Kenny Wayne Sherpherd Band

There
are few artists whose names are synonymous with one instrument and how
it’s played in service to an entire musical genre.  Utter the phrase
“young blues guitarist” within earshot of anyone with even a cursory
knowledge of the modern musical vanguard and the first name they are
most likely to respond with will be Kenny Wayne Shepherd.  Still barely
in his 30s, the Louisiana born songsmith has been selling millions of
albums, throwing singles into the Top 10, shining a light on the rich
blues of the past and forging ahead with his own modern twist on a
classic sound he has embodied since his teens.  He met Stevie Ray Vaughn
at 7, shared the stage with New Orleans legend Bryan Lee at 13 and as
an adult, he continues to create genre- defining blues-infused rock n’
roll.

Kenny Wayne Shepherd’s “How I Go” not only serves as a
strong reminder of the chops that caused Guitar World to place him right
behind B.B. King and Eric Clapton on their list of blues guitarists,
but it’s the strongest indication yet of his gifted songwriting talent.
 The album pairs Kenny’s deeply soulful and impassioned takes on classic
material like Bessie Smith’s “Backwater Blues,” Albert King’s “Oh,
Pretty Woman” and The Beatles “Yer Blues” alongside the strongest
writing and co-writing of his career thus far.

Let’s not forget that Kenny co-wrote “Blue on Black” very early on.
The song was #1 on the Rock Charts for 17 consecutive weeks.  All of the
accolades heaped upon his playing are well deserved and well-earned but
there is so much more to offer.  “At this point, most people who know
about me know I can play guitar,” Shepherd says. “As far as my approach
to guitar on this record, it’s not about showing people how much I can
play. It’s about really choosing the right notes and playing them at the
right times so that every note penetrates people, and they feel it
inside and it’s not just some fleeting thing that just goes right by
them. “I wanted to be conservative, and selective, and tasteful in the
solos that I did,” he adds. “I wanted to concentrate on the song as a
whole: the vocals, the arrangements, so every instrument that is being
played contributes to the song and takes it to a better place.”

The name “Kenny Wayne Shepherd” is absolutely synonymous with “young
blues guitarist” but that phrase isn’t the totality of his person.
“Blues player is definitely one of the labels I’ve accumulated, because
I’m a huge blues fan and I love to play the blues,” he says. “But if you
listen to my music, especially over the course of my career, everything
that I do is not blues. It’s the foundation of what I do, but my stuff
has a lot more of an edge to it. It’s a little more contemporary. And
there’s a certain youthfulness to what I do. I started writing and
recording music when I was a teenager and that energy has been
consistent throughout my career.”

Kenny Wayne Shepherd is very cognizant of the emotional role music
can play in the lives of his listeners. He’s in awe of that
responsibility and works hard to bring happiness to people with his
considerable gifts. With that said, he’s bound and determined to be
remembered as a guy who just straight-up kicked a lot of butt. “I get up
on stage every night to play my heart out and to try to turn people on
their ear, man. I want to bring light into people’s lives with my music.
If I can make people feel good for an hour and a half to two hours and
forget about whatever might be stressing them out, then I’m doing my
job.