Podcast 368: The Legend of Snoozer Quinn

Jazz musician Snoozer Quinn (1907 - 1949) is one of the guitar
world’s great enigmas. In his prime, he performed alongside Paul
Whiteman, Bix Beiderbecke, the Dorsey Brothers, Louis Armstrong,
and others; lore has it that even Les Paul even learned how to
hammer-on and pull-off from Snoozer.


But today Snoozer is largely forgotten because his only attempt
at solo studio recordings completely disappeared and he died
young after a long battle with tuberculosis. To add insult to
injury, the only surviving film footage of Snoozer playing guitar
has no audio and the only solo recordings we have of him were
literally taped from his deathbed.


On this week’s Fretboard Journal Podcast, we take a look at
Snoozer’s life and legacy with Katy Hobgood Ray and Dan Sumner,
who just co-authored a book entitled Snoozer Quinn: Fingerstyle
Jazz Guitar Pioneer (Out of the Past Music). Half of the book
features Katy’s exhaustive biography on Quinn (one of her distant
relatives) with rare photos, while the other half features Dan’s
transcriptions of eight Snoozer Quinn arrangements.


Over the course of our interview, we learn about Snoozer’s
troubled life, how he got his name, his reputation among his
peers, his Gibson instruments, and more. Then Dan sheds light on
the Herculean task of transcribing the complex work of Snoozer
from the available fragments and breadcrumbs, the guitarist’s
unique technique and tunings, and a lot more.


Snoozer Quinn: Fingerstyle Jazz Guitar Pioneer is available
here. 


The Fretboard Journal is a reader-supported magazine. If you'd
like to subscribe, support what we do, and get our 50th issue
(now mailing), simply click here.


We're throwing a 2022 Fretboard Summit in Chicago, where for
three days you can attend workshops, panel discussions, live
podcast tapings, and try out rare and priceless guitars with the
staff of the FJ. Click here for ticket information. 


This episode is sponsored by Peghead Nation (use the promo code
FRETBOARD and get your first month free or $20 off any annual
subscription); Retrofret Vintage Guitars; Izotope (use the
discount code FRET10 to save 10% off your Izotope purchase); and
Calton Cases.