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To Duane Eddy [Letter 548]

Item Reference Code: 100_12A_025_001

Date(s) of creation

June 1, 1967

Recipient

Duane Eddy

Transcript

Duane Eddy (1938– ) is a Grammy Award-winning guitarist and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He is known especially for his “twangy” guitar sound.

June 1, 1967

Duane Eddy
1777 N. Vine
Suite 200
Hollywood, California

Dear Mr. Eddy:

Thank you—enormously—for the record of “Will O’ the Wisp” which you sent me.[*]

The record is wonderful. The “noise” you mention is so slight that I am not aware of it when I listen to the music. I must tell you that no present can give me a thrill today, only my kind of music can and does. You have given me a powerful source of my personal “benevolent universe.” No, it is not a “small thing,” it means a great deal to me—and I appreciate it profoundly.

I look forward to seeing you again, either in New York or, perhaps, in Los Angeles.

Cordially,

 

Ayn Rand

AR:bf

P.S. Please give my thanks to your friend the engineer who processed the record. AR

 

*“Will O’ the Wisp” (original title “Irrlicht”) is a 1934 piece by German composer Herbert Kűster. It is the final entry (for 1959) of the 19 songs on “My Musical Biography” that AR put together in the 1960s. It is exemplary of the sprightly, light-hearted music (termed “tiddly-wink” by her) that she loved. For more on Duane Eddy’s involvement, see his interview in 100 Voice: An Oral History of Ayn Rand, ed. Scott McConnell (New York: New American Library, 2010).