor came across in the interview which always made time spent with him fun . Lastly he was generous in dispensing information which is not always a trait in some teachers I have met. As an instructor myself I kept faith with that spirit of passing down all you can. I can say more about the positive experiences of studying with Arlen but it would be a long letter . Keep up the great work with these interviews. I’m Especially appreciative that you presented interviews with greats that are no longer with that are no longer with us , they are precious testaments and info that would be lost forever if not captured as you have done

Wow. What a treat! I bought a copy of Arlen Roth's complete Acoustic guitar shortly after I started guitar in 1985 and I'm still learning from it to this day. It's on my music stand right now. Thanks for all of your interviews, and especially this one.

Wow! I think you loved doing this True Tone Lounge more than any other. I also think Arlen loved it a little bit more. Thank You Zac.

What a kick! Thank you both - Zac and Arlen - for making this happen. The stories, and the history that surrounds them. Another great episode!

Going this Friday April 28 to see Arlen in the mushroom capitol of the world Kennett Square PA. Thanx Zach and Arlen 🎸 🎶 ❤

i love the strictly rhythm Danny Gatton video. Timm Biery on drums and John Previti on stand up bass are fantastic. Danny's organ style was epic.

Had heard the name, but was not too familiar with what he had done. What a character! I’ve got to go back and research his work. He can tell a story with a humorous twist. Thanks Zac! Thank you Arlen!🎸🎸

Such a great interview. Arlen has so many great stories including some very hilarious ones! Extremely talented and funny guy. I purchased a hand signed CD from Arlen some time back, Great CD! Thanks Zac for another incredible interview and thanks Arlen Roth for those great stories and your incredible talent.

What a lot of fun Arlen Roth!! Awesome stories! Thanks Zac!!

What a wonderful interview from an extraordinarily positive person! You can just feel how much he loves music and all aspects of the guitar. This was a blast to listen to and a good reminder to look up more of those Hot Licks videos. I've seen quite a few and learned a lot from them too. Thanks a lot Zac for this! I always say you're a great interviewer and don't get in the way of the person you're interviewing but with Arlen, it just seemed particularly easy to let him talk :-)

Thank you Zac and Truetone! This is absolutely wonderful and inspiring! I could listen to Arlen Roth telling stories for hours...

I had Arlen's Nashville Guitar book in the early 80's. I still remember the cover and some inner pages.

I learned so much from Arlen’s Hot Licks videos. Luv you Arlen! Thank you for sharing your gift with so many :)

I have such a sweet spot in my heart for him. I bought so many VHS and DVDs directly from Hot Licks it’s not even funny. I still go through those! Talk about a gift that keeps on giving! He sold Hot Licks many years ago to another publisher and you can still get many of the courses. I remember him from the audio years first. True legend; I wish I saw more from him. Seems to me he’s retired or at least semi-retired. I hope he still has his old ‘50’s Buick! Funny we have this group of hotrodders/guitar players: Danny Gatton, Arlen, Jeff Beck, the Reverend Gibbons, etc. 😉

What a fantastic interview. This becoming my favourite channel, so glad I found it. I saw Danny at Rockefellers in Houston, a club I used to play a lot, and he was something. Anywqy, another great one, Zach!! He makes me think I should write a book about the road ..no colliseums, just all the buckets of blood bars across Texas and the Southwest. Fun times, what I remember.

Got Arlen’s audio tapes as a kid in the early 80’s. They were a phenomenal learning resource for the time. They gave me a step up and a lot of skills I needed to progress on the guitar. Definitely one of the things that got me really hooked on guitar. It’s been a lifetime of enjoyment.

Great interview! Arlen is a firecracker! Thank you Zac!

As usual great work Zac. Knowledge from the source.

Thanks for the this Zac - great interview. I had several Hot Licks VHS tapes back in the day... David Grissom, Warren Haynes, Mick Taylor... so much great stuff... but most impactful was Arlen's Chicago Blues tape... I owe my two best guitar skills - vibrato and bending to that tape! Thanks Zac and thanks Arlen... you set me on the right path! Cheers

Great interview, Zac. I had forgot how great Arlen Roth is.

Wow, Thank you Zac & Arlen! Wonderful history stories, great Tele player and Hot licks videos are the best! Keep up the great work!

This is just so wonderful! I have to share it with some very special musician friends.

He is sharp! A good teacher and great player!

Loved to watch this. Nice getting to know a little bit more of this great artist. Hope he will play the Netherlands someday soon...

I have his Nashville Guitar book on Oak Publications from 1977! Great interview. Thanks.

Thanks for all the great lessons over the years Arlen 👍

The man has great stories

This was so much fun! Arlen's tapes were really important for me in the eighties and early nineties. Still an inspiration. Thanks!

Cool. You just mentioned Arlen in the latest Ask Zac video. I have watched a few Hot Licks videos, on RU-vid mostly. Eric Johnson, Brian Setzer, Danny Gatton, and maybe some with Arlen teaching, too. I want to order those dvds at some point.

That was a blast Zac! Arlen's personality really came through his book that you were showing, and that's what hooked me early on. I also loved the fact he had suggested listening section. I was so glad to see this video and remember what made his book one of my favorites!

I guess I am a little late to this party...but I do remember Arlen Roth from way back...I had a book of his at one point(maybe the one on slide)? Not sure, too long and hazy ago. I do recall reading his columns in Guitar magazines....I had the Mel Bay books too :p Thanks Zac and Arlen

This is great. Arlen Roth the king of steel licks on a guitar with out a bender. I still have the VHS tapes. I loaned them to people who were touring musicians and they got back from their 3 or 4 month bus trip they gave my taoe back ans were like wow. I learned so much from watching that. Think about it. Before the internet had you tube and streaming video. You are in a bus most of your life. What do you do. Of course you stick Arlen Roth Star Licks tape in and learn something.

I started playing in the late 90's but I remember having a few Arlen Roth books along with mel bay. I probably still have a few stored away some where with my old guitar magazines along with composite notebooks full of the most terrible songs imaginable that I had written thinking they were really great at the time! Ha! Another Great interview Zac!

Priming up to go see Arlen at 8:00 this evening. Usually my bedtime is 10 but I can make exceptions for this one 😂

Wow, what an absolute treat. Thank you both so much.

Nice one for all of the amazing content. You should totally get Tom Bukovac on, I'm loving him after finding his YT channel.

Great interview again! It seems to me in listening to Arlen Roth tell a lot of stories in his carreer that it shows how favoritism and studio politics causes great players like him to be kept in the background and not given the exposure they should get. Its like if your not inside the clique at the time they don't give you the recognition OR the opportunity.

It's a shame that this man is not a household name. He should be, if only for his playing alone. But add in his educational stuff and he should be known by anybody who is interested in guitar.

Hey Zack I still have the book you showed at 14:30😀🎸

What a great insight into Arlen Roth! I had his Nashville Guitar and Slide books, and they were such a great learning tool for me. Am I remembering correctly that early on they came with those soundsheets that you tore out and played on your turntable?

God...! Thanks Zac...I wish I would have found Truetone Lounge sooner it would have made the Quarantine a little more tolerable

Great teacher and a great player....

I bought that Nashville Guitar book 40 plus years ago- my friend Dick (he played in a band called Hurricane with Stuart Colman who Arlen mentions) was mortified back in the late 70s when he had a guitar shop. He took the afternoon off one day and when he returned the next morning, his sales guy told him that Arlen Roth had visited the shop. He had been told- possibly by Stuart Colman that if he was ever in this town in England, he should pay a visit- and he did. Sadly, Dick was out and he still wishes he had not taken that afternoon off. Arlen is amazing. Here he is guesting with Bill Kirchen who is on Arlen's Telemasters record doing "Lonesome Fugitive." I saw Bill shortly after this was loaded up and said it was a shame he didn't have Arlen with him, and he agreed! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-woUhwS2uPeI.html

Loved this video! Arlen is such a great player and such a cool dude, full of great stories, and Zac does a terrific job as always of asking good questions and driving a fun, informative conversation. Pure gold.

just rewatched this Great work Zac

I heard Mr Roth first on an AM radio in Laurel Md. He sounded great and he sounded like Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits 7 years before I heard of Knopfler

Wow 😳 what a wonderful person, I've been following him since the early 80's.. listen to him do an instrumental version of "When a man loves a woman", fantastic guitar player/musician.

Great interview, I too come from the Arlen Roth Crossroads legacy, and own a bunch of hot licks videos. Some of my favs are Jimmy Bruno, Joe Pass, Brian Setzer, both Danny Gatton vids, Scotty Anderson, and especially the Brent Mason.

What a treasure

I HAVE THE PLEASURE OF KNOWING ARLEN PERSONALLY . HE IS A VERY REAL GUY AND IN NO WAY A( BRAGADOUCHA NY SLANG) PHONY . Just very down to earth . From the day I met him I liked him.

mesmerizing - thanks

The complete acoustic guitar is an excellent book too. I have both and they are excellent to work with

I’ve been looking for years for a copy of the book that came with the Cornell Dupree video. Zac if you have it I’ll pay handsomely for scans, haha

What's the model of the battery powered Peavey ?

arlen u rock!

All these New York musicians always seem so personable compared to the New York persona!

Zac can you get Ry Cooder pleaseeeeeee??????????????

Charlie Byrd.

Shalom rabbi

I miss Arlen's show for gibson. I stopped watching for a while. Well he was gone from RU-vid.

I have a lot of respect for everything Arlen has done for the guitar community, education wise, as I’ve definitely owned my share of Hot Licks tapes over the years. The only knock I’ve heard over the years about the guy, from folks that had met him, is that he’s sometimes extremely arrogant. I have never met him myself, but to hear the man flat out say that he never considered Robbie Robertson a great guitarist lends weight to the reports that he suffers from bouts of arrogance occasionally. Was Robertson a legend? No. He did, however, play some great parts on some of the best records ever recorded. To me, Arlen has always seemed to be a “Jack of All Trades” yet still a master at none. He can imitate all the greats, but I’ve never heard him play anything that just blew me away, so maybe a good practice would be to withhold judgment on another player until you, yourself, have become a master of the particular style the aforementioned player was known for. Aside from that little gripe, great and interesting interview as always, Zac. Thanks for continuing to record this series, despite the complications that COVID presents.