Lanny, the guitar hero, is back on the scene
Mental problems caused by LSD abuse have kept the great tropicalist musician out of the market for over 20 years. Today, he gives guitar lessons, performs at clubs and records his compositions on tape-recorders
Carlos Calado
18/10/2000
One might see him coming out of the modest building in the center of São Paulo and remain oblivious to having just passed by one of the most amazing musicians in Brazilian pop in the 60s and 70s. Back then, many people – including vanguard maestro Rogério Duprat – regarded Lanny Gordin as the best guitarist in the country. Which can be testified any time through his participation in essential albums by Gal Costa, Gilberto Gil, Caetano Veloso and Jards Macalé.
"I’m willing to come back into the media system and the sound that’s going on now. I’ve quit using drugs for a long while, now, and I feel a lot better", he explains, holding on to his Brazilian guitar which is not at all appropriate for his inventiveness, improvisations and harmonic bridges. The Gibson Les Paul that accompanied him for decades was stolen just a few months ago, as Lanny was returning from a nightly rehearsal in the violent East Side of São Paulo.
Coming from Russian and Polish background, Alexander Gordin was born in Shanghai China, on November 28, 1951. He lived in Israel before moving with his family to Brazil in 1958. At the age of 16 he would strum on his dad’s Stardust guitar, playing along with recordings by heavyweights like Heraldo do Monte and Hermeto Pascoal. He played with pop bands The Cats, The Beatniks and Os Kantikus, before being discovered by Rogério Duprat and the tropicalists.
In the early 70s, after Lanny’s delirious guitar had attracted people’s attention in Gal Costa’s early albums, everybody wanted him in their gigs and recording sessions, be they rockers (like Erasmo Carlos), BPM stars (like Elis Regina) or soul music masters (like Tim Maia). Ironically, though, Lanny’s solos were brilliant and meteoric. In 1972, while backing up samba star Jair Rodrigues on a European tour, the discovery of LSD hastened his disappearing from the music world. It was the start of a long schizophrenic nightmare, with periods of depression, in-hospital treatments and electrical shocks.
One decade later, in 1982, Lanny tried and made a comeback, playing with Arnaldo Antunes and Banda Performática, led by plastic artist Aguillar. More recently, in 1995, he performed in Vange Milliet’s debut album. That CD features the homage-song Lanny Qual?, written by Chico César, who had Lanny play in his 1996 album Cuscuz Clã. In 1999, Lanny appeared in Jads Macalé’s album O Q Faço É Música.
Today, besides sporadic shows in bars and nightclubs, Lanny is forced to give guitar lessons as a means of survival. "I have three students. The problem is that I’m always in a rush. I wanna teach everything in one hour. Which makes the students scared and causes them to give up. I’m learning slowly", he tells, laughing.
When he’s not going after work, Lanny makes recordings at home, in an old stereo lent by his friend and psychologist Mario Costa, who’s been lodging Lanny for almost a year. Using the playback technique, he records two or three simultaneous guitars, rhythmic and solo. He usually sells those tapes after his performances in the night of São Paulo.
"I’m not hurt with anything or anyone. When I needed, I got help from the people who were ready to help me: my family and a few friends. Today, I just wanna be alright with everyone", says the guitarist, revealing that his only dream is to by a new Les Paul as soon as possible. Who deserves it better than Lanny Gordin?
Read choice excerpts from Lanny’s exclusive interview to AllBrazilianMusic.
The beginning
"I arrived in Brazil when I was six years old. My grandmother taught me a little piano, but I didn’t study much because it wasn’t my favorite instrument. I enjoyed playing by myself, creating my own music. Never got used to taking classes and learning rules. After I failed twice at school, my father said: ‘you’re no good for studying. Your business is music.’ And he gave me my first acoustic guitar when I was 13. I was so happy because he was right!"
True school
"I’m a self-taught musician. Some guitarists gave me the most valuable tips, like Aires, who’s kind of obscure, and Heraldo do Monte. Both used to work at a club called Stardust. Heraldo taught me how to play my first blues sequence. The rest I learned by myself, and in parties and nightclubs. Those were my guitar and bass guitar schools."
Versatility
"My dad noticed my being prone to music and started buying me albums by jazz guitarists like Wes Montgomery, Kenny Burrell, Jim Hall and Joe Pass. I was very much influenced by the Beatles, Cream and Jimi Hendrix, as well. I’d listen to Italian, French and American music. My dad used to say: ‘You ought to be versatile and able to play different styles.’ I owned BPM, samba, jazz, rock, waltz and even classical music albums."
Musical duels
"I used to go and visit Serginho (Mutantes guitarist) all the time. Among musicians, he was regarded as the fastest solo in the country. And I played the largest amount of chords per second. People stimulated the competition, they talked about duels, but we did not care for it. We just enjoyed playing together."
Duprat’s favorite
"I met Rogério Duprat at the RCA studios, when he was recording Gal’s debut album. We chatted a little and I said to him: ‘You leave the last track empty and I’ll record something’, to which he answered: ‘Play that shit, then. Do whatever you like.’ Since I’m very intuitive, it’s easy for me to get in the mood. I recorded only once and he shouted: ‘Cut! The album’s ready to hit the stores!’ And then he turned to me and said: ‘I choose you. You’ll record with me for a long time.’ I produced a lot of things with Rogério. He’s an amazing arranger. If he lived in the States, he’d certainly be extremely successful."
Weird Hermeto
"In 1968, Rhodia had this idea to put a band together for the fashion shows they promoted. I played in this band (Brazilian Octopus) with Hermeto Pascoal and Alemão (guitarist Olmir Stockler) and bassist Nilson da Matta, who’s currently living in the States. It was fascinating to play with Hermeto. He was always a character."
Gal Costa
"I remember playing the song Pérola Negra with Gal Costa in Rio, in1972. Halfway through the season, I was invited to play with Jair Rodrigues in France. So, Pepeu (Gomes) filled in for me at Gal’s show. But they did some mixing in the album: I play some of the phrases, Pepeu plays others. They made a stupid thing, but did it well."
The first LSD
"I did my first acid in London, it was handed me by some hippies I’d met in the street. I decided to try it, out of curiosity. I saw everything in colors and thought I had found my world, a world of love and peace. I did other six acids in São Paulo, willing to penetrate that world again. The second acid was strange. The third had no effect on me. I can’t remember the others. Only the seventh brought the colors back to me, but the effect was the opposite, because I was feeling weird at the time. It was a royal bad trip. I was out of my mind. Thought I was gonna die."
Lysergic trips
"Because of the acid trips, I was committed three times. I was given electric shocks, insulin and a bunch of pills. I quit music for a while. I had an acoustic guitar, which I could barely play, but my only interest was the truth: I wanted to know what had happened to me. And this question is in my mind to this day. Aldous Huxley is the only one who can explain it to me."
In Jesus’ Shoes
"I burned my hand with the tip of a cigarette because I thought I was Jesus Christ. Most people do drugs and get into a state of hallucination and start imagining things. Today, I’m no longer concerned, because I trust in God and in myself. The truth shall be revealed some day."
Frustration
"My greatest frustration is that I never had my own band. I never had the time to practice my own stuff, because I was always being requested to play for others."
Schizophrenia
"I have a mental disease called schizophrenia. At least it is a soft manifestation and I can deal with it. It doesn’t rule over me. The psychiatrist told me it is not that serious: just a state of mind that I must learn how to control. I was never worried about it. Sickness is a way of making the patient concerned. When it is properly explained, the patient tends to feel better."
Eclectic taste
"Nowadays, I enjoy listening to a bit of everything: John McLaughlin, Fernanda Abreu, John Coltrane, Hermeto Pascoal, Cesaria Évora, Chico Science. I was stuck in time, but realized I had to keep up with music evolution."
"I’m willing to come back into the media system and the sound that’s going on now. I’ve quit using drugs for a long while, now, and I feel a lot better", he explains, holding on to his Brazilian guitar which is not at all appropriate for his inventiveness, improvisations and harmonic bridges. The Gibson Les Paul that accompanied him for decades was stolen just a few months ago, as Lanny was returning from a nightly rehearsal in the violent East Side of São Paulo.
Coming from Russian and Polish background, Alexander Gordin was born in Shanghai China, on November 28, 1951. He lived in Israel before moving with his family to Brazil in 1958. At the age of 16 he would strum on his dad’s Stardust guitar, playing along with recordings by heavyweights like Heraldo do Monte and Hermeto Pascoal. He played with pop bands The Cats, The Beatniks and Os Kantikus, before being discovered by Rogério Duprat and the tropicalists.
In the early 70s, after Lanny’s delirious guitar had attracted people’s attention in Gal Costa’s early albums, everybody wanted him in their gigs and recording sessions, be they rockers (like Erasmo Carlos), BPM stars (like Elis Regina) or soul music masters (like Tim Maia). Ironically, though, Lanny’s solos were brilliant and meteoric. In 1972, while backing up samba star Jair Rodrigues on a European tour, the discovery of LSD hastened his disappearing from the music world. It was the start of a long schizophrenic nightmare, with periods of depression, in-hospital treatments and electrical shocks.
One decade later, in 1982, Lanny tried and made a comeback, playing with Arnaldo Antunes and Banda Performática, led by plastic artist Aguillar. More recently, in 1995, he performed in Vange Milliet’s debut album. That CD features the homage-song Lanny Qual?, written by Chico César, who had Lanny play in his 1996 album Cuscuz Clã. In 1999, Lanny appeared in Jads Macalé’s album O Q Faço É Música.
Today, besides sporadic shows in bars and nightclubs, Lanny is forced to give guitar lessons as a means of survival. "I have three students. The problem is that I’m always in a rush. I wanna teach everything in one hour. Which makes the students scared and causes them to give up. I’m learning slowly", he tells, laughing.
When he’s not going after work, Lanny makes recordings at home, in an old stereo lent by his friend and psychologist Mario Costa, who’s been lodging Lanny for almost a year. Using the playback technique, he records two or three simultaneous guitars, rhythmic and solo. He usually sells those tapes after his performances in the night of São Paulo.
"I’m not hurt with anything or anyone. When I needed, I got help from the people who were ready to help me: my family and a few friends. Today, I just wanna be alright with everyone", says the guitarist, revealing that his only dream is to by a new Les Paul as soon as possible. Who deserves it better than Lanny Gordin?
Read choice excerpts from Lanny’s exclusive interview to AllBrazilianMusic.
The beginning
"I arrived in Brazil when I was six years old. My grandmother taught me a little piano, but I didn’t study much because it wasn’t my favorite instrument. I enjoyed playing by myself, creating my own music. Never got used to taking classes and learning rules. After I failed twice at school, my father said: ‘you’re no good for studying. Your business is music.’ And he gave me my first acoustic guitar when I was 13. I was so happy because he was right!"
True school
"I’m a self-taught musician. Some guitarists gave me the most valuable tips, like Aires, who’s kind of obscure, and Heraldo do Monte. Both used to work at a club called Stardust. Heraldo taught me how to play my first blues sequence. The rest I learned by myself, and in parties and nightclubs. Those were my guitar and bass guitar schools."
Versatility
"My dad noticed my being prone to music and started buying me albums by jazz guitarists like Wes Montgomery, Kenny Burrell, Jim Hall and Joe Pass. I was very much influenced by the Beatles, Cream and Jimi Hendrix, as well. I’d listen to Italian, French and American music. My dad used to say: ‘You ought to be versatile and able to play different styles.’ I owned BPM, samba, jazz, rock, waltz and even classical music albums."
Musical duels
"I used to go and visit Serginho (Mutantes guitarist) all the time. Among musicians, he was regarded as the fastest solo in the country. And I played the largest amount of chords per second. People stimulated the competition, they talked about duels, but we did not care for it. We just enjoyed playing together."
Duprat’s favorite
"I met Rogério Duprat at the RCA studios, when he was recording Gal’s debut album. We chatted a little and I said to him: ‘You leave the last track empty and I’ll record something’, to which he answered: ‘Play that shit, then. Do whatever you like.’ Since I’m very intuitive, it’s easy for me to get in the mood. I recorded only once and he shouted: ‘Cut! The album’s ready to hit the stores!’ And then he turned to me and said: ‘I choose you. You’ll record with me for a long time.’ I produced a lot of things with Rogério. He’s an amazing arranger. If he lived in the States, he’d certainly be extremely successful."
Weird Hermeto
"In 1968, Rhodia had this idea to put a band together for the fashion shows they promoted. I played in this band (Brazilian Octopus) with Hermeto Pascoal and Alemão (guitarist Olmir Stockler) and bassist Nilson da Matta, who’s currently living in the States. It was fascinating to play with Hermeto. He was always a character."
Gal Costa
"I remember playing the song Pérola Negra with Gal Costa in Rio, in1972. Halfway through the season, I was invited to play with Jair Rodrigues in France. So, Pepeu (Gomes) filled in for me at Gal’s show. But they did some mixing in the album: I play some of the phrases, Pepeu plays others. They made a stupid thing, but did it well."
The first LSD
"I did my first acid in London, it was handed me by some hippies I’d met in the street. I decided to try it, out of curiosity. I saw everything in colors and thought I had found my world, a world of love and peace. I did other six acids in São Paulo, willing to penetrate that world again. The second acid was strange. The third had no effect on me. I can’t remember the others. Only the seventh brought the colors back to me, but the effect was the opposite, because I was feeling weird at the time. It was a royal bad trip. I was out of my mind. Thought I was gonna die."
Lysergic trips
"Because of the acid trips, I was committed three times. I was given electric shocks, insulin and a bunch of pills. I quit music for a while. I had an acoustic guitar, which I could barely play, but my only interest was the truth: I wanted to know what had happened to me. And this question is in my mind to this day. Aldous Huxley is the only one who can explain it to me."
In Jesus’ Shoes
"I burned my hand with the tip of a cigarette because I thought I was Jesus Christ. Most people do drugs and get into a state of hallucination and start imagining things. Today, I’m no longer concerned, because I trust in God and in myself. The truth shall be revealed some day."
Frustration
"My greatest frustration is that I never had my own band. I never had the time to practice my own stuff, because I was always being requested to play for others."
Schizophrenia
"I have a mental disease called schizophrenia. At least it is a soft manifestation and I can deal with it. It doesn’t rule over me. The psychiatrist told me it is not that serious: just a state of mind that I must learn how to control. I was never worried about it. Sickness is a way of making the patient concerned. When it is properly explained, the patient tends to feel better."
Eclectic taste
"Nowadays, I enjoy listening to a bit of everything: John McLaughlin, Fernanda Abreu, John Coltrane, Hermeto Pascoal, Cesaria Évora, Chico Science. I was stuck in time, but realized I had to keep up with music evolution."