BONAMASSA

Joe Bonamassa is a constant student of the guitar. The Music of Ry Cooder, Chris Whitley and Robben Ford help to expand his current vocabulary. For this edition of Essential albums, we asked about the music that influenced his early days with the guitar:

“The first two albums that I bought were Steve Morse The Introduction, for the shear dexterity, plus the cover of the record had a cool guitar. B.B. King Live at the Regal changed my life. I mean like, I wanted a horn section. My god, if I could only get a horn section and a band like this. And then B.B.’s playing, the tone. Other essential records at the very beginning have to be Roy Buchanan Livestock, and subsequently, probably when I was turning 11, I met Danny Gatton and he gave me a copy of his record on vinyl, called Unfinished Business. And between those two I was Joe Telecaster. I was like this is the best.

When I was in my teenage years 15, 16, I was in a band (Bloodline). We were signed to EMI records. We were touring and I hated being in a band. I hated the people around me because I was constantly kind of picked on and singled out as being too young to do anything. I was kind of disillusioned because I was a hard worker and I really wanted to work. And I wanted to play. The band guys, to their credit, they were all in their early 20s and they are in a band touring around. They wanted to chase girls and drink booze. I get that. So I just immersed myself in records like Jeff Beck Truth, Rory Gallagher Irish Tour ‘74, Fresh Cream, Goodbye Cream. I would immerse myself in the British Blues. John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers with Peter Green (Hard Road) and Clapton (Beano album) and even some of the stuff with Mick Taylor, Blues from Laurel Canyon. Which, oddly enough, is where I live. It’s actually close to where John (Mayall) lived back in his time. So it all comes full circle. So those were the real seminal records of my teenage years.”

Young Joe Bonamassa’s Essential Albums

1. The Introduction
The Steve Morse Band

2. Live At The Regal
B.B. King

3. Truth
Jeff Beck

4. The Irish Tour ‘74
Rory Gallagher

5. Fresh Cream
Cream

6. Goodbye Cream
Cream

7. A Hard Road
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers

8. John Mayall Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers

9. Blues from Laurel Canyon
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers