Guitars Over Cancer

Tribute to Guitarist Warren King

On June 13, 2010 twenty five Pittsburgh musicians gathered together at the Altar Bar in the Strip to pay tribute to the late Warren “Kingfish” King who died of liver cancer in January of that year. The resulting love and tribute raised over $12,000 for cancer charities.

The concert was produced by veteran radio producer/DJ and filmmaker, Lee Kann (radio’s Mr. Lee), to pay tribute to his longtime friend. Gil Synder and Norman Nardini was the concert music directors.  

While the film captures the concert itself, and the honoring of King through archival film clips, it also showcases the Pittsburgh musicians who were King’s contemporaries and colleagues. King is an epicenter for these Blues players coming together, as they did on stage for King that night. The dynamic connection between King and Pittsburgh guitar greats Glenn Pavone, Don Hollowood and James Daugherty is a highlight of the film. Other notable musicians who appear are Billy Price, Shari Richards, Kenny Blake, Bill Toms and Marc Reisman.

In addition to the concert and interviews Kann's film includes footage that he shot of King performing with the Mystic Knights of the Sea at the Decade club during the 1980s and film of Warren playing in studios of the radio sation Magic-97-FM.  King is also shown playiing with Iron City Houserockers at Agora club in Cleveland.  King's last solo performance, shot in January 2010, a month before he died of liver cancer at age 57 in featured..

One of the first musicans that Lee Kann invited to perform at the concert was Glenn Pavone, who did not devolge to Kann and the other musicians that he was fighting  esophagus cancer and was receiving chemotherapy. Eight weeks after the concert Glenn lost his life to cancer.

The "Guitars Over Cancer" show held at Altar Bar in honor of Warren "Kingfish" King featured 25 of the deceased cancer victim's peers, including Glenn Pavone, who eight weeks later also would lose his fight to cancer.  Pavone's nimble-fingered performance at that show, mixed with archival footage of him and King in their prime, poignantly underscored the concert's purpose, as shown in the "Guitars Over Cancer" concert film - Scott Tady Times Online

The film has been shown by the Pittsburgh Film Makers, the Hard Rock Cafe and the Buffalo/ Niagra International Flim Festival.