The Ultimate Reeves Gabrels Interview

They tell me those kinds of headlines attract web traffic, but I believe this actually may be the ultimate Reeves Gabrels interview. An occasional resident of Nashville, the former Bowie, current The Cure guitarist was able to sit down with me for two extensive sessions, during which he was courageously candid about his life, exquisitely detailed about his gear, and immensely interesting in his ideas about music and the art of making it. His new record, Reeves Gabrels & His Imaginary Friends, is a brilliant example of building on the classic blues roots of rock’s yesteryear to create music as modern as tomorrow.  So, without further ado: The Ultimate Reeves Gabrels Interview.

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Guitar Moderne Top Records 2014

You may notice some labels making recurrent and multiple appearances on this list and from year to year. These labels have become successful, forward thinking purveyors of boundary stretching music, so it is not surprising they are attracting the best of the best. Cuneiform has a long history in this field, which makes up and coming, virtuoso Anthony Pirog a good match. Rune Grammofon continues to support the ground-breaking work of modern guitar hero Stian Westerhus, while Anti and Nonesuch are becoming the go-to labels for roots artists looking to remain relevant.

Once again this is a purely subjective list, so please let me know if you feel strongly about a record I have left off. We are fortunate so much great modern guitar music is  available, but it makes it hard for one man to keep up. Happy Holidays.

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Release: Bill Nelson and the Gentlemen Rocketeers

In the ’70s, Bill Nelson’s Be-Bop Deluxe sat in a musical space between the primitivism of Punk and the pomposity of Prog. Bebop’s technically complex music was rooted in blues and jazz but looked firmly to the future. Nelson’s later releases with Red Noise, and especially on his solo records in the ’80s, were stellar examples of how guitar-based music could incorporate the technology of the times (synths and drum machines) while offering some serious playing for fans of the instrument.

Bill Nelson and the Gentlemen Rocketeers Recorded Live In Concert At Metropolis Studios, London [Convexe], is a three disc set (two CDs and one DVD) that provides an overview of Nelson’s career in the form of a live-in-the-studio concert.

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