Born: June 12, 1977 in Shreveport LA
Blues-rock guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepherd was part of the mid-1990s teenage blues class that included Joe Bonamassa and Jonny Lang. While Shepherd has sometimes been overshadowed by Bonamassa's status in the blues community, or Lang's religious experience, his artistic reach has definitely reached a mainstream audience, resulting in rock star album sales and sell-out performances. A talented guitarist who has literally grown up in the public eye, Shepherd has done a great job in walking both sides of the blues-rock line, and his reverence for elder bluesmen has help popularize the music with his young audience.
Ledbetter Heights
Shepherd is self-taught, first picking up the guitar at age seven and teaching himself how to play Muddy Waters songs from his father's record collection. At the tender age of 13, Shepherd was invited on a festival stage in New Orleans by guitarist Bryan Lee, where he more than held his own against the older performers. Shepherd later formed his own band, managed by his father, performing area clubs. A videotape of a festival performance made its way to Giant Records chief Irving Azoff, who signed the then 16-year-old guitarist to a major label deal.
Shepherd burst onto a crowded blues-rock scene with his 1995 debut, Ledbetter Heights, the album showcasing Kenny Wayne's fiery licks and mastery of diverse styles. Influenced by guitarists like Stevie Ray Vaughan and Robert Cray, Shepherd filled the album with Texas and Louisiana-flavored blues, with the odd acoustic number filling in the blanks. Ledbetter Heights yielded three hit songs on rock radio, including "Deja Voodoo" and the enduring "Born With A Broken Heart" on its way to achieving Platinum™ sales status.
Trouble Is…
Shepherd followed up on his successful debut with 1997's Trouble Is..., his second Platinum™ album showing artistic growth with its mix of original and cover material, as well as a maturing guitar style. The album enjoyed four rock radio hits, including the #1 charting song "Blue On Black," earning Shepherd his first Grammy™ nomination and making the young guitarist an in-demand live performer. Two years later, Shepherd released what would become his third million-selling album, Live On, resulting in another trio of hit songs and supported by constant touring by Shepherd and his band.
After literally spending the better part of five years on the road, Shepherd took a break at the end of 1999 to recharge. When he reemerged in 2004 with the rockin' The Place You're In, it was a different Kenny Wayne Shepherd that was swinging for the fences. This was the first album to feature Shepherd's vocals (previous albums featured singer Noah Hunt); he co-wrote all of the album's songs; and his guitar-playing had grown into a bone-rattling weapon worthy of Hendrix during his five-year hiatus. Fans embraced the album's more rock-oriented sound, placing a pair of hits onto the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart.
Ten Days Out
In 2007, Shepherd embarked on a project that was ambitious by any standard. With his friends Chris Layton and Tommy Shannon, and long-time vocalist Noah Hunt, they took a ten-day road trip, visiting elder blues artists in their homes and in clubs. The journey was captured on film, released on DVD and CD as 10 Days Out: Blues From The Backwoods and featuring performances by Shepherd and friends with a host of blues talent, including B.B. King, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, Henry Townsend and Honeyboy Edwards, and others. The recordings landed Shepherd his third Grammy™ nomination and a Blues Music Award.
With 10 Days Out: Blues From The Backwoods re-establishing his blues credentials, Shepherd continued down a similar path with his 2010 release Live! From Chicago. Recorded during the guitarist's 10 Days Out tour, Shepherd's idea was to bring several generations of blues talent onstage to perform, including such blues legends as former Howlin' Wolf guitarist Hubert Sumlin; harp player and former Muddy Waters drummer Willie "Big Eyes" Smith; blind New Orleans guitar talent Bryan Lee; and guitarist Buddy Flett, whose band the Bluebirds backed Shepherd on his first public performance at the tender age of 13 years old.
Recommended Albums: Shepherd's debut, Ledbetter Heights, perfectly displays the guitarist's developing talent and youthful enthusiasm, but 10 Days Out: Blues From The Backwoods showcases an artist mature and confident enough to stand tall among some of the blues' greatest talents.
Kenny Wayne Shepherd Discography
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- Ledbetter Heights (Giant Records, 1995)
- Trouble Is… (Giant Records, 1997)
- Live On (Giant Records, 1999)
- The Place You're In (Reprise Records, 2004)
- 10 Days Out: Blues From The Backwoods (Reprise Records, 2007)
- Live! In Chicago (Roadrunner Records, 2010)
