I first discovered British blues when I started playing the guitar as a teenager. I bought a copy of Total Guitar magazine that had tabs for some of Eric Clapton’s most famous guitar solos. Even now I can recall hearing songs like Steppin' Out and While My Guitar Gently Weeps...
There are few things that I love more than discovering new blues music. The modern day blues scene is thriving, and there is so much amazing music out there if you look for it. This is especially true if you venture outside of the more established American and British blues scenes....
One of the most rewarding and challenging elements of playing an instrument is the constant process of development. No matter how advanced you are, there is always more you can learn. As the great B.B. King once so eloquently put it: 'Even now, at 82 years old, if I don't...
Over the past 6 months I’ve been on a mission to listen to as much new blues music as possible. The contemporary blues scene is thriving, and there are some amazing modern blues guitarists keeping the blues alive. Musicians like Joe Bonamassa, Gary Clark Jr and Derek Trucks, are packing...
My love for the blues first started when I heard the records of British blues musicians like Peter Green, Paul Kossoff and Eric Clapton. I became obsessed with the British blues scene, discovering bands like Led Zeppelin, Cream and Taste in the process. For many years, it was the only...
Blues enthusiasts have a tendency to look to the past. So much of the music that we love was written by musicians who are now either dead, or too old to perform. These musicians are a vital part of the blues and should always be remembered. But in placing so...
The blues is alive and well. Every week there are new blues bands and albums coming out, as well as new gear that will help us all in our quest for beautiful blues tones. With so much going on in the world of blues, I've started to put together a fortnightly...
On Friday night I was fortunate enough to go and see Kirk Fletcher play live in London. Fletcher is one my favourite modern blues guitarists and the gig was amazing. Perhaps what I enjoyed the most was that the venue was packed with fellow blues fans, just as excited as...
Joanne Shaw Taylor first came onto my radar a couple of months ago. I was actually chatting with a reader of The Happy Bluesman (Paul, if you’re reading this, then thank you very much!) who recommended that I take a listen. Taylor has since gone on to become a regular...
Jared James Nichols is one of my favourite guitarists in the modern blues scene. He fuses the best elements of hard American rock with the blues, putting a new twist on the great 'power trio' bands of the 1970s. Having grown up in Wisconsin - a state known more for...
In the history of blues and blues-rock music, the tube amp...
Record producer Mike Vernon once described Peter Green as...
In recent years, the Analog Man King Of Tone pedal has...
I think there are very few blues guitarists out there who...
Playing the guitar quickly has never been a natural strength...
John Mayall’s Blues Breakers With Eric Clapton is an...
The Klon Centaur is one of the most famous guitar pedals of...
Gary Moore is one of most gifted and technically skilled...
The Klon Centaur ‘Professional Overdrive’ is...
It is difficult to think of an album that has had a greater...
© 2020 — Happy Bluesman
Follow The Happy Bluesman