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Hi everybody! This is my page of personal stuff, like the equipment I use, my influences, favorite pictures, and random things you might be interested to learn about me. Let's see...I guess the easiest way to do this is to give myself a little interview, so here goes... Q: When did you start playing guitar? A: I started playing when
I was 17 and I was a senior at Roanoke Catholic High School. My
dad bought me an electric guitar and amp for $150. It was a pie Q: Did you take any lessons? A: I took about 3 months worth of lessons down at the Fret Mill in downtown Roanoke during the summer after I graduated high school. My teacher's name was Phil Holland (he's still there too!!), and he taught me the basic stuff like chords and scales. I quit taking lessons when I went off to college. Q: Where did you go to college? A: North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC (Go Wolfpack!) I graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Meteorology in 1995. Q: Since you only took a couple months of lessons, where (and how) did you learn to play? A: Well, since meteorology is not the most popular major on campus with the ladies, I had lots of free time to play my guitar. Q: Do you have a day job? A: Playing music is my day
job. And though it looks like all fun and games, it takes a lot of work
every day to keep a band together and playing full time. I've been doing
this for a living since 2001. Jobs I've had before this have included:
steel plant worker, manager ofa coffee shop, owner of a wood furniture
business, manager of a music store, and high school football coach 1994-1997,
2005(offensive coordinator and special teams coach) A: This is in no particular order: Freddie King, Albert Collins, B.B. King, Albert King, Mike Bloomfield, John Lee Hooker, Angus Young, Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Vaughan, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Hubert Sumlin, Skip James, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Kim, Wilson, Paul Butterfield, Little Walter. Q: What guitars do you use? A: Right now I have five guitars I play out with...
In 1999, I bought a Gibson ES-135 hollowbody from Ken at the Fret Mill. It's a great guitar that I play most of the jump/swing and traditional stuff with as well as a good portion of the slide/open tuning songs.
I also have a Fender St
A: Right now, I'm playing
through a 1967 blackface Fender Super Reverb. It's pretty beat up,
but its all original and it sounds great. It put a pair of RCA blackplate
6L6's some GE 12AX7's in it. For years I had played t Q: Do you play through any effects? A: Yes, at times. Live, I use a vintage Ibanez TS-808, an Ibanez TS-9 (modified to TS-808 specs. by analog man), a VOX wah pedal, and a Boss TU-2 tuner. When I'm recording, sometimes I use my pedals and at other times, I go straight through the Super, crank it up, and make it a little gritty. When I want to get a vibey/chorus sound, I use an old MXR Phase 90 pedal I found at a yard sale for $2 : ) Q: What strings do you use? A: I I have been using D'Addario
for years. I use fairly heavy strings and have to special order
them since most big sets of strings have wound 3rds, which is crappy for
blues players. Right now, I use .012, .015, .019, .028, .038, .056
and tune standard since I play harp as well. Q: Do you play any other instruments? A: I also have started playing harmonica about 3 years ago. It's a pretty cool change of pace from the guitar but at the same time I get to stick with the blues. I played harp on three songs for the "Selfe-Contained" CD. I've taken a liking to Hohner Special 20's, and play a custom mic made from a Turner desk mic with a vintage green bullet elemnet, through a 1965 Fender Blackface Champ. Q: What's the biggest moment in your musical career so far? A: Man, that's a tough question. I can narrow it down to three. The first was in 1997 when I got to open up for (and later jam with!!!) the Fabulous Thunderbirds in front of 10,000 people at Victory Stadium in Roanoke, VA. The second would have to be playing Muddy Waters old guitar during the 2002 International Blues Challenge in Memphis, TN at the New Daisy Theater on Beale Street, while standing next to Bob Margolin and Howard Stovall. The third is backing up Eddy "The Chief" Clearwater at the 2005 Taste of the Blue Ridge Jazz and Blues Festival. Q: Are you married or have
any children:
My nephew Tyler: the face of a future bluesman! My niece Ella with my brother
Kendall and me
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of , but I didn't know any better, so I was excited. Like any good
father would (and should!) do, he bought the cheapest thing he could get
just to see if I would stick with it.
In
I bought a 1995 SRV Fender Stratocaster
from Ken
. It has really big neck that just
feels right. I refer to it as Number 2 (some SRV freaks will appreciate
the reference). I was fortunate enough to have the back of it signed
by Chris Layton and Tommy Shannon (Stevie Ray's rhythm section, Double
Trouble). it in 1997
ratocaster
that is made from parts of different guitars. It was given to me by my
uncle Dennis Beard when I was 18, in 1991. It was my first "real"
guitar. I think if is wasn't for him giving me this upgrade, I would
have given up on playing guitar. It's white with a 1972 body, an
early 80's custom neck (C-shape, ebony fretboard, 10" radius, pearloid
dots, painted headstock).
I
just bought a Fender Muddy Waters Telecaster. It's got a big
neck and big frets on it that came stock. The Tele is a cool change
of pace from the stable of Strats!
In 2005, I bought a cool Epiphone Flying-V. It's made of Korina wood and
sounds great. I do a lot of the Albert King stuff with it to get that
authentic sound!
hrough
a Fender Dual Professional (1997 Custom Shop model) that my uncle Dennis
had loaned me.
