Guitar Archeology

Buck Munger with Buddy Fite and Willie Nelson '76. Buddy played steel guitar in Willie's band, in Vancouver as a teenager.

Buck Munger was now managing the careers of two jazz guitar players. Buddy Fite was in awe of Howard Roberts, which flattered and amused Howard, given Buddy’s magical gifts. Around the office, Buddy was a big jovial bear and accomplished practical joker. It can now be told that the widely covered UFO sightings in Hollywood back in… ’68 were the handiwork of Buddy Fite and his accomplices from the Sunn office. Buddy had launched UFO’s in the wilds of Oregon and Washington and was now ready to create some urban panic. Buddy collected the parts and spread them on the conference table. Clear plastic dry cleaning bags, a little over three feet long. Birthday candles, straws and straight pins. Assemble a cross with the straws the size of the opening on the bottom of the bag. Stick the straight pins through the straws facing up and mount the candles on the pins. Weight is a consideration, so not too many. What you have now is a three-feet tall hot air balloon. The heat from the candles fills the bag and up she goes. We launched from the parking lot next door. The balloon rose slowly up between the buildings and when it was above the streetlights you could see a luminous light inside the bag. Aloft, it was impossible to tell how big it was and because it moved so slowly, it could be far away. Remember, this is downtown Hollywood, California, corner of Sunset & Vine, swarming with nighttime tourists. We walked north up Vine Street, following the fingers of the gathering crowd pointing up in exclamation. I must say, of all the jokes I’ve ever been in on, this was the killer. We reeled ‘em in by the dozens. The finale came when the candles burned down, caught the straws on fire, flaming the bag. From the ground it was a bright flame in the sky and then, nothing. Cue the Oohs and Aahs. As you can imagine, the UFOs made Buddy a superstar around the office, and as word spread of each “flight” more people asked to crew the balloon. On his day job, Buddy started work on his solo album for Robert Mersey’s new label and began rehearsals with the Johnny Mathis band. Pretty heady stuff for a guy who didn’t read music.