Bill Kirchen, George Bedard presenting holiday guitar summit at The Ark
Bill Kirchen
photo by David Thrower
Kirchen is an acclaimed guitarist on the national level. More than fluent in a variety of styles, he first made his name with the Ann Arbor-born Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen; it's Kirchen responsible for the lightning guitar runs on that band's hit "Hot Rod Lincoln."
Kirchen's return to Ann Arbor for a holiday show has become an Ark tradition—as has the participation of Bedard, also a breathtaking instrumentalist who continues to make Ann Arbor home.
George Bedard
photo by Jeffrey Smith
The "Honky Tonk Holiday" show is set for 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 4 at The Ark, 316 S. Main St. Tickets, at $20, are available from The Ark box office (with no service charge); Michigan Union Ticket Office, 530 S. State St.; Herb David Guitar Studio, 302 E. Liberty St.; or online from the Michigan Union Ticket Office.
Bob Needham is director of entertainment content for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at bobneedham@annarbor.com or 734-623-2541, and follow him on Twitter @bobneedham.
Comments
Robbo
Sat, Dec 3, 2011 : 11:59 a.m.
Music at it's finest and most fun, and all of it from right here in Ann Arbor! Yes! These guys are guitar dynamite!
Jensen Lee
Sat, Dec 3, 2011 : 12:35 a.m.
"Hot Rod Lincoln" is a cover of country singer Johnny Bond's 1960 hit, written by Charlie Ryan. On Rockaeology at <a href="http://bit.ly/g2HpCq" rel='nofollow'>http://bit.ly/g2HpCq</a> Bill Kirchen says of his famous guitar riff, "I thought I pretty much nailed it exactly but I go back now and it wasn't even close. But I like mine better and it was originality born of incompetence." The Commander, George Frayne, says that he picked the song because "I couldn't sing a note really, but I could talk fast."