In his 40-plus years of playing the instrument, Carl Verheyen has created a wildly successful, multi-faceted career. He is a critically-acclaimed musician with ten CD’s released worldwide and is commonly regarded as a guitar virtuoso capable of playing any style of music with remarkable mastery and conviction. He has been one of LA’s elite “first call” session players for the past 25 years, playing on hundreds of records, movie soundtracks and television shows. Carl has graced the pages of countless industry publications and been the subject of numerous articles chronicling his rise to the forefront of the modern day guitar scene. Carl has won numerous polls and musical honors in the US, Germany, France, Italy and the UK.

A member of the smash hit British rock group Supertramp since 1985, Carl has played to millions of enthusiastic fans in sold out arenas worldwide. As the creative force behind The Carl Verheyen Band, he has released an impressive and eclectic discography that showcases his endless talents across a wide array of musical genres.

A much sought after studio musician, Carl plays on other artists’ CDs whenever his busy schedule permits. He has recorded and played with a virtual who’s who of the music industry. His vast collection of movie soundtrack and television credits are enviable. Carl was heard by 67, 000,000 people as a featured soloist at the 2009 Academy Awards. He will also be heavily featured in the forthcoming film documentary about the electric guitar, Turn It Up!

His latest release titled: THE ROAD DIVIDES, is twelve live, in-concert songs from the CVB catalogue shot for the first time with this incarnation of the Band, their strongest line-up to date. Includes a new, fiery cover version of “Jerry’s Breakdown” (by Jerry Reed), and one brand new CVB tune, “The Road Divides.” It also contains the live, at-rehearsal promo video of “Constant as the Wind” – a YouTube favorite among fans – and wrap-around footage talking with each of the three musicians about the tracks. As a final bonus, there is live footage of the CVB with special guest Howard Leese (Bad Co., Paul Rodgers Band, original member of Heart) shot at The Canyon Club in LA November 2010 performing “No Walkin’ Blues.”

I was browsing the NPR Music site today when I came across a sound so unique, so individualistic and so captivating, that I had to post about it immediately on TheGuitarBuzz.

From NPR: The Tuareg people of Saharan Africa have a fine music scene on their hands. In the years since these desert nomads picked up the electric guitar in the early 1980s, rebellious guitarists have given birth to what the West has come to call desert blues: an ultra-repetitive, almost meditative facsimile of psychedelic rock.

Omara “Bombino” Moctar, a 31-year-old guitarist from Niger, is the latest Tuareg phenomenon to graduate from local cassettes to internationally available CDs.

His first album on an American record label, 2009′s excellent Guitars From Agadez, Vol. 2, was patched together from performances recorded live in the desert. It was one of the finest albums of any kind released that year, but you couldn’t help wondering what it would sound like if these extraordinary musicians were given a chance to ply their trade in an actual studio.

Those questions have been answered with Agadez, Bombino’s entrancing new album, out April 19. American filmmaker Ron Wyman encountered Bombino while traveling near Agadez, a Tuareg metropolis in northern Niger. Wyman says he was blown away by the cassettes he heard and asked Bombino to come to Cambridge, Mass., to record at his home studio. They later finished the album in Niger.

[Click the Arrow to play a sample clip titled: Tar Hani]

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

To read the rest of the story, click over to NPR.

Better hurry, for a limited time the entire album can be previewed for free. Thanks NPR!

Jeff Beck paid Tribute to Les Paul last summer, celebrating what would have been the pioneering guitarist’s 95th birthday by playing his friend and mentor’s music, along with classic tunes from the era, in the same Times Square nightclub that Paul played every Monday for 14 years before his death in August 2009.

Sponsored by Gibson Guitar and billed as “A Celebration of Les Paul,” Beck was joined by The Imelda May Band at the Iridium Jazz Club in June 2010. Other guest performers joining Beck onstage included Brian Setzer, Gary “U.S.” Bonds, and Trombone Shorty.

“Les was my inspiration,” says Beck. “For years I had always wanted to do something for Les to show him how much I respected and admired what he had done. Les used to play every week at the Iridium Jazz Club in New York City, so for me it was the obvious and fitting place for a ‘Salute’ to him.”

Beck will take the “Rock ‘n’ Roll Party” on the road for a short U.S. tour. Beck will once again be backed by The Imelda May Band and its enchanting singer Imelda May, who joined Beck on stage at the 2010 Grammy® Awards for a spot-on rendition of Paul’s “How High The Moon.”

The DVD of this amazing session is available now. The 27 track set list is jammed packed of lively, upbeat tunes that will unleash the swinger inside you. Complete with a house jazz band it will transport you back in time and make you appreciate the true talent and musicianship of Les Paul as well as Jeff Beck.

Check out the video from the DVD of Jeff and Imelda May doing their sultry version of “Poor Boy”:

CLICK HERE TO PRE-ORDER THE NEW JOE BONAMASSA CD “DUST BOWL”!

Joe Bonamassa is set to release his 12th full-length solo album, DUST BOWL in the UK on March 21st and in the USA on March 22nd. The album will be promoted on Bonamassa’s forthcoming 2011 Dust Bowl World Tour that will take in America, Canada, Europe, Asia and Australia.

DUST BOWL is Bonamassa’s 9th studio release on Provogue Records in Europe and his J&R Adventures label (which he created with long-time manager Roy Weisman) in the US and his 6th collaboration with Dust Bowl’s producer, Kevin “Caveman” Shirley (Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, Black Crowes, Black Country Communion).

Shirley most recently produced Bonamassa’s 2010 release, Black Rock, which entered the UK album chart at #14 and 2010′s self-titled debut album from Black Country Communion, the Bonamassa-helmed, British-American rock supergroup with Glenn Hughes (Deep Purple, Black Sabbath), Jason Bonham (Led Zeppelin, Foreigner) and Derek Sherinian (Billy Idol, Dream Theatre).

Recorded in sessions at Black Rock Studios in Santorini, Greece, Ben’s Studio in Nashville, TN, The Cave in Malibu, CA and The Village in Los Angeles, CA, Dust Bowl combines the gritty, blues-based tones of Bonamassa’s first albums with the fluid, genre-defying sounds he’s mastered in the years since, plus a dose of Nashville in duets with legends John Hiatt and Vince Gill

Gregg Allman talks about “Low Country Blues”, his first album in nearly 14 years.

Allman returns to the blues to producer T Bone Burnett and long time friend Dr. John. More info on this release here: http://www.greggallman.com

Blues/Rock guitarist Joe Bonamassa will release his 12th full-length solo album titled “Dust Bowl” in the USA on March 22, 2011.

The album will coincide with Bonamassa’s forthcoming “Dust Bowl 2011 World Tour” that will take in cities across America, Canada, Europe, Asia and Australia.

“I think Dust Bowl is the best album we’ve ever done,” says Bonamassa. “I’m finding more inspiration in storytelling in my 30s, in writing songs that are about something more profound than ‘my baby left me.’ I like albums that are made with the right intentions and sound organic and a little rough around the edges, like a great band playing live in the room.”

Dust Bowl is Joe Bonamassa’s sixth collaboration with producer Kevin “The Caveman” Shirley (Led Zeppelin, Black Crowes, Black Country Communion) and features collaborations with Nashville legends Vince Gill and John Hiatt, female vocalist Beth Hart, and Joe’s Black Country Communion band-mate, Glenn Hughes.

Gill lends his signature guitar licks to the John Hiatt/John Porter-penned “Tennessee Plates,” on which Hiatt duets with Bonamassa. Gill also plays on “Sweet Rowena,” a song he composed with frequent writing partner Pete Wasner. Arlan Scheirbaum, Beth Hart and Blondie Chaplin play on the Michael Kamen/Tim Curry track “No Love On The Street,” and Glenn Hughes sings on the Paul Rodgers-penned Free classic “Heartbreaker.”

The world lost one of the all-time great bluesmen 18 years ago today on December 21, 1992. He was born on April 25, 1923, and yes…it was “Under a Bad Sign”!

Albert was a large man, 6′ 4″, 250 lbs, with incredibly large hands that were perfect for playing the guitar.

Like so many other blues guitar players, Albert began singing with a family gospel group at a church when he was just a young boy. He was influenced by blues musicians Blind Lemon Jefferson and Lonnie Johnson.

King was a left-handed “upside-down/backwards” guitarist meaning that while he was left-handed, he usually played right-handed guitars flipped over upside-down so the low E string was on the bottom. The electric guitar (specifically the Gibson Flying V, which he named “Lucy”) was his signature instrument.

In later years he played a custom-made Flying V that was basically left-handed, but had the strings reversed. He also used very unorthodox tunings, often tuning as low as C — to allow him to make massive string bends.

On December 6, 1983, Albert King joined Stevie Ray Vaughan on a Canadian sound stage for the live music television series In Session. What happened was total magic.

King and Vaughan would never share a stage together again. Vaughan, 31 years King’s junior, died in a helicopter crash on the way back from a concert in 1990. King outlived him by two years, dying of a heart attack in 1992. They didn’t meet often, and their careers took different paths. But we can all be grateful for that one long day in a television studio when sparks flew and this timeless performance was forever captured.

Download a FREE BACKING TRACK to King’s “Born Under A Bad Sign”.

Eric Johnson has emerged with a new collection of tunes that gives anxious fans just what they want: great playing, great tone and a Texas-size dose of soul.

This is the first album that was recorded entirely in Johnson’s home studio (which was took Johnson 15 years to build). The sound of the record doesn’t come across as sterile as previous studio albums and the addition of some guests really adds to the looser vibe.

A great example is “Texas,” a medium-slow blues where Johnson shows off his Clapton-meets-Bloomfield licks alongside Steve Miller and longtime Austin friend Jimmie Vaughan. The juxtaposition of Johnson and Vaughan’s solos shows off how unique, and comfortable, each guitarist is with their style.

Throughout the 15 tracks on Up Close, from the Hendrixian-ballad “A Change Has Come to Me,” to the space boogie of “Fatdaddy,” Johnson has created another worthy addition to his already legendary catalog.

[Listen to a 1:10 sample of "TEXAS" from the new CD]

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Credit: Premier Guitar

The new Eric Johnson CD “Up Close” is VERY CLOSE.

Click on over to Eric Johnson’s Official Web Site to hear soundclips from each track – then watch the 3 part video below for the inside scoop on what will no doubt be a hit release for EJ.

Gregg Allman will release his first solo record in 14 years on January 18, 2011!

Low Country Blues was produced by T Bone Burnett and recorded at his Village Recorder studio in Los Angeles, CA.

The release will feature Dr. John on piano, guitarist Doyle Bramhall II, and Burnett’s brilliant go-to rhythm section: bassist Dennis Crouch and drummer Jay Bellerose.

Gregg Allman underwent a liver transplant surgery in June and is eager to return to the stage as he was recently quoted to say: “When you have a new record it always feels different. Man, you gotta get out there and move the muscles, you gotta move it and shake it.”

The track listing for the record is:

1. Floating Bridge (Sleepy John Estes)
2. Little By Little (Junior Wells)
3. Devil Got My Woman (Skip James)
4. I Can’t Be Satisfied (Muddy Waters)
5. Blind Man (Bobby Bland)
6. Just Another Rider (Gregg Allman & Warren Haynes)
7. Please Accept My Love (BB King)
8. I Believe I’ll Go Back Home (Traditional)
9. Tears Tears Tears (Amos Milburn)
10. My Love is Your Love (Samuel Maghett)
11. Checking On My Baby (Otis Rush)
12. Rolling Stone (Traditional)