Our Student Wins Rockschool Award
One of our current students has won the 2024 Rockschool Award for the most outstanding Rockschool candidate in acoustic guitar in the state of Tasmania!
Stevie Ray Vaughan
Stevie Ray Vaughan (“SRV”), born on October 3, 1954, in Dallas, Texas, was an influential American blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He emerged in the 1980s as the frontman of his band, Double Trouble and played a major role in the revival of blues music. His career was cut short when he died in a helicopter crash on August 27, 1990, at the age of 35.
SRV’s main guitar was a 1963 Fender Stratocaster named Number One, which he modified with a left-handed tremolo. He also played other Strats called Lenny and Scotch, and occasionally used a Gibson ES-335 for particular songs.
Stevie’s playing style featured his powerful string attack, expressive bending, and use of fast pentatonic runs. He often played with heavy strings (usually .013 gauge) and tuned his guitar down a half-step, which gave his sound extra thickness and warmth. He combined techniques such as double-stop bends, rake picking, and hybrid picking, with a fluid yet aggressive right-hand approach.
His influences included Albert King, Jimi Hendrix, B.B. King, Buddy Guy and Freddie King.
Stevie Ray Vaughan Live 1983 [by Bbadventure, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons]
Joe Strummer
Joe Strummer was born on 21st August 1952, and passed away at the age of 50. He was a British musician and songwriter best known as the lead vocalist and guitarist of the influential punk rock band The Clash. Joe was naturally left-handed but played guitar right-handed. His guitar style blended punk energy with reggae, rock, and folk influences, shaping the band’s distinctive sound. Strummer’s career spanned beyond The Clash, encompassing solo work and collaborations. He left an indelible mark on music, recognised for his passionate performances and his role in shaping punk’s cultural and political impact. His signature guitar was a 1966 Fender Telecaster. Listen to him on the classic songs Rock the Casbah, and London Calling.
Joe Strummer [by Masao Nakagami, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons]
Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown
Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown was born in Louisiana in 1924 and died at age 81 on September 10, 2005 in Texas.
He had an original electric blues guitar style and was a big influence on Frank Zappa, Guitar Slim, Albert Collins and many others.
He got an early break when he sat in for an unwell T-Bone Walker at a nightclub in Houston.
Brown toured Europe many times during the 1960s and 1970s.
In 1983 he received a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album (Alright Again!)
Brown was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1999.
Timeless, his last record was released in 2004 – a year before his death.
Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown
Elmore James
Elmore James (born Elmore Brooks) was born in Mississippi on January 27, 1917. He died at age 45 in Chicago.
James was heavily influenced by legendary bluesman Robert Johnson. James’ most famous song, Dust My Broom, was written by Johnson.
James often played Kay acoustic guitars with pickups installed. He has been dubbed by some as “King of the Slide Guitar” – and listening to the opening bars of Dust My Broom, one can see why. James also had other hit songs including, The Sky Is Crying, and My Bleeding Heart.
James was an inspiration for many later electric blues guitarists such as Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughn, George Thorogood, and Roy Buchanan.
Kay Guitars
{Rock’n_Roll_guitars.jpg: Ben Paulosderivative work: Kay Swing Master K673, K672 & Truetone Jazz King (Kay Speed Demon K573).png: Guitarpop (talk)derivative work: Clusternote [CC BY 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons}