Unfortunately, Costello passed away this past April, just shy of his 29th birthday. This interview was completed hours before his death.

Before his death, Costello recorded several albums, which highlight what a talent Costello was. His most recent album, We Can Get Together, was released in February of this year.

Here’s a video of Costello performing a song called “Love is Amazing,” which has a great groove to it:

For various reasons, I don’t typically buy anything from Amazon, but this is a great deal on a great album. If you haven’t yet purchased From the Reach, do so today at Amazon.com for only $2.99. (This is a one-day deal; tomorrow the price will be raised back up to $8.99, which is still a good deal on a great album.)

“One night, I was doing this classical thing I do using the volume control, and I was playing it on a Strat,” Bonamassa said. “When I finished the show someone came up to me and told that I sounded like Stevie Ray [Vaughan] playing a violin. Well, bless his heart, and God bless Stevie Ray, but it sounded nothing like Stevie Ray. And please don’t get me wrong, I was heavily influenced by Stevie, but what it showed me is that if you waltz up there with a Stratocaster and play anything remotely resembling the blues you’re going to be compared to someone else.”

Unfortunately, I think he’s right. If you strap on a Strat and play a blues lick, you’re going to be compared to Stevie Ray. I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing, but I imagine it can get frustrating if you’re trying to make a name for yourself as a guitarist and songwriter.

…if you ever get to see Tommy in a live performance, your life will be forever changed for the better.

After seeing the show, I can say that this is only a slight overstatement. This was one of the best shows I have seen in a long time. And, for the most part, it was just Emmanuel on stage with his guitars. More than a show, this was an intimate experience with Tommy telling stories using his guitar. As you would expect with one of the best acoustic guitarists in the world, there was plenty of excellent guitar playing. But, the guitar playing never seemed superfluous. It always seemed to fit in with the feel of the song.

Not only is Emmanuel a great guitarist, he is a great performer. He engaged the audience and was quite funny and fun to watch. He played for over 2 hours and I could have sat for 2 more if he would have kept playing.

It may sound like I’m gushing, but that’s because I am. I was barely a casual Tommy Emmanuel fan before this show, but now I’m a believer. If you ever get a chance, do yourself a favor and go see Tommy Emmanuel in concert. Here’s a clip of Emmanuel playing a Beatles Medley:

Sayce has taken full advantage of the Internet and posted many videos of his live shows on YouTube. There’s some real gems in there. I’m currently enjoying the funky blues of Scars, which you can watch below.

Influences like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eric Clapton, and Jimi Hendrix can be heard in Sayce’s music, but it doesn’t sound like he’s trying to copy them. He brings his own style to the blues-rock genre, and I’m really enjoying it. I highly recommend you check him out.

Eric Clapton:

Santana:

Eddie Van Halen:

I’m a little late to noticing Rodrigo y Gabriela, as the CD was originally released in early 2006, but I’m glad to finally have heard them. The Amazon.com review starts off by asking the intriguing question “How did two Mexican-born heavy-metal enthusiasts end up at the top of the Irish charts?”. I would describe the music on this CD as acoustic heavy-metal, and both Rodrigo and Gabriela play nylon string guitars. And, they play them well. On their album, they cover Led Zep’s Stairway to Heaven (and manage to create an interesting version of the song) and Metallica’s Orion. The original songs on the album are very good, as well.

The Travis Larson Band is a rock fusion group featuring Travis Larson on guitar, Jennifer Young on bass and Dale Moon on drums. TLB play a brand of instrumental guitar music not unlike Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, and Steve Morse with a little bit of Rush thrown in. I’ve been greatly enjoying their Rate of Change and Burn Season CDs.

Could Martin Taylor have been anything other than a guitar player? Not with a name like that, I say. Martin Taylor is an excellent solo jazz guitarist, and has also performed with Stephane Grappelli, Chet Atkins, and many others. You can hear some of his music and watch some of his videos on Taylor’s MySpace page.

Twenty-one-year old Virginia-based blues guitarist Eli Cook is interviewed in the September 2007 issue of Guitar Player magazine. Cook plays both acoustic and electric blues. He manages to channel influences Alice In Chains and Son House, oftentimes within the same song, to create a unique, and modern, blend of the blues.

In 2005, Cook released a solo acoustic album titled Miss Blues’es Child that was recorded live and unedited in the studio. The CD features four original tunes and several classic blues compositions, including Terraplane Blues and Going Down South. Previously, in 2004, Cook released another acoustic blues album titled Moonshine Mojo, which featured covers of Little Wing, Mannish Boy, and Crosscut Saw, among others.

More recently, Cook has released an electric-based album titled ElectricHolyFireWater. He calls his brand of electric blues blues-metal, and for good reason. The music is rooted in the blues, but features modern, heavy riff arrangements. As the CD Baby page for the CD says: “Imagine Alice in Chains with Muddy Waters singing.”

* Photo © EliCook.com

Andy has won many awards, including 1st place the 2004 Kansas Fingerstyle Guitar Championships, 2nd place in the 2004 Canadian Fingerstyle Guitar Championships, and 3rd place in the 2005 Canadian Fingerstyle Guitar Championships. Andy has released several albums on CandyRat Records: Art of Motion and Dreamcatcher.

Perhaps his most popular song and video is Drifting, which includes a lot of percussive tapping on the guitar and very little traditional finger picking. There’s also of video of Andy covering Toto’s song Africa. His video for The Friend I Never Met features him playing a very unique instrument called a Harpguitar, which, as its name implies, is a cross between a harp and a guitar.

If you have some free time, I highly recommend checking out some of Andy McKee’s videos on YouTube. He has a great flair for songwriting, as well as performing. CandyRat Records has created a channel on YouTube that not only includes Andy’s videos, but videos by Don Ross, Nicholas Barron, Craig D’Andrea, and more.