ON SONGWRITING
In recent years he ’ s found a more compatible collaborator – his wife Camilla . McGuinn tells me , “ I usually write on a word processor . I ’ ve got a four track home studio . I usually get the melody first and work it out on the guitar . And then I play it until it suggests something to me – like a line or an idea – and I build it from there . I often work with my wife . Sometimes I go through two or three different sets of lyrics until I lock in on the one I like . Musically , I think I ’ ve kind of stayed where I am . I ’ ve always liked the harpsichord and Bach and things like that . And the 12-string guitar is kind of like the harpsichord sound a little bit .”
the Easy Rider soundtrack , in order to save money he took his record collection and put it out on the soundtrack , which at that point was unprecedented . But he also wanted a song that was custom made for the movie so he asked me if I ’ d write him a song . Actually , he took the movie to New York and he showed it to Dylan . Dylan scribbled down a couple of lines on a napkin and gave it to Peter and said , ‘ Here . Give this to McGuinn .’ It was the entire chorus . I took it and wrote the rest of it and came up with a tune . I tried to give Dylan credit on it . In fact , the first release has ‘ by Bob Dylan and Jim McGuinn .’ And he called me up and said , ‘ what is this ? I don ’ t want any credit on this song .’ I said , ‘ well , you wrote part of it .’ He said , ‘ I don ’ t want to be associated with it . I don ’ t need the money . I don ’ t need the credit . Take it off .’ So I took it off .”
That Rickenbacker was still with him when I met him in 1988 . “ Right now I ’ m touring with a replica of the 1965 Rickenbacker 370 , which is the one with the three pickups I used to play with a few things added . One thing is a circuit board that ’ s underneath the pickguard . It ’ s a compressor that makes the guitar sound just like The Byrds records . What we used to do in the studio with boxes and outboard equipment now is built into the guitar so any kid can pick it up and sound like that record if they want to . I ’ m practicing on the Rickenbacker , too . You have to really work on it a lot to get that technique down because the neck is so narrow and the placement of the strings is so tight on the right hand that if you ’ re used to an acoustic 12 , you ’ re going to miss it on the Rickenbacker . I play more now than I have in years . When I started being a solo artist I really had to get my chops together . Because I was working without a drummer I had to really get my time locked in and my single string picking down .”
At the end McGuinn had become what he was in the beginning . In a moment of humble selfreflection he says , “ I never thought of myself as a guitar hero . I play guitar and sing .” ■
Bruce Pollock is the author of 12 books on music , including Working Musicians and
The Rock Song Index . Visit my website : www . brucepollockthewriter . com
JUNE / JULY DIGITAL EDITION 51