The Fastest Guitar Alive

The Fastest Guitar Alive
Theatrical release poster by Frank Frazetta
Directed byMichael D. Moore
Written byRobert E. Kent
Produced bySam Katzman
StarringRoy Orbison
Sammy Jackson
Maggie Pierce
CinematographyW. Wallace Kelley
Edited byBen Lewis
Music byRoy Orbison
Bill Dees
Fred Karger
Color processMetrocolor
Production
company
Distributed byMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release date
  • September 1, 1967 (1967-09-01)
Running time
87 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Fastest Guitar Alive is a 1967 American musical comedy Western film directed by Michael D. Moore and starring singer Roy Orbison in his only acting role. The film features Orbison performing seven original songs, which appeared on his 1967 MGM album of the same name. His song "There Won't Be Many Coming Home" is featured in the 2015 western film The Hateful Eight.

Plot

Near the end of the American Civil War, a Southern spy with a bullet-shooting guitar is given the task of robbing gold bullion from the United States Mint in San Francisco to help finance the ill-fated Confederacy's last-ditch war effort.

Cast

Production and release

Filming began September 1966.[1] Although Orbison was pleased with the film, it proved to be a critical and box office flop. While MGM had included five films in his contract, no more were made.[2][3]

Soundtrack

The Fastest Guitar Alive
Soundtrack album by
Roy Orbison
ReleasedJune 1967
GenreRock and roll
Length22:27
LabelMGM (E 4475)
ProducersWesley Rose & Jim Vienneau
Roy Orbison chronology
Roy Orbison Sings Don Gibson
(1967)		 The Fastest Guitar Alive
(1967)		 Cry Softly Lonely One
(1967)
Singles from The Fastest Guitar Alive
  1. "Pistolero"
    Released: July 1967[4]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllmusicStarStarStar [5]
The Encyclopedia of Popular MusicStar[6]
Record MirrorStarStarStar[7]

A soundtrack album for the film was released in June 1967 on MGM Records, and was available both in stereo and mono.[8] It was the only album to consist entirely of Roy Orbison/Bill Dees originals. Its features two single, "There Won't Be Many Coming Home", and "Pistolero". the UK the song chosen as the single for release was "There Won't Be Many Coming Home", and it entered the singles chart there for the week of December 7, 1966, stayed around for nine weeks, peaking at number 12.[9] and entered the Australian chart at its highest position of #15 before slipping down the chart during its eight-weeks stay.[10]

The album was also included in the 2015 box set The MGM Years 1965–1973 – Roy Orbison.[11]

Reception

Richie Unterberger of AllMusic said the album "includes what may be his best obscure tune, the rarely anthologized "Whirlwind." With its galloping rhythm, emotive operatic vocals, swirling strings, and ghostly backing vocals, it recalls the best uptempo ballads that he recorded during his early-'60s heyday at the Monument label."[12]

Billboard described the album as "a pack powerful emotion."[13]

Cashbox identified the album as a "Pop Picks in its review from July 1967, notes "These tunes, in addition to three other Orbison originals, are included"[14]

in its Album Pick Hits Review, Record World notes that Orbison "also wrote all the songs on package, starting with the pretty "Whirlwind" and romping through other powerful exciters.[15]

Both Record Mirror and AllMusic gave the album a three-star ratings.[12][7] The Encyclopedia of Popular Music gave the album a one-star rating, which meant that the album was classified as "poor".[6]

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Whirlwind"2:10
2."Medicine Man, Medicine Man"2:43
3."River"3:02
4."The Fastest Guitar Alive"3:08
5."Rollin' On"2:15
Side two
No.TitleLength
1."Pistolero"2:58
2."Good Time Party"2:23
3."Heading South"2:45
4."Best Friend"2:38
5."There Won't Be Many Coming Home"2:46

Singles

Year Title UK[9] AUS[10]
1966 "There Won't Be Many Coming Home" 12 15

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Star Role for Jane Fonda". Martin, Betty. Los Angeles Times, 24 Aug 1966: D17.
  2. ↑ Clayson, Alan, pp. 146–147.
  3. ↑ Amburn, pp. 151–153.
  4. ↑ Amburn, Ellis (1990). Dark star: The Roy Orbison Story. New York, NY: Carol Pub. Group. pp. 257–258. ISBN 9-780818-405181.
  5. ↑ The Fastest Guitar Alive at AllMusic
  6. 1 2 Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. p. 1062. ISBN 9781846098567. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
  7. 1 2 Waston, Jimmy; Jopling, Norman (March 16, 1968). "new albums reviewed by Norman Jopling and Peter Jones: Potent Film L.P. from Orbison". Record Mirror. No. 366. p. 8.
  8. ↑ Kinslow, Chris (2015). Goldmine Record Album Price Guide 2015. Penguin. p. 436. ISBN 9-781440-243721. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  9. 1 2 "ROY ORBISON". Official Charts. Retrieved March 20, 2025.
  10. 1 2 "Learn about #RecordsAndCharts". racpro.com. Retrieved April 23, 2025.
  11. ↑ "The MGM Years 1965-1973 - Roy Orbison". allmusic.com. Retrieved September 16, 2024.
  12. 1 2 Unterberger, Richie. "Roy Orbison - The Fastest Guitar Alive [Original Soundtrack]: Review". AllMusic. Retrieved July 14, 2024.
  13. ↑ "Pop Spotlight: The Fastest Guitar Alive". Billboard. Vol. 79, no. 30. July 29, 1967. p. 38.
  14. ↑ "Cashbox Album Pop Pick Reviews: The Fastest Guitar Alive". Cash Box. Vol. 28, no. 50. July 22, 1967. p. 40.
  15. ↑ "Album Reviews: Pick Hits" (PDF). Record World. Vol. 22, no. 1051. July 29, 1967. p. 12. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
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