Great story by Paul Elie in the December 22, 2014 New Yorker on guitarist Jim Campilongo, who is known for playing a 1959 Telecaster.

Over the years some of Campilongo’s fans includes Lou Reed, Emmylou Harris, Norah Jones and Bonnie Raitt.

The story begins:

A 1959 Fender Telecaster, blond finish, white pickguard, maple fretboard, will set you back about thirty thousand dollars.

Jim Campilongo is known for playing a 1959 Telecaster, blond, white guard, maple board, and a few years ago Fender’s custom shop produced a Jim Campilongo Signature Model, based on the one he plays. It was priced at $4,499—not thirty thousand dollars, but four times the price of a regular Telecaster. The Custom Shop has fashioned signature models based on guitars made iconic by Jeff Beck; David Gilmour, of Pink Floyd; and Andy Summers, of the Police. The Campilongo signature model put him up there with them—anointed him a sultan of twang.

At the Living Room, in Williamsburg, the other Tuesday, Campilongo played the ’59 Tele, not the signature model. I could see the guitar clearly—the body nicked and cut like a hockey rink, the fretboard worn to the color of chewed gum—because I was in the front of the audience.

In a sense, I was the audience…

Read the rest of this story here.

“The Prettiest Girl In New York”:

Fantastic hour-plus set. Jim Campilongo & Honeyfingers at 55 Bar, NYC – September 8 2013:

Jim playing with Norah Jones in the Little Willies:

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[This year I published my rock ‘n’ roll novel, True Love Scars.” Rolling Stone has a great review of my book in a recent issue. Read it here. There’s info about True Love Scars here.]