Az Samad | Live at Blues & Roots Festival
Pinata (Jazz Blues Solo Electric Guitar)
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A funky jazz blues piece I wrote, inspired by the music of guitarist Charlie Hunter.
[Story behind this song]
Around 2000-2002, I discovered the music of Charlie Hunter. His playing fascinated me because he played bass lines, chords and melodies at the same time on an 8-string Novax electric guitar. I couldn’t figure out how he did it and often listened to his music for inspiration. His strong sense of groove really left and impact on me and I kept following his music and bought his CDs whenever they were available in Malaysia. I transcribed his music off and on as much as I could and this song was the result of transcribing one of his grooves from an early record he made.
In 2005, I moved to Boston to study at Berklee College of Music and later saw Charlie Hunter perform twice in the Boston area. Watching him play live was amazing and I even managed to speak to him briefly after a duo show. Later on, I saw him perform again when I lived in the San Francisco Bay Area. At that time, Charlie had already moved to New York City from California. Much later on when I relocated back to Malaysia, I took a Skype lesson with Charlie that helped a lot with my practice and approach. I played him this song via Skype and received valuable advice and comments.
Recently, I had the opportunity to open for the very first Blues & Roots Festival in Malaysia. I knew I must play this song I wrote inspired by Charlie’s music. Playing it on electric guitar felt like it finally found a home after I played it on different instruments over the years.
Hope you like it! =)
Recorded live by Yin at:
Blues & Roots Festival, Experimental Theatre, University of Malaya
Sunday, 14 December 2014
[Gear details]
ELECTRIC GUITAR: I perform on the William Jeffrey Jones ‘Proteus’ electric guitar.
STRINGS: Elixir Strings make my acoustic steel string guitars & Proteus electric guitar sound epic!
BAGS: I use JunkMonkey messenger bags and the FunkySquirrel made by Patrick Lim of Greenroom136.
