Derek Trucks Interview on BluesWax Ezine
The extremely gifted and multi-genre guitarist Derek Trucks is the nephew of
the Allman Brothers' drummer Butch Trucks. Derek Trucks plays a commanding
slide guitar that bears some similarity to the late great Duane Allman, plus
much more, as Trucks and his cohorts cover a wide range of styles from
progressive Blues and funky Soul to classic Rock plus a dose of deep rooted
Jazz. It is obvious that Trucks draws from Blues players like Elmore James
and Duane Allman, who have both been heavy influences on Trucks' slide
guitar playing, as have (non-guitar playing) Jazz players like Rahsaan
Roland Kirk and John Coltrane, plus the funky Soul cats like King Curtis and
Curtis Mayfield.
Trucks has been on the road (escorted by his dad) since he was nine years
old and shared stages and sat in with Blues and Blues Rock greats like Buddy
Guy and the Allman Brothers Band by the time he was twelve. Trucks began his
professional career playing with Blues bands around his hometown of
Jacksonville, Florida, and formed his own group while he was in high school.
Prior to his twentieth birthday, Trucks could be found jamming with the
likes of Stephen Stills, Joe Walsh, and Bob Dylan.
The Derek Trucks Band members range in age from their twenties to their
forties and released their self-titled debut album in 1997 on Landslide
Records. Out of the Madness was next in late 1998. Since that time they have
released Joyful Noise (2002), Soul Serenade (2003), Live at Georgia Theatre
(2004), and Songlines (2006), all of which show continued growth in his
performance and dynamic guitar explorations with incredible musicianship.
Trucks has plans to record a new CD in the fall of 2007, with a potential
release forthcoming in the early to middle of 2008. Rarely have we seen a
new talent develop so quickly and consistently. The future looks extremely
bright for a still-young Trucks (who just turned twenty-eight). Trucks
exemplifies a "no boundaries" approach in his selection of material,
songwriting, and his very impressive guitar playing. I am certain that
touring with both Eric Clapton and the Allman Brothers Band have accelerated
his playing abilities, but one must not take away from his insatiable inner
quest to seek out and learn from a wide array of musicians and their music,
as during previous conversations with Trucks, I cannot believe the depth of
his knowledge of players of a multitude of genres from both current and past
eras.
Full article available at blueswax.com
Source: BluesWax E-zine
