Though he was one of the early pioneers of the two-handed tapping technique, which went on to be popularized by Eddie Van Halen, Randy Resnick plays down his own importance, telling Guitar World: “Honestly, I don’t feel I was very influential.”
Others disagree. Ask Lee Ritenour, who sang Resnick’s praises in a 1980 issue of Guitar Player; or Ted Greene, who called him “one of the real legends of the LA guitar scene.” And John Mayall – who worked with Eric Clapton and Peter Green, among others – called Resnick a favorite in 2020.
But Resnick himself counters: “I don’t think any of those famous players saw me, other than Lee. But I am on several albums that people are still listening to 50-plus years after the recordings, so that’s gratifying!”
One player who did see him was Harvey Mandel, who played in Pure Food and Drug Act alongside him. Also known as a pioneer of the two-handed tapping technique, Mandel recently told Guitar World how he’d picked up the trick from Resnick.
“I saw that article about Harvey and I went back to the YouTube video History of Tapping,” he says. “I’ve been trying to figure out the time I began doing it. I don’t pretend to be the first one – that’s obvious.”
He may not fancy himself a legend, but he’s proud of his accomplishments. “Over 60 years I went from the typical kid copying Clapton’s solo in Sunshine of Your Love and Jimi Hendrix’s Purple Haze to my own distinct approach.
“It’s blues-rock based with some jazz influence, with a little of Robben Ford, whose playing I love.”
What inspired you to pick up the guitar?
“An uncle was given a beautiful Goya classical guitar, which he re-gifted to me. I'll never forget the smell of that case! I messed around with it for a while, listening to Peter, Paul and Mary and The Smother Brothers. We did some of those songs at school with friends.
“Very soon after, I traded it for a Silvertone electric guitar and amp. When I was in a little band I bought a Fender Jazzmaster. Eventually I settled on the Stratocaster as my guitar. I’ve owned others, but I always go back to the Strat.”
Tell us about the Rickenbacker 12-string you gave George Harrison in 1965.
“I worked at a music store called B-Sharp in Minneapolis. Sometimes groups came through as Jim Lopes was a dealership for Fender, Gibson, and, of course, Rick. Jim would get group photos signed and put them up on a bulletin board.
“When I learned about The Beatles’ concert in Minneapolis, I had this idea: I asked Jim if we could give George a guitar for publicity. I chased after a local radio personality, Bill Diehl, and he somehow got me and another employee into the press conference.
“There’s a video on YouTube – all four Beatles are clapping as I come up with the Rick at the five-minute mark.”
When did you first come across the two-handed tapping technique?
“I wanted to play fast legato like John Coltrane, but before getting into that, I was listening to some African music. This particular music is played by singing an ‘ooh’ note and blowing into a bottle, which makes a different note.
“There’s no way to get such a sound by picking. When you pull off on the open high E string and tap your index finger on a high note like an octave up, you get that legato on two far-apart notes. Then, if you vary both of these notes, you have a nice little sound.
“To then get the Coltrane ‘sheets of sound’ that made me jealous, I added more fingers and I could move between the strings, usually the first three. That gives fast scales with a little gymnastics. But everybody does that! I’d say it became my own, and a signature concept, when I began to use different rhythms.
I’m pleased Harvey is able to say he got it from me now, because he did nothing wrong. We all use what we see and hear
“An example of that is in Fools Paradise from my 1995 CD. The track is also interesting also because of the great players on it – Tower of Power rhythm section Victor Conte and Ron E. Beck. Nate Ginsberg played keyboards in Herbie Hancock’s Monster Band - think about that!
“Victor, who was in that same Herbie band, was also the second bass player in Pure Food after Larry Taylor left. Coleman Head plays a great first guitar solo on the track. then at 1:50 there’s a rhythmic riff, kind of a jazz rhythm. There’s other tapping in that track, but less original. I also did the tremolo thing I learned from Sugarcane Harris around 2:27.”
Did you first meet Harvey Mandel through Pure Food and Drug Act?
“The band was formed by drummer Paul Lagos, who’d played on a John Mayall tour with Sugarcane, Larry and Harvey. Initially, Harvey was not in what was called the Sugarcane Harris Band. We played at El Monte Legion Hall in 197,1 and at the local clubs like the Troubador and the Ash Grove.
“At some point Harvey was brought in. As he had a name and some fans, I think it helped get on the Epic label. But nothing would have happened without Lagos – he was the motor behind that band, which could have gone much further if Don [Sugarcane] could have stayed clean. As I wasn’t getting many solos, I eventually quit, and Coleman Head came in.”
What did your rig look like back then?
“I’m struggling to remember because I’m not into hardware at all. I’m pretty sure I was playing a Strat, as I still do. I’ve only owned two and I’ve played them all my professional career. Harvey had a Les Paul and one or more pedals, sustain, and maybe distortion. I wasn’t using pedals.”
How did your styles differ?
“Harvey was always playing long notes sustained into distortion and harmonics – a little Hendrix-like, but he definitely had his own sound, which I’d liked since I heard his albums.”
Harvey says he picked up two-handed tapping from you. Is that true?
“As he said in Guitar World, he didn’t do it when I was there! But he watched and learned. The bebop cats would say, ‘Cop and blow.’ We all copy our inspirations; it was natural that he adapted his own thing. I heard it on his subsequent albums – I think I’m on at least one of them, probably on rhythm.
“What we do is very different rhythmically. Harvey started telling people he discovered it when we were playing side-by-side in PFDA, but I can’t find any tapes of PFDA that have tapping on them.”
John Mayall offered an expenses-paid holiday to the whole band… I was the only one who had no one to go home to!
Harvey also mentions that George Lynch and Eddie Van Halen saw him do it, and started doing it themselves.
“We’ll never know the exact answer. But as I’ve said, it doesn’t matter. There are several well-known players cited in the discussion; who cares which one saw the other? And EVH brought that fire to the guitar!”
In 1980, Lee Ritenour said he’d seen you tapping in LA in 1974. Were you aware of that?
“I know that both Lee and Larry Carlton knew of me, and at one point I spoke to Lee on the phone. I think I sent him a cassette of our 1993 studio recordings. Both of those people are cool, even though we never met in person.”
Does Harvey deserves more credit for popularizing the technique? It seems as though you did it first on a more widespread level.
“I have to be honest – in front of the major players who are always mentioned, I don’t put Harvey or myself in that league. We reach a more limited audience. In the end, I did it too much; I was a one-trick pony! Fortunately, by the time I recorded with Mayall or on my own work, I’d gotten over it.
“But I’m pleased Harvey is able to say he got it from me now, because he did nothing wrong. We all use what we see and hear.”
What were John Mayall’s expectations of his guitar players?
“I got that call after Jesse Edwin Davis was fired. I had met Jesse at the Whiskey when he played with Taj Mahall. He was the nicest guy; we talked about how to get in a band and such. But years later, rumors about his drug use circulated.
“So something happened, and Larry Taylor recommended me. It underlines an important thing about playing music: you have to be on good terms with people.
“Larry played with so many greats, including Tom Waits; and Paul was a mentor to me. Musicians helping each other is the greatest part.”
Did your rig remain static?
“Always a Strat. Often a Twin Reverb, I’d say. For a while, I had a Sunn. Sugarcane had what I thought was a Sunn, but it had a blue horn for highs for the violin, and I haven't found a photo showing that.”
In 2020, John Mayall cited you as one of his favorite guitar players. What did that mean to you?
“John was kind to do that. Each one of the Mayall players I toured with was great. Soko Richardson, who toured with Ike & Tina; Red Holloway, a world-class sax player; and High Tide a great blues and R&B player.
I took one lesson from Ted Greene… I’m very proud of being called a legend by him
“John and I both drank a lot back then. The EU tour was shortened as he broke his knee before we were supposed to leave. John and I spent a week in Marbella, Spain, at the end of a tour in 1974. He offered it to the whole band, expenses paid, but I was probably the only one who had no-one to go home to!”
Did you keep in touch with John?
“I was in touch on and off; we exchanged short emails. I saw him when he played here a few years ago, pre-COVID, and he said, ‘I always liked the way you play, Randy,’ which touched me. I reached out again when I saw his kind mention of me.”
How about Harvey Mandel?
“I haven't spoken to Harvey since Pure Food and Drug Act or shortly after, mainly because I’ve lived outside the USA for over 40 years. Never spoke on the phone. But I replaced him in Canned Heat on two blues festival gigs here in France when he had a family emergency.”
Ted Greene cited you as “one of the real legends of the LA guitar scene”. That must have been gratifying.
“I took one lesson from Ted and then I had a job and couldn’t continue. Ted and Lenny Breau were the most mind-blowing jazz guitarists of the day – so I’m very proud of being called a legend by Ted Greene. Chord Chemistry had a huge effect on my musical knowledge.”
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