A modern acoustic guitar.

An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound again depending on whether the air in the box is moving in phase or out of phase with the strings. When in phase, the sound is increased by about 3 decibels and when in opposing phase, it is decreased about 3 decibels. As a Helmholtz resonator, the air at the opening is vibrating in or out of phase with the air in the box and in or out of phase with the strings. These resonance interactions attenuate or amplify the sound at different frequencies, boosting or damping various harmonic tones. Also, the air in the box is coupled to the resonance of the top plate. Together, this causes further interaction. The back of the guitar will also vibrate to a lesser extent, driven by the air in the cavity. Some sound is ultimately projected through the sound hole^[1] (some variants of the acoustic guitar omit this hole, or have Failed to parse (Missing texvc executable; please see math/README to configure.): f

holes, like a violin family instrument). This sound mixes with the sound produced by the front face of the soundboard. All these complex air coupling interactions, along with the resonant properties of the panels, are a key reason that different guitars will have different tonal qualities. The sound is a complex mixture of harmonics that give the guitar its distinctive sound.

	Acoustic Guitar Sample An example of the sounds which an acoustic guitar can create through vibration of its strings. This guitar uses steel strings.
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No amplification actually occurs in this process, in the sense that no energy is externally added to increase the loudness of the sound (as would be the case with an electronic amplifier). All the energy is provided by the plucking of the string. The function of the entire acoustic system is to maximize intensity of sound, but since total energy remains constant, this comes at the expense of decay time. An unamplified guitar (one with no soundboard at all) would have a low volume, but the strings would vibrate much longer, like a tuning fork. This is because a damped harmonic oscillator decays exponentially, with a mean life inversely proportional to the damping, i.e. the more the volume is increased by the soundboard, the shorter the resulting sound will last.

Amplification[link]

Many acoustic guitars incorporate rosettes around the sound hole.

An acoustic guitar can be amplified by using various types of pickups or microphones. The most common type of pickups used for acoustic guitar amplification are piezo and magnetic pickups. Piezo pickups are generally mounted under the bridge saddle of the acoustic guitar and can be plugged into a mixer or amplifier. Magnetic pickups are generally mounted in the sound hole of the acoustic guitar and are very similar to those found in electric guitars. An acoustic guitar with pickups for electrical amplification is known as an acoustic-electric guitar.The acoustic guitar is a bit difficult to amplify faithfully. As of recent, new types of pickups have been introduced to try to amplify the full sound of these instruments.This includes body sensors such as the Taylor Expression system, and systems that include an internal microphone along with the body sensors or under the saddle pickups.

Instruments with larger areas for the guitar top were introduced by Martin in an attempt to create louder volume levels. The popularity of Martin's larger "dreadnought" body size amongst acoustic performers is related to the greater sound volume produced.

Sound can be produced on an acoustic guitar by using the fingers of the playing hand or by using a plectrum. Some techniques also utilize note created by the fretting hand using techniques such as hammer-ons and pull-offs.

Types[link]

A steel strung Yamaha APX700 electric-acoustic guitar

Historical and modern acoustic guitars are extremely varied in their design and construction, far more so than electric guitars. Some of the most important varieties are the classical guitar (nylon-stringed), steel-string acoustic guitar and lap steel guitar. A more complete list is given below, refer to the individual articles for more specific detail.^{[citation needed]}

• Nylon/gut stringed guitars:
  • Renaissance guitar
  • Baroque guitar
  • Romantic guitar
  • Classical guitar, the modern version of the original guitar, with nylon strings
  • Flamenco guitar
  • Extended-range classical guitar
• Steel stringed guitars:
  • Steel-string acoustic guitar, also known as western, folk or country guitar
  • Twelve string guitar
  • Resonator guitar (such as the Dobro)
  • Archtop guitar
  • Battente guitar
  • Lap steel guitar
  • Parlor Guitar
  • Lyre-guitar
  • Weissenborn-style guitar
  • Manouche guitar
• Acoustic bass guitar
• Russian guitar
• Other variants:
  • Pikasso guitar
  • Harp guitar
  • Banjo guitar
  • Guitar lute

References[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Acoustic guitars

External links[link]

• Martin Guitar. The world's oldest surviving maker of acoustic guitars
• Premier Acoustic Guitarists. Videos and Interviews
• Library Acoustic Guitars

Andy McKee
Performing live in February 2008.
Background information
Born	(1979-04-04) April 4, 1979 (age 33)[1] Topeka, Kansas, U.S.
Genres	Folk, Instrumental, Fingerstyle guitar
Occupations	Guitarist
Instruments	Guitar, baritone guitar, harp guitar
Years active	2001 – present
Labels	Razor & Tie, CandyRat Records
Website	www.andymckee.com

Andy McKee (born April 4, 1979, in Topeka, Kansas) is an American fingerstyle guitar player, currently signed to the American record label Razor & Tie.

His style of playing and his compositions have earned him a considerable international fanbase. In late 2006, a live performance of his signature song "Drifting" became a Featured Video on YouTube and MySpace, achieving over 48 million views on the former to date and remaining one of its highest-rated music clips. A handful of McKee's other songs have experienced notable success on YouTube, such as "Rylynn" with over 22 million views. Similarly, McKee's cover of "Africa" reached over 9 million views before suddenly being removed by Candyrat Records.

Life and career[link]

McKee played his first guitar, an Aria nylon string bought by his father, at age 13. Initially underwhelmed by his guitar lessons, McKee's electric guitar-playing cousin inspired him to continue learning, taking him out for his 16th birthday to see a guitarist named Preston Reed perform live at a clinic. McKee later bought an instructional videotape from Reed and began to learn more complex guitar techniques from it, also earning his GED that year in order to quit attending high school. He began to draw influence from guitarists such as Michael Hedges, Billy McLaughlin, Pat Kirtley, and from Passion Session by Don Ross, as he continued studying the instrument on his own.

Nocturne (2001)[link]

In 2001, McKee independently released his first album, Nocturne. That same year, he was placed third at the National Fingerstyle Guitar Competition in Winfield, Kansas.^[2] In 2003, McKee toured in Taiwan with Jacques Stotzem, Isato Nakagawa, and Masaaki Kishibe, and earned first place in the Miscellaneous Acoustic Instrument contest of the Kansas State Fiddling and Picking Championships with a Ron Spillers harpguitar he purchased from Stephen Bennett in 2002.^[3],[4] The instrument can be heard in a number of his songs, such as "Into The Ocean" and "Gates of Gnomeria". Only 1,000 copies of Nocturne were ever produced and the album is now out of circulation.

Dreamcatcher (2004)[link]

McKee released his second album, Dreamcatcher, in 2004. The album includes his cover of "Africa", as well as "The Friend I Never Met", a song written in tribute to Michael Hedges. McKee used the title track to win the opportunity to perform with bassist Michael Manring, with whom he has since toured. Additionally, he placed second in the Fingerstyle Guitar Competition of the Canadian Guitar Festival that year.^[5] The album was later re-released by McKee's label in response to the popularity he garnered on YouTube.

Art of Motion (2005)[link]

McKee's third CD, Art of Motion, was released on Candyrat Records in November 2005 and earned considerable praise from established acoustic guitarists such as Don Ross, with whom McKee is currently on the same label, and has noted as one of his favorite artists. Most of the songs that McKee is known for on YouTube appear on the album, which has a handful of tracks carried over from Dreamcatcher as well. During the early stages of McKee's success on YouTube in late 2006 and early 2007, Art of Motion was the only album of his carried by Candyrat Records, and saw the most mainstream exposure as a result. In a couple of his songs he plays a harp guitar shown down and to the right.

Gates of Gnomeria (2007)[link]

After his popularity due to his performances on YouTube and touring extensively throughout much of 2007, McKee returned to the studio to record his fourth CD, Gates of Gnomeria. The album contains six new songs, one of which had already been seen on YouTube ("Gates of Gnomeria"), as well as two cover songs. McKee spent the majority of 2008 on tour throughout the world, performing with other Candyrat artists and promoting both Gates of Gnomeria and his collaborative album with Don Ross, The Thing That Came From Somewhere. He released a split DVD that same year with labelmate Antoine Dufour, each artist contributing eight songs to the disc; two of McKee's from Gates of Gnomeria.

Common Ground EP (2009)[link]

In between touring extensively, and helping promote his duo guitar record with Don Ross, McKee recorded an EP of 2 re-recordings of songs from his Dreamcatcher album, and a cover song by Japanese guitarist Masaaki Kishibe. The album was released digitally only, along with videos available on iTunes that include his performance of his 2 compositions, a video each that either does or does not include commentary.

Joyland (2010)[link]

McKee announced in May 2009 that he was intending to finish touring in the second half of the year and concentrate on recording his upcoming album. He stated in July 2009 that it will most likely be titled "Joyland", the title track of the album which originally went under the name "Music For A Vacant Amusement Park". The album was completed in November 2009 and was released in iTunes on March 23, 2010, and in stores on March 30, 2010 on Razor & Tie Records. According to McKee, "On this album I've branched out a bit and included some instrumentation on a couple of songs. There's also a new harpguitar tune and a couple of covers such as "Layover" by Michael Hedges and one of my favorite 80's tunes." (That one is Tears For Fears' "Everybody Wants To Rule The World".) The album also features a DVD full of 75 minutes worth of additional video material, including a documentary called Andy McKee: Joyland, and four new performance music videos. All four music videos have been released on YouTube and can be found at:

• "Never Grow Old"
• "Everybody Wants to Rule the World"
• "Hunter's Moon"
• "Joyland"

The documentary is currently only available for purchase as a part of the Joyland album CD/DVD.

Career progression[link]

Self-described as "just this guy from Topeka, Kansas who kind of blew up on the Internet about a week before Christmas", McKee became one of Candyrat Records' best-selling artists after their video of "Drifting" was massively upvoted by users at Digg.^[6] In the wake of this exposure, he appeared by invitation on Woodsongs as well as Last Call with Carson Daly, and his online store completely sold out of his various guitar tablature books. Due to the increased demand, he began to offer sheet music for nearly all of his songs on his official website. He also contributed to Josh Groban's 2007 Grammy-nominated Christmas album, Noël, playing guitar on the song "Little Drummer Boy". Groban's album went on to become the best-selling CD of 2007 in the U.S.,^[7] hitting #1 on the U.S. Billboard 200.^[8]
In 2010 McKee contributed to Lee Ritenour's highly acclaimed CD 6 String Theory that also features guitarists like Steve Lukather, Slash, Neal Schon, Tal Wilkenfeld, and Mike Stern.

In 2012 McKee supported Prince on his Welcome 2 Australia tour, opening the show with a solo performance. McKee also played with Prince's band during the concert on Purple Rain.

Response to filesharing[link]

McKee has, at least once in the past, personally commented on BitTorrent websites hosting his music, chastising downloaders for their actions. Posting to The Pirate Bay under the name "AlteredTuning" (which is the same handle he uses in all his internet message board appearances as well as on his own website's message boards), McKee sarcastically echoed other commenters' thanks to the original uploader of his album and urged people to purchase his work legitimately. His comments were met with approval while some pointed out that the exposure on The Pirate Bay might lead to increased sales.

"Yeah thanks a lot for uploading! It's not like I need to make a living with my music or anything. 8,676 thieves. If you really appreciate what I am doing, buy my CD legitimately so I can continue to compose music rather than work at K-Mart. I'm not Metallica. I don't have hundreds of thousands of dollars, much less millions. Andy McKee"

Equipment and influences[link]

McKee currently uses the following equipment:^{[citation needed]}

• Greenfield G4 and GB Guitars
• Greenfield HG1.2 Harp Guitar
• Lance McCollum Baritone Guitar
• Ron Spillers Harp Guitar
• K&K Sound Pickups (internal)
• DTAR Solstice Pre-Amp
• D'Addario Phosphor Bronze Medium Gauge
• Shubb Capos

McKee's influences include: Eric Johnson, Dream Theater,^[4] Michael Hedges, Preston Reed, Billy McLaughlin, Tommy Emmanuel, Björk, Steve Lukather, Metallica, Joe Satriani, Iron Maiden, Pantera, Steve Erquiaga, Vince Di Cola, Toto, Peter Gabriel, Imogen Heap, King Crimson, Primus, Pat Metheny, and Don Ross,

McKee began listening to metal, such as Dream Theater, at the age of 13. He described on Woodsongs how he was a "metal freak" during childhood, even performing a Metallica song in his high school talent show. It was not until he saw Preston Reed that his influences began to shift towards acoustic songwriters such as Don Ross and Michael Hedges. Both walks of music continue to influence him, though he has stuck with acoustic music in his professional life.

In response to certain comments regarding the source of his creative talent, McKee has proudly admitted to have never taken any recreational drugs in his life—a fact lauded by many of his fans online, including fellow guitarist Don Ross. Commenting on McKee's MySpace, Ross wrote:

"I too have never touched weed, pills, blow or needles. I'm always insulted when people find that hard to believe. 'How can you write such insane music straight?!?' Frick! Some of us are just creative using only the chemicals already present in our bodies. That goes for almost any musician I've had a close association with, contrary to the stereotypes. Hell, Zappa was sober all the time!

Bravo, Andy. I appreciate the fact that when you and I tour together, there's no junk going around, no smokes, no nothing. Keeping it clean. And we always have a fabulous time."

Discography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• McKee's Official Website
• Andy McKee's MySpace
• Andy McKee @ Razor & Tie
• McKee @ Candyrat Records
• Interview @ InstruMentalCase
• 2011 Andy McKee Interview on FingerstyleGuitarists.com

Ewan Dobson
Dobson in 2009
Background information
Birth name	Ewan Dobson
Born	(1981-09-09) September 9, 1981 (age 30)
Origin	Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada
Genres	Fingerstyle guitar, Acoustic metal
Occupations	Musician, composer
Instruments	Guitar
Labels	CandyRat
Website	candyrat.com/artists/ewandobson
Notable instruments
Stonebridge 23CR Martin D-28CW Michael Lagundo Fan-Fret Michael Lagundo Baritone

Ewan Dobson is a Canadian fingerstyle guitarist and Candyrat Records recording artist.

Style[link]

He is noted for the intensity and virtuosity of his fingerstyle playing, his influence from video game music as well as his use of extended technique. Dobson's music borrows from bluegrass, classical music, folk, techno, heavy metal as well as trance.

Music[link]

As a classical guitarist Dobson won numerous awards such as the Grand Prizes of both the Burlington Rotary Fall Music Festival and the Pickering Rotary Music Festival (1996 and 1998) as well as the D'addario Scholarship from the Kiwanis Music Festival which is given to the top classical guitarist in the competition. As a fingerstyle guitarist, Ewan placed first at the 5th Annual Canadian Fingerstyle Guitar Competition.^[1] Two months after this he competed in the 38th Annual International Fingerstyle Guitar Competition in Winfield, Kansas and placed third.^[2] He subsequently placed first in the Acoustic Category of the 4th Annual Montreal Guitar Grand Prix.^[3]

Personal life[link]

In 1993, he was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and mild Tourette's Syndrome.^[4] In support of Tourette's Syndrome awareness Ewan has performed at the Tourette's Syndrome National Conference in Canada.^[5]

Solo albums[link]

• 2007: Guitar, Self released title.
• 2008: The Red Army Love Potion, Self released title
• 2009: Healthy Obsession, Self released title.
• 2009: Ewan Dobson, CandyRat Records^[6]
• 2010: Ewan Dobson II, CandyRat Records^[7]
• 2012: Ewan Dobson III, CandyRat Records^[8]

See also[link]

• Music of Canada

References[link]

External links[link]

• Candyrat Records label website
• Ewan Dobson's Fanpage
• Ewan Dobson on Online Music Jamming
• Ewan Dobson on Facebook
• CandyRat Records on Myspace
• FingerstyleGuitarists.com Ewan Dobson Interview

Jon Gomm
Jon Gomm by Danny North [2]
Background information
Born	Blackpool, Lancashire, England
Occupations	musician, songwriter
Instruments	guitar, vocals, ukulele
Years active	2004-present
Website	jongomm.com

Jon Gomm is an English singer-songwriter and virtuoso performer, using a single acoustic guitar to create drum sounds, bass lines and melodies simultaneously. His songs draw on a range of influences and styles, including blues and soul. Michael Hedges is an important source of inspiration.^{[citation needed]} To date he has two solo albums and has toured full-time since 2004.

Biography[link]

Jon Gomm started playing ukulele at the age of two.^[1] Classical guitar lessons began at the age of six, and at twelve he was accompanying his father, a music critic, to blues gigs in his hometown of Blackpool. As a teenager he played electric guitar in the style of the rock greats.

On leaving school, Jon Gomm turned down a place at Oxford University studying English to attend The Guitar Institute (now part of the Institute of Contemporary Music Performance^[2]) in London.^{[citation needed]} While there, he paid his way through college playing jazz in café-bars, recording as a session guitarist, and playing Country music in Working men's clubs for line-dancers. He moved to the Yorkshire city of Leeds, where he is now based,^[when?] to study on the Jazz degree course at Leeds College of Music.

His solo performances started in Leeds.^[3] He extended the sounds he could make with an acoustic guitar — hitting the surface to make snare drum, bass drum and bongo sounds, re-tuning the strings to get bass sounds, and using high harmonics from the guitar for synthesizer-like effects. He worked these techniques into his own songs, and put his years of singing blues into use.

Musically he is a disciple of Michael Hedges, and as such part of a generation of guitarists using extended techniques which includes Andy McKee and Erik Mongrain. The tattoo on his arm is from the cover of the Michael Hedges album Oracle.^[1]

Jon Gomm has rejected mainstream music industry values and practices and avoids playing chain venues and corporate festivals. His appearances are generally organised with independent promoters in venues like real ale pubs in rural areas, theatres or arts centre.^[4]

In addition to his own performances, he has also played gigs with Tommy Emmanuel (Australia), Nick Harper and Bob Brozman.

He has performed at festivals including The Italian National Guitar Festival, The Garforth Arts Festival and The London Guitar Show at Wembley Arena. He performs regularly across the UK and Europe.

In February 2012 he was the subject of a tweet from the broadcaster Stephen Fry, leading to articles in the Daily Mail^[5] and The Telegraph^[6] newspapers.

Discography[link]

Hypertension[link]

Jon Gomm's first album, Hypertension, was released on his own label in 2003. All tracks are single takes, with no overdubs.

All songs written by Jon Gomm unless otherwise stated.

1. "Waiting in Vain" (Bob Marley)
2. "Clockwork"
3. "H"
4. "Stupid Blues"
5. "Less To You"
6. "Hey Child"
7. "High and Dry" (Radiohead)
8. "Swallow You Whole"
9. "Butterfly Hurricane"
10. "Happy Room"
11. "Crazy Jonny"
12. "Waterfall"

Don't Panic[link]

1. "Waterfall"
2. "Afterglow"
3. "Temporary"
4. "Gloria"
5. "Topeka"
6. "Loveproof"
7. "Surrender"
8. "Rescue Song"
9. "The Weather Machine"
10. "Wake Up!"
11. "What's Left For You?"

Press[link]

"... influences from funk to heavy metal played in his engaging, aggressive and percussive way. Jon Gomm is an energizing personality in his guitar playing as well as in his singing." Henk te Veldhuis, Bridge Guitar Reviews.^[7]

"...how on earth can one man play so proficiently a "one man band" style that puts full bands to shame?" Sandman Magazine.^[8]

"Leeds should feel very lucky to have such a performer to call its own" Leedsmusicscene.net.^[9]

"We have seen the future of acoustic guitar playing, and it is called Jon Gomm" Blues Matters!.^[10]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Jon Gomm page on Last.fm
• Official Jon Gomm page on MySpace

Joe Bonamassa
Bonamassa in Manchester, 2010
Background information
Born	(1977-05-08) May 8, 1977 (age 35) New Hartford, New York United States
Genres	Blues rock, hard rock, rock and roll
Occupations	Musician, singer-songwriter
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, theremin
Years active	1989–present
Labels	J&R Adventures, Provogue
Associated acts	Bloodline, Black Country Communion, Beth Hart
Website	Official website
Notable instruments
Gibson Les Paul Gibson ES335 Fender Stratocaster Fender Telecaster Gibson Flying V

Joe Bonamassa (born May 8, 1977) is an American blues rock guitarist and singer. He began his career playing guitar in the band Bloodline, which featured the offspring of several famous musicians (such as Miles Davis, Robby Krieger and Berry Oakley of The Allman Brothers Band)^[1]. He released his first solo album A New Day Yesterday in 2000, and has since released nine more solo studio albums, four live albums and three live DVDs, along with two albums with the band Black Country Communion and one album in collaboration with vocalist Beth Hart^[2]. He tours the world regularly, and has developed a large following in the U.K. especially. His most recent album, Driving Towards The Daylight, reached #2 on the U.K. Top 40 Albums Chart, and he completed an arena tour there in 2012. In 2009 he was the recipient of the Classic Rock Magazine "Breakthrough Artist of the Year" award^[3], and The Guardian said of him: "the 32-year-old from upstate New York has consolidated a reputation as the pre-eminent blues-rock guitarist of his generation"^[4].

Bonamassa has collaborated with numerous artists, including B.B. King, Eric Clapton, Beth Hart, Paul Rodgers, Leslie West, Jon Lord, Vince Gill, Sandi Thom and Glenn Hughes. He also plays with Hughes in Black Country Communion, along with Jason Bonham and Derek Sherinian^[5].

Joe Bonamassa's music contains a mix of several different genres: although it is primarily blues rock, since relocating to Santorini, Greece in 2009 to record the album Black Rock (named after the studios in which it was created), his music has gained eastern influences, with the addition of instruments such as the bouzouki and clarino (for instance, on Black Lung Heartache from Dust Bowl and Athens to Athens from Black Rock ^[6]). He has also covered songs by John Hiatt and Leonard Cohen^[7].

Early life[link]

Bonamassa was born and raised in New Hartford, New York. His parents owned and ran a guitar shop. He is a fourth-generation musician; with a great-grandfather and grandfather who both played trumpet, and a father who plays guitar, Bonamassa credits his parents with fostering an appreciation of music in his life as early as he can remember. When he was a young child, he would listen to his parents' large record collection. He recalls at age 7, sitting with his parents on Saturdays and listening to Guitar Slim, Bonnie Raitt, Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, Eric Clapton, and Jethro Tull. Thus, he sees his music as an amalgam of all the various rock and blues he heard as a child.^[8]

He received his first guitar from his father at the age of 4, and by age 7 he was playing Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jimi Hendrix tunes note for note. At the age of 11, during a short period of being mentored by Danny Gatton, he learned such styles as country and jazz as well as polka. During this time with Gatton, Bonamassa sat in with Gatton's band whenever they played in New York. He first opened for B. B. King at 12 years of age. At 14, he was invited to attend a Fender guitar event; during that trip to the West Coast he met Berry Oakley, Jr., with whom he founded the group Bloodline, along with Miles Davis' son Erin and Robby Krieger's son Waylon. They released one album which produced two chart singles — "Stone Cold Hearted", and "Dixie Peach." He has since played with Buddy Guy, Foreigner, Robert Cray, Stephen Stills, Joe Cocker, Gregg Allman, Steve Winwood, Paul Jones, Steve Lukather, Ted Nugent, Warren Haynes, Eric Clapton, Derek Trucks, and Jack Bruce.

Influences[link]

Unlike other successful blues-rock guitarists, Bonamassa cited his influences as being British and Irish blues acts, rather than American artists. Within the blues genre, hearing the traditional blues players, as with Guitar Slim, Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, and all the traditional American blues players, (with the exception of B.B. King), comparing the music in the United States to the "European" versions of the blues, Bonamassa found the English blues, fostered by the Jeff Beck Group, Eric Clapton and the Irish blues player Rory Gallagher, to be far more interesting to him than the original Delta blues players.^[8] In an interview in Guitarist magazine (issue 265), he cited the three albums that had the biggest influence on his playing: John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton (the Beano album), Rory Gallagher's Irish Tour and Goodbye by Cream. He also stated that Stevie Ray Vaughan's Texas Flood was a big influence at a young age.

Bonamassa performing in Stafford, Texas, 2007

He elaborated further on his influences in his interview:

"You know, my heroes were the Columbine guys – Paul Kossoff, Peter Green, Eric Clapton. There’s so many - there’s Gary Moore, Rory Gallagher – another Irish musician who played the same things, but don’t tell him that. But those guys were my guys – Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page. There’s a certain sophistication to their approach to the blues that I really like, more so than the American blues that I was listening to. B. B. King’s a big influence – he’s probably my biggest traditional influence. I love Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson and T-Bone Walker and stuff like that, but I couldn’t sit down… I was always forcing myself to listen to whole records by them, where I’d rather listen to Humble Pie do "I'm Ready" than Muddy Waters, you know? I think, the English interpretation of the blues just hit me a lot better, you know?"

And in his October 2008 interview with Express & Star:

“When I heard Kossoff playing "Mr. Big" and when I heard Clapton playing "Crossroads" and when I heard Rory Gallagher playing "Cradle Rock", I was like, 'This is way cooler'.... "British blues are my thing. When I heard Rod Stewart and the Jeff Beck Group singing "Let Me Love You", it changed my life. I knew exactly what I wanted to do. Those are my influences".

These influences are evident in his music, but Bonamassa has been influenced by other artists; notable examples include B.B. King, Robert Johnson, Danny Gatton, Eric Johnson, Albert Collins, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Buddy Guy. Bonamassa's style of playing incorporates rock, blues-rock, Delta blues, electric blues, jazz, country - and even prog rock as evidenced by Yes's "Heart of the Sunrise" and the "Würm" section of "Starship Trooper" being regular features of live performances.

Solo career[link]

Bonamassa's solo début, in 2000, was his Top 10 Blues disc A New Day Yesterday, named after the 1969 Jethro Tull classic that Bonamassa makes his own with what allmusic.com called “a jaw-dropping performance”. Produced by the late Tom Dowd, the album featured guest shots by Gregg Allman, Rick Derringer and Leslie West. "Miss You, Hate You" remains a cornerstone of Bonamassa's repertoire, as does "Cradle Rock". Bonamassa followed it up in 2002 with "So, It's Like That", which included "Pain And Sorrow". The album was his first to hit #1 on Billboard's Blues Chart.

Joe Bonamassa performing at the Manchester Apollo, October 2010

In 2003 – designated "Year Of The Blues" by Congress – Bonamassa returned with Blues Deluxe. In the liner notes, Harris Cohen observed that Bonamassa, "never loses touch with the raw emotion that makes the blues what it is." Reviewing "Blues Deluxe", former Creem editor Jaan Uhelszki added, "New York guitar phenom walks tall in the blues tradition…jettisoning fiery riffs inspired by John Lee Hooker, B.B. King, Elmore James, and Albert Collins into the future with furious playing, a hard-rock sensibility, and a grizzled voice that owes a debt to Gregg Allman. Equally inspired by the Delta blues and the mid-'60s British blues boom, the young firebrand … is able to fuse those two schools together, creating edgy blues rock." Had To Cry Today followed in 2004.

In 2006, Bonamassa released his fifth full-length studio album, You & Me. This album also reached #1 on the Billboard Blues Album Chart. For the recording of this album, he enlisted Jason Bonham, while "Your Funeral And My Trial", featured harmonica player L.D. Miller, and the bassist Carmine Rojas. The title of the album was taken from the Django Reinhardt song "Vous et Moi" (1942). The violin introduction of that song inspired Bonamassa to write "Django", the seventh track on the album. Longer live versions would later appear on Live From Nowhere in Particular in 2009, and at the Royal Albert Hall Concert (Live DVD). For this tour, Bonamassa used former Johnny Winter Bassist Mark Epstein and former Kenny Wayne Shepherd drummer Bogie Bowles.

Bonamassa performing on a double necked guitar in Madrid, Spain on June 2, 2009

Sloe Gin was released in August 2007, and spent several weeks at the top of the Billboard Blues Chart. Bonamassa's touring band underwent another change for this album's tour; bassist Carmine Rojas replaced Mark Epstein, and keyboardist Rick Melick was added. Both of the new band members took part in the recordings of You & Me and Sloe Gin, and toured on select dates during promotion of You & Me.

Bonamassa presented his first live show as a DJ on the UK radio station Planet Rock on November 9, 2008, playing tracks from B.B. King, Muddy Waters, Rory Gallagher and Eric Clapton.

In November 2008, Bonamassa announced he would be playing at the Royal Albert Hall in London on May 4, 2009. Tickets for the concert sold out in less than a week. Bonamassa described the event to the Express & Star as "the complete culmination of 20 years of work for me."^{[citation needed]}

At the Royal Albert Hall concert, Bonamassa mentioned that the first song that he learned to play was "Further on Up the Road" and he then introduced Eric Clapton and together they performed the song. Later Bonamassa paid tribute to the Paul Jones Radio Hour on BBC Radio for playing his material on the air, then introduced Paul Jones who played the harmonica on a Sonny Boy Williamson II song, "Your Funeral, My Trial."

In March 2010, Bonamassa released his tenth full-length solo album Black Rock^[9] which debuted at #1 on the Billboard Blues Charts and #38 on the Billboard 200.

In May 2010, Ian Anderson guested at his concert at London's Hammersmith Apollo, and they played "A New Day Yesterday" along with "Locomotive Breath". At the end of 2010, Bowles announced his departure and Tal Bergman took over as touring drummer.

The Bonamassa, Glenn Hughes, Jason Bonham, Derek Sherinian supergroup is now called Black Country Communion. The band were forced to add 'Communion' to their original name Black Country after another band with the same name raised an objection.

In March 2011, Bonamassa released his eleventh full-length solo album, Dust Bowl, followed in September of the same year by a collaboration with Beth Hart called "Don't Explain".

In early 2012, Bonamassa completed the recording of his twelfth studio album. The title was confirmed by Bonamassa in a post on his official Facebook page on March 12 2012 as Driving Towards The Daylight^[10]. Bonamassa debuted the title track during his UK Tour in the same month^[11]

Discography[link]

DVDs[link]

Live at the Rockpalast was released in 2005, and recorded at the Burg Satzvey in Mechernich, Germany.^[12]

A live DVD titled A New Day Yesterday, Live was given away for a short period of time with So, It's Like That. This concert was later re-released as a full CD and DVD.

An instructional DVD, Signature Sounds, Styles and Techniques, was released in 2006.

A live DVD, Joe Bonamassa: Live From Royal Albert Hall was released in September 2009, featuring Eric Clapton as a guest performer.

Bonamassa's performance with pedal-steel guitarist Robert Randolph, Randolph's Family Band and Pino Daniele at the 2010 edition of Crossroads Guitar Festival appears on the Crossroads 2010 DVD. The song they played is Going Down.

A live DVD, "Joe Bonamassa Live from New York Beacon Theatre" was released in 2012.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Joe Bonamassa

• Official website
• Joe Bonamassa Experience official website
• Joe Bonamassa Official Fan Website
• European Joe Bonamassa Website