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Leo Kottke Concert

Palace Theater Waterbury (Waterbury, CT)

Leo Kottke concert at Palace Theater Waterbury on May 19, 1973

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  • Date:
    05.19.1973
  • Tracks:
    14
  • Total Time:
    36:41
  • Catalog:
    Dawson Sound

Concert Summary

In 1973 Leo Kottke was in the center of his most prolific period. By this time he had released three studio albums and two live albums, and built a well-deserved reputation as a master of his chosen instrument with few peers. His unconventional tuning and playing of both six- and twelve-string acoustic guitar was well-developed by this time, and on full display at this Waterbury, Connecticut performance in front of a very appreciative crowd.

He opens with "The Driving Of The Year Nail" from his first studio album,…entire summary

Related Concerts

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  • Toster | Saturday, November 14, 2009 | 8:12 am

    I saw Leo in 1974 or '75 in Durham, NC. He pulled off the best guitar "stunt" I've ever seen (before or since). Sitting in a folder chair with spare strings hanging through the chair back, he launched into "Machine Gun" & promptly broke a string. SInce the song is in an open tuning, he kept up the percussive finger-picking with his right hand & quickly removed each end of the broken string from the tuning peg and the tailpiece. He carefully reached back to his cache of spare strings. Finding the right one by feel, he threaded it through the tailpiece, over the bridge, under his still picking fingers, over the nut & through the hope in the tuning peg. Tuning it to pitch, he jumped right back into "Machine Gun" where he'd left off. He never missed a beat. Amazing!

  • honeydew | Wednesday, November 11, 2009 | 11:27 am

    My grandson(13)is learning guitar. He listens then copies. We talked about great guitar players. Neither he nor his father had heard of Leo. So I'll be sending a link to them. I remember the first time I saw him on tv, in the seventies. Wow, what a great guitarist!!

  • mrsknth | Tuesday, October 27, 2009 | 8:26 pm

    I was introduced to Leo by a boyfriend in the early '80s via vinyl. By the time we saw him live in Columbus, Ohio, I was convinced his full-bodied sound was created in post production. Imagine my total and complete surprise when he walked out on stage, sat on a stool, picked up an acoustic 12-string and blew me into the outer stratosphere!! There he was, right in front of me, all by himself, making that very same music that I had been convinced was track upon track upon track or at leaset seven other musicians... and doing it all alone with ONE guitar! I am STILL amazed all these 30-some years later. What a talent.

  • bradleyk4 | Saturday, September 26, 2009 | 6:35 am

    I wish I could play like Leo

  • RobertJ999 | Friday, September 25, 2009 | 6:42 pm

    I first had the pleasure of seeing Leo at "My Fathers Place" in Roslyn NY, in 1981 as a teenager. I quickly learned what an incredible talent he was and began collecting his albums, 25 to date. Since then, I've seen him perform live 12 times and have been lucky enough to meet and talk with him at 6 of those shows. Now that I am 45 and play guitar myself, I appreciate his enormous talent even more. He is a true class act and a living legend. It is wonderful to be able to hear this concert from his early days. Good Job Concert Vault!!!!!

  • jmmyjm | Friday, September 25, 2009 | 3:50 pm

    I was lucky to see Mr. K twice in the early '70's, down here in Houston. The 1st time was at Liberty hall, when this young fellow comes out in a white tee shirt, sits down and blows everyone away. i certainly played the heck out of my vinyl. Nobody comes clos to his 12 string picking. What a treat. Thanks Vault guys!! love from Texas, jan

  • misterbagman | Friday, October 10, 2008 | 3:41 pm

    I think I know what's listed here as "Bill Cheatham" by the name "Living In The Country," a Pete Seeger tune.

  • blindjasper | Tuesday, June 03, 2008 | 7:22 am

    The greatest acoustic finger-picking folkish player ever.

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