rough trip. I stayed awake the whole trip be- cause I thought someone might steal my gui- tar beside me. I had one guitar, my amp, and suitcase with me.
You are universally recognized as one of the world’s best slide guitarists. Who were your primary influences? Thank you, my brother Stanley who taught me how to play came over one day and handed me a slide and said "here boy you need to learn how to do this." I asked him what it was and could he show me how, he said "I don't know how but you need to learn how to do this. He also made me memorize all the notes on the guitar neck because he never did, and he knew it would help me. So those two things he did helped me so much. He was a great brother and teacher.
During the 80s the blues made a big comeback, greatly in part thanks to SRV and his huge success as well as the reunion of two classic rock bands the Black Crowes and the Allman Brothers. How much of an influence did this have on your career? I was so proud of Stevie Ray that the record
labels didn't change him and his style. I went to a concert before he died and he was so good.
If I’m not mistaken your collaboration with Jimmy Hall gave you a chance to get close to the artists of Capricorn Records. What do you remember from this period? I first met Jimmy in Mobile, AL in 1978 but we didn't play together until 1990. The great guitarist Jimmy Nalls insisted that Jimmy Hall use me on guitar to fill in for him. Nalls was one of my heroes so that meant so much to me and we also became great friends. His playing on the first Sea Level album is some of my favorite, so great.
Warren Haynes' famous call to replace Dickey Betts certainly did not catch you unprepared, given your deep knowl- edge of the Allman Brothers reper- toire. Was this an event you somehow expected? Did you feel your time would come to shine? Warren and I were friends for many years when he called me to fill in for Mr. Betts. It was very unexpected. In the 70's I had learned both parts that Duane and Dickie played on the original records so I knew the old songs. I flew to Dallas Tx. Warren and I went over which parts we would play in the hotel room and then we went on stage and did it.
Joining the Allman Brothers allowed you to make a big leap forward by per- forming in front of 20,000 people. What was the impact? How did it feel? The first show was 30,000 people in Dallas with no rehearsals with the band, Gregg did- n't understand who I was, so we introduced ourselves on stage before he counted off “Statesboro Blues.” LOL. It was intense, and Gregg and I became great friends.
What was the most rewarding moment of your career and the encounters that enriched you the most both on a per- sonal and artistic level? I've been blessed to play with so many great musicians, many are not famous to the public but they are incredible. I try to learn from everyone I play with. And I still study and try to learn something new as often as I can.
When you get asked technical ques- tions about playing guitar your re- sponse is that the sound is in the fingers. Can you explain this concept? It seems very Zen and goes against the tendency of many guitarists to seek sound through the pedals (guitar ef- fects)?
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