Isaac Guillory

Isaac Guillory (February 27, 1947 – December 31, 2000) was an American folk guitarist.

Guillory's first band was The Continentals in Gainesville, Florida in 1960 at age 13. This band, which later changed its name to Maundy Quintet, included Don Felder and Stephen Stills, and later Bernie Leadon, who was an original member of the Eagles.

In 1961, he moved with his family 45 miles east to Palatka, Florida for his dad's work. Guillory's first performances began in 1962 playing lead guitar in the Fallouts while attending high school in Palatka. In 1964 he became a founding member of The Illusions as lead guitarist and vocalist.

Towards the end of 1965, Guillory moved to Chicago where he studied at the Chicago School of Music and Roosevelt University. He recorded two albums there in the late 1960s with The Cryan' Shames, having joined them in 1967 as bass player.

He then attended Wright Junior College for three years where he played with The Revelles. The group played with Chicago DJ, Art Roberts, of WLS. He then played with The Cryan' Shames.

During 1970 to 1976, Guillory performed at the Shakespeare's Head Folk Club in Carnaby Street, London, England.

After active resistance to the Vietnam War, Guillory left the US in November 1970, acquired a Martin D-35 and lived throughout Europe. He worked as an acoustic solo performer and settled in the United Kingdom. Guillory developed 'hybrid picking', where he would sustain a bass line with a plectrum held between his thumb and first finger, whilst picking chord and melody lines with his second and third fingers.

Having studied classical guitar in his younger years, Guillory incorporated quasi-classical techniques into his playing and on occasions would even throw in some pure classical guitar pieces, merging them into various songs as a medley.^{[citation needed]}