Rare 1980s Marty Friedman (Cacophony) Handwritten Letter – “Go Off!” Recording Era
Discusses Uli Jon Roth, Jason Becker gear, and Dragon’s Kiss recording sessions – written on official Cacophony stationery.
Item Specifics:
Artist: Marty Friedman / Cacophony / Megadeth
Original/Reproduction: Original
Year: 1988
Industry: Music / Heavy Metal Memorabilia
Type: Autograph Letter Signed (ALS)
Format: Format: Double-sided handwritten letter with original envelope (recipient address redacted for privacy)
Description:
This is a rare, content-rich handwritten letter from guitarist Marty Friedman written during the peak of his Cacophony and early solo career period in 1988. Written on official Cacophony stationery, the letter provides an unusually detailed look into his creative process, musical influences, gear choices, and studio activity during one of the most important phases of his career.
Key Insights from the Letter
Musical Influences: Friedman states that his only primary influence on guitar is Uli Jon Roth. Beyond guitar, he is inspired by a wide variety of instruments, specifically mentioning that he transcribes melodies and phrases from Chinese and Japanese instruments.
Songwriting Approach:
Cacophony: He describes a "solos first" approach where the rhythm was built around the lead sections.
Solo Work (Dragon's Kiss): He mentions a more conventional writing style for his solo debut, where rhythm riffs were created first for him to solo over.
Gear & Endorsements:
Hurricane Guitars: Friedman notes that while they initially liked Hurricane guitars because they "sounded amazing," they found the company difficult to work with.
Carvin Guitars: At the time of writing, he and Jason Becker had moved on to endorsing Carvin, praising them for looking and sounding better.
Recording Dragon's Kiss: He reveals that his solo album, Dragon's Kiss, took about a month and a half to record and was remixed once because he was initially unhappy with the sound.
The letter is dated through its original envelope postmark of September 22, 1988 (Oakland, CA), and includes Friedman writing that he is still in the middle of recording Cacophony II, with the album title listed as tentative as “Go Off.” This places the letter during a critical late-stage production period for the final Cacophony release.
Condition and Provenance:
Includes original hand-addressed envelope with Oakland, CA postmark dated 22 SEP 1988.
Two-sided handwritten letter on a single sheet.
Full vintage Marty Friedman signature present.
Excellent vintage condition with normal mailing folds from posting.
Transcript below.
Historical Significance:
This letter provides primary-source documentation of Friedman’s creative and recording process during the late 1988 Shrapnel Records era. While some published discographies list earlier timelines for Go Off!, this letter shows Friedman actively working on and referencing Cacophony II in September 1988, offering a real-time snapshot of the album’s final production stage and creative development.
It captures a highly productive overlap period in which Friedman was completing his solo debut Dragon’s Kiss while simultaneously finalizing Cacophony’s last album, making it a rare and historically valuable artifact from this era of shred guitar history.
This is a highly desirable piece for collectors of Marty Friedman, Cacophony, Jason Becker, and late-1980s shred memorabilia.
Transcript of Marty Friedman (Cacophony) Handwritten Letter
Header: [Cacophony Logo/Stationery]
Dear Spencer,
Hi! Thanks for your very complimentary letter. I'd like to get to some of your questions today, I notice you are an extremely perceptiv listener!
Influences — on guitar, only Uli Jon Roth. However I'm influenced by just about every instrument under the sun. I transcribe melodies and phrases from Chinese and Japanese instruments all the time. (You can order tab sheet lessons from me including plenty of these for $20.)
Approach to songs — on the Cacophony Lp it was "solos first" then we built a rhythm around the solos. On my solo Lp the writing was a little more conventional, a lot of rhythm riffs came first to solo over.
Hurricane Guitars — we liked 'em at first, they do sound amazing but we found the company hard to work with. We're endorsing Carvins now, they sound better, look better and the company is 100% cool!
How long Dragon's Kiss — it took about a month and a half. I remixed it once because the first time I thought
[End of Side 1, Page 1/1]
Transcript: Page 2 (Reverse Side)
the solos lacked definition. The 2nd mix came out nicer.
Well Spencer, I've got to get to the studio now. We're in the middle of recording Cacophony II. The title is tentatively "Go Off". Again – thanx a lot for writing – I really appreciate the compliments! Sorry I couldn't get to all of your questions!
Sincerely,
[Signed] Marty Friedman
For my lesson – send $20 cash, check, or money order to
535 Taylor St. #506
San Francisco, CA
94102
C-ya!
[End of Side 2, Page 1/1]
Additional notes:
Additional Cacophony-era correspondence from Jason Becker is also available separately.
Provenance:
Ownership history is available upon request.
Please note we do not ship outside the US, to PO Boxes or to freight forward addresses. A signature will be required at delivery. Thank you.
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Get it ☆
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