Artist description Walter Trout and his band play earth shattering blues rock music throughout Europe and the USA. Walter Trout was voted the 6th best guitarist in a BBC Radio listeners poll and gets rave reviews whenever playing live as well as on record, with quotes like "When it comes to blazing guitar players, Walter Trout is the prophet" Pasadena Weekly, USA

Music Style Blues Rock

Musical Influences Jimi Hendrix, SRV(Stevie Ray Vaughn), BB King, Jeff Beck

Similar Artists Jimi Hendrix, SRV(Stevie Ray Vaughn), BB King, Jeff Beck, Walter Trout, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Eric Johnson, Eric Clapton

Artist History      Having played alongside some of the greatest names in Blues including John Lee Hooker, Big Mama Thornton, John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers and Canned Heat, the adage "six degrees of separation" certainly does not apply to world-renowned musician, Walter Trout. Strapped to an axe for 35 years, it is no wonder Trout's roots are showing on his fourth U.S. release, Go the Distance (May 22, 2001, Ruf Records).  The album opens with "Love So Deep" which Trout explains, ??after slowing the song down to half its initial speed, (drummer) Bernie (Pershey)'s going, 'I don?t know man, it?s starting to sound like Canned Heat.'?  Trout agreed, ?Well, after all those gigs I?m bound to play a boogie now and then!" With the release of Go the Distance, fans and critics will no doubt agree that Walter Trout is now zero degrees away from the Blues greats.     The Los Angeles Times describes the Southern California resident as ?a torrential, gladiator guitar player - the kind the term ?guitar hero? was coined to describe.? With his arresting technique, relentless tour schedule, (Trout plays upwards of 200 dates/year) and exhilarating showmanship, Trout merited the cover of Blues Revue in October ?00, and his first American live album, Live Trout (released in 2000), hit #15 on the Billboard Blues charts. Now Go the Distance propels the forward momentum. The 13 original tunes were recorded at Ardent Studios in Memphis and produced by Jim Gaines, (Blues Traveler, Santana, Stevie Ray Vaughan) who also worked on Trout?s 1999 Livin? Every Day and Live Trout.  As cuts like "Ride 'Til I'm Satisfied" and the title track attest, Walter Trout & The Radicals' final destination may be unknown, but they have embarked on the journey and are enjoying the ride, picking up rabid fans along the way.      Playing live is something Trout knew, even as a youngster, that he wanted to do.  A chance meeting during his childhood with the mighty Duke Ellington catapulted Trout?s interest in pursuing a professional music career. ?That was the turning point in my life,? he recalls. ?I was there for two hours while Duke, Cat Anderson, Johnny Hodges and Paul Gonsalves sat in a circle and talked to me about music and life.  They were so warm and generous and kind to me.  I was in awe.?      As a teenager Trout got bit by the rock bug, plugged into an amp and never looked back.  It didn?t take long for him to gain entry into the major leagues.  His ability to tear up the neck made him a sought after sideman for John Lee Hooker and eventually launched a solo career after cutting his chops the way Eric Clapton and Mick Taylor did, playing with John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers.           In a BBC radio poll, Trout was ranked #6 out of the top 20 all-time greatest guitarists (where a few more votes would've landed him snugly in the Top 5 amongst Jimi Hendrix and Jimmy Page!).   Trout has his sites set on similar stateside notoriety.  His 1998 self-titled release (and his American debut) sold 25,000 units, locking the disc into Blues Revue?s Top 40 sales chart for a year where it peaked at #18.  Consistently packing crowds into 1,000+ seat venues nationwide, look for Walter Trout & The Radicals to ride coast to coast this summer playing at clubs and festivals including returning to the Tampa Bay Blues Festival after the organizers handed Trout a contract the moment he walked off the stage in 2000.       Both on record and on stage, Trout keeps the art of blues thriving and vivacious.  Blues Revue comments ?Trout gets into the groove where the magic happens.  But each night offers a particular set of circumstances that keep the music fresh.?  From introspection to full blown rockin? blues, Trout?s music is always marked by his adept songwriting, sturdy vocals, searing guitar work and ability to enhance the boundaries of one of music?s oldest forms.  But as Trout is quick to point out, "the blues shouldn?t be a museum.  The music ought to constantly expand and be alive."

Group Members Walter Trout-Vocals, Lead GuitarJames Trapp-BassKenny Soule-DrumsBill Mason-Hammond B3 Organ

Albums Go the Distance | Live Trout | Face the Music | Livin' Every Day | Walter Trout | Positively Beale Street | Breaking the Rules | Tellin' Stories | No More Fish Jokes (Live) | Transition | Prisoner of a Dream | Life in the Jungle

Press Reviews Two releases, one recorded and released in Europe and the other in the US, and both packed with music featuring Walter Trout in his best environment... a live setting. I was preparing to review the European release, Face The Music, when I learned of plans to record Live Trout for release in the US.This presented me with quite a dilemma. Face the Music is an awesome CD, definitely worthy of mention. But I knew I'd want to review the US release as well, and the CDs would likely be too similar to feature individual reviews of each CD. So, my resolve to the dilemma was to cover them both in a single review.  The CDs are in fact very similar in some respects, but different in others. The audio quality and clarity of both CDs is top notch. The songs for Face The Music were taken from various European concerts during 1999. The benefit of this is that the best performance of each song could be included, resulting in a 'cream of the crop' set list. And an impressive set list it is. I have all of Walter's CDs, and Face The Music contains some of his most inspired performances. On the other hand we have Live Trout, a double CD recorded at the Tampa Bay Blues Fest in March 2000. No pick and choose for this one, but all the energy and emotion of one balmy night in Florida. Different approaches, very similar results... both are excellent recordings featuring great renditions of many of Walter's best songs. And to make a good deal even better, his band, the Free Radicals, are an excellent, rock solid group of musicians. There are only three songs that appear on both CDs, so it's worthwhile for fans to seek out both of them. All songs are originals except for two on Live Trout. Mentioning this emphesizes Walter's songwriting ability, which is often over-looked in favor of his guitar skills and intense, emotionally super-charged performances. Walter has written many excellent songs and I can think of several that there was simply not room to include. I should speak to the uninitiated for a moment. Walter Trout is first and formost a guitar player, and his playing is up front and heavily featured on both of these discs. If you are considering either of these CDs, you'd better be a BIG fan of blues-rock guitar, because you are going to get it by the truck load.Even when compared to his guitar slinging peers, Walter's lead breaks are longer and more frequent than most. Having said that, he is not only a guitar player. Walter's vocals are excellent, and his voice is well suited to the blues. He also has a great stage presence and develops a very strong connection with his audience, taking command of the crowd's attention with the show's opening riff and not letting go until he's left the stage. I have not seen every great guitar player that's ever graced a stage, but over the years I have seen quite a few of those routinely considered to be top guns. The combination of incredible guitar, energy, intensity and passion Walter puts into his show is unsurpassed. That is a very stong statement, but is likely to be contested only by those who have not seen him perform. And based on reports I've received of his performances from around the world, this is the way it is every time he sets foot on stage. Walter Trout, it seems, is always "on". Needless to say, I strongly recommend either/both of these discs to every fan of blues-rock guitar. -Electric BluesST. PETERSBURG, FL -- For parched lawns and thirsty flowerbeds, Sunday morning's rain was a great blessing. But for blues lovers, the blessings were mixed. Dark clouds over Vinoy Park threatened to wash out the final acts of what, so far, had been the best Tampa Bay Blues Festival in the six-year history of the event.The rain came. Then the clouds parted, and the afternoon brought a lineup that included headliners Walter Trout and Susan Tedeschi. With a coveted array of superb musicians, this was the year the sun finally came out on the Tampa Bay Blues Festival.According to Bob Vorel, publisher of Blues Revue magazine, no other American blues festival before Memorial Day could boast the roster of national acts this year. "This is quickly becoming a world-class festival," Vorel said backstage. "The music is fantastic; and more importantly, Tampa Bay is showing that it has a fan base that appreciates the blues." The festival brought a diverse group of players Sunday, and a few surprises as well. Carl Weathersby played a rousing set, attired in his purple suit. He was followed by the Paul deLay Band, which perhaps performed just under the energy level of previous acts. Though he mostly sang through his set, we might have expected gutsier harp work from the Oregon bluesman. Few of the weekend's performers would have been able to top Sunday's most fiery act, Walter Trout. From the moment he was introduced, the guitarist struck out on a no-holds-barred mission to eke every possible sound from his instrument's steel strings. In a poll taken by the BBC, Trout (who is big in Europe) was named the sixth best guitarist in the world. He came in just behind Jimmy Page. It was easy to see why. The two players sound similar, though Trout always seems to go full throttle, while Page likes to wax more on the slow material. One of his slower tunes kept the audience spellbound before before it erupted into a heated rock and blues tune. Careful listeners may have spotted Trout's penchant for throwing in familiar musical phrases, such as an electrified take on Beethoven's Fur Elise, or Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. Like Saturday night when Robert Cray followed guitarist Coco Montoya, a somewhat less raucous performer, Susan Tedeschi, followed the crowd mover. The Grammy nominee experienced some sound problems at the beginning of her set. First, a stage monitor wasn't working, while the vocals in the pit were too soft. But she finished gracefully and concluded the festival on a high note. -Christopher Blank

Location Hunington Beach, CA - USA

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