Ed. note: This is a guest post by Elizabeth Eckhart. You can follow her on Twitter: @elizeckhart. No style of music is as conversational as the blues. It uses long-since established, intuitive structural formulas (like the 12-bar pattern) which most musicians have some level of familiarity with, as it provided the groundwork for virtually all variations of contemporary music. … [Read more...]
Erratic B.B. King Performance
B.B. King is one of my all-time guitar heroes. That's what makes news like this really sad to me: Slowed by age and infirmity, including diabetes, King continues to tour — with sometimes painful results. In St. Louis, some fans are singing the blues after an erratic weekend performance led to a stream of audience catcalls and early departures. Concertgoers said King's … [Read more...]
Fretboard Journal Interview with David Grier
Even though David Grier is based out of Nashville, I don't know much about his music. The Fretboard Journal recently spent an hour or so speaking with Grier about guitar and music: With Fretboard Journal Live, we sit down for one-on-one talks with some of the world’s most interesting musicians. Our first episode features flatpicking guitar legend (and cover story for our 16th … [Read more...]
This is Your Life – Ronnie James Dio Tribute Album
On April 1, Rhino Records will release This is Your Life, which is a tribute album for Ronnie James Dio and will benefit Dio's Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund. The album features a host of artists covering tracks spanning Dio's career. The track listing for the album is: 1. "Neon Knights" - Anthrax 2. "The Last In Line" - Tenacious D 3. "The Mob Rules" - Adrenaline Mob 4. … [Read more...]
Keeley Electronics Seafoam Chorus
Keeley Electronics had a great reputation among guitarists, so I was interested to receive a press release detailing a new chorus pedal that they're releasing. I don't use much chorus myself, but it's something that I think really adds a nice effect when used tastefully. I'll definitely be interested in hearing how this one sounds. Plus, the seafoam green color looks … [Read more...]