ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: RON ROTHMAN

I hereby declare Ron Rothman to be Southold village's official Renaissance Man.  Really.  I grew up riding my bike and stopping at Rothman's Dept store in the 1970s to visit the Coke machine and buy kites and rocket engines.  In the '80s, I saw Ron around town playing gigs at thriving venues that no longer exist.  In the 1990s, Ron made it possible to stop driving all the way to Riverhead to get guitar strings.  And, in the new millenium, Ron added a great vintage guitar section, and has become a dealer of new guitars for both CF Martin & Taylor Guitars.  On top of it, he travels the guitar show circuit hunting those gems out there to bring back to the north fork's most complete vintage guitar store.  BUT, this is a blog about original music, and we should get to it.....

                                                             

At reverbnation, Ron lists his genres as Blues/Jazz/Folk.  I would have to agree that is a fair representation of the genres touched upon, but it doesn't paint the whole picture.  Though deeply rooted in the blues, the music has a quality to it that is oh so cooool.....with a jazzy beatnik feel to it.  It swings the pendulum from the Robert Johnson inspired song, 'Walkin Blues' to the quirky jazz groove of 'Well You Needn't'.  Ron plays out regularly these days and has an afternoon show scheduled for Jan 2nd at Peconic Bay Winery in Cutchogue. 

Beyond performing music, Ron is a true historian.  He is considered to be the world's leading authority on Harmony guitars and their history, and has published a book detailing the USA manufacturer entitled 'Harmony: The Peoples Guitar'. 

                                                           

 It can be purchased at his website, http://www.rothguitar.com/ , which also lists his eclectic inventory of used vintage guitars.  Visit his website and read the interesting history of Rothman's Department Store, a fixture in Southold since 1918.  Be sure to see the section on Albert Einstein!

LISTEN TO RON ROTHMAN