Some of my earliest childhood memories are of my dad playing records and, dare I say, reel to reel tapes of the music of Paul Butterfield, John Lee Hooker, Santana, and Derek and the Dominoes. I guess this music made an impression, because my early teens in the early 1980’s I was buying my own records, not of the pop-based FM radio music of my generation, but of the previous generations more blues-based artists. While everyone else was listening to E.L.O. and Michael Jackson, I was discovering Jimi Hendrix, the Allman Brothers, BB King, and Bobby Bland. Sure, I liked some of the 80’s guitar rock of the day, but always kept digging back to a more rootsy sound. Then right smack in the middle of 80’s hair band mania came Stevie Ray Vaughan, and I immediately related to his music.

So that’s why when I began hosting the Nashville Berklee Jam I felt compelled to have Reese Wynans, the keyboardist who played with Stevie for the last five years of the great guitarist’s life, as a special guest speaker/performer. Reese was kind enough to share his story with me and a room full of alumni at our April Nashville Berklee Jam.

To continue reading, click here, to go to the original post on nashvilleberkleejam.com.

The Nashville Berklee Jam is held on the first Tuesday of every month at The Fillin’ Station. The jam is hosted by Eric Normand ’89 who lives and works in Nashville, TN. He has worked as a performer, tour manager, band leader, guitar tech, guitar teacher, songwriter, website designer, author, and public speaker. He is the author of “The Nashville Musician’s Survival Guide“.

 

 

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