'Guitar Man,' Cleveland's Beloved Caped Crusader of Street Performing, Dead at the Age of 64

Guitar Man, Cleveland’s only real superhero, the man charged with saving the city one song at a time, died Dec. 14. He was 64 years old. He is survived by his sister, Donna.

Known to many as Eli Fletcher and to few as Keith Thornhill, Guitar Man was a Cleveland icon. For years, he could be found in his red-and-blue costume performing music across the city: on East Fourth Street, on West 25th Street, at Edgewater Park, at the West Side Market, at the Hessler Street Fair, and anywhere that the starry-eyed dreamers of the city might wander. He could dazzle a crowd with a personalized song, and he was thrilled to celebrate someone’s birthday.

“The thing that he said most often was that he’s got to go and save Cleveland,” his friend Belinda Warren tells Scene. “He loved his city. He absolutely loved Cleveland.”

In 2015, Scene published a feature on the life and times of Guitar Man; we spent time on the streets with him and hung around his home on the west side, where he revealed his superhero origin story. He was a lifetime performer, a man drawn to the joy of showbiz. His career was rooted in stage design and lighting and audio engineering, including stints with Cash Explosion and the traveling dance company Rhythm in Shoes. He worked the lighting rigs and soundboards of Playhouse Square venues across the decades. He was at home on the stage, which is to say he was at home wherever he went.

His mission in later years was to cultivate his own happiness and share it with others, to be his own boss in a world increasingly driven by capitalism and private interests. Guitar Man, the idea, was Fletcher’s way of giving something back to the city he loved–and holding it accountable. He developed his alter-ego as a way to hoist a mirror to the city of Cleveland and hold fast to its fringe identity as a sanctuary for musicians and hardscrabble laborers, for the down-and-out and the overlooked, for the little guy and the rich American splendor of our own local myths.

He was perhaps most well known for “The Shortest Song in the World,” but his catalogue ran deep. Long before he developed Guitar Man, Fletcher performed on stages across the city–dating back to the days of Peanuts’ All-Star Jam events on the night before Thanksgiving. He released albums via Jib Machine Records, including his 2021 Heads or Tails, which he paired with a write-in mayoral campaign. He authored a short illustrated children’s book (with accompanying music), titled “Ruth the Christmas Chicken.”

“His kindness, thoughtfulness, and unforgettable music will live on in the hearts of all who were lucky enough to know him,” local historian and Cleveland photographer John Skrtic wrote on Facebook.

No doubt, many people are familiar with Guitar Man, and their comments are streaming in on social media this week. He was a ubiquitous presence in the city. You never quite knew where or when he would appear, but if you spent enough time in Cleveland, you were bound to run into him.

Warren recalls the first time she met him; he was invited over to her place for a July 4th party, but he showed up mistakenly at the house across the street. No problem: Decked out in full Guitar Man regalia, he performed for the surprised neighbors before they applauded and then nudged him to the right address.

This is how things ran in Guitar Man’s Cleveland: music and celebration around every corner, if you only allowed yourself the will to dance and laugh. You could open your door to a gentle knock and find the city’s only real superhero on your doorstep, ready to entertain. With any luck, you’d see the world differently after a thing like that.

Just last week, Warren recorded a video of Guitar Man, live from what he called the Fortress of Amplitude; she was showing him TikTok, ushering our superhero into another vehicle to share his music. He performed “The Shortest Song [About Christmas] in the World.”

Before the camera cuts, he shared a yuletide wish: “Merry Christmas and happy holidays.”

“The biggest joy for him was just to make somebody else smile,” Warren said. “He was just such a kind man, and he always gave his time.”

A memorial will be held Jan. 28, coinciding with what would have been his 65th birthday. According to his oft-vocalized wish, there will be a merch table at this final gig. Stay tuned for details.

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