## The Best Unknown Guitarist in the World
Roy Buchanan was a musician’s musician, a man who could make a Telecaster weep and scream like no one else. He was a pioneer of controlled feedback and volume swells, creating a haunting, ethereal sound that influenced everyone from Jeff Beck to Danny Gatton. He was a man of intense humility and deep personal demons, often shying away from the fame his talent deserved.
## August 14, 1988
In a tragedy that remains a subject of debate among his fans, Roy Buchanan was found dead in a jail cell in Fairfax County, Virginia, shortly after being arrested for public intoxication. He was 48. The loss of such a singular and expressive voice was a profound shock to the guitar community. It was a lonely end for a man who had shared so much beauty with the world through his music.
## The Messiah Has Come and Gone
Roy’s legacy is one of absolute emotional honesty and technical innovation. He proved that the electric guitar could be a vessel for the deepest of human sorrows. His music, especially ‘The Messiah Will Come Again’, remains a standard for haunting beauty. Roy Buchanan is gone, but the crying notes of his Telecaster still echo in every blues club and every guitar solo. The Messiah has finished his journey.