I'm often asked where I studied slide guitar, so I thought I'd share a bit of my story here.
I'm a self taught guitarist. I taught myself to play blues guitar first of all, and then to play slide, mainly by listening to old, source recordings. For me, it was all about absorbing the Aesthetics and the phrasing, and listening for the truth in the music.
I then became obsessed with the Alan Lomax field recordings of really early singers, of field hollers and ring shouts, work songs and that kind of thing, so that makes its way into my slide playing as well.
I did a music degree and specialised in Delta Blues and Indian classical music, and then when I graduated, I got some money from the Arts Council England to go and study in India with slide guitar master Pandit Debashish Bhattacharya. I came back with the 22 string instrument Debashish invented, known as the Chatturangui.
Being in India was a life-changing experience for me. I had to dismantle and rebuild my whole technique there. For instance, I thought I was playing in tune - I thought my pitching was good - but I realised it could be better so I went back to basics.
I worked a lot on ear training, intonation and fluidity with the slide, and I also learnt a lot about improvisation… how to tell a story… how to paint a picture with the slide. I practiced 15 hours a day, starting at 5 a.m in order to get 4 hours in before breakfast, which was curry. I just loved doing it - I always just wanted to become the best player I could possibly be on the instrument.
So that's how I began to study slide guitar… and now I'm lucky enough to teach it. If you want to go further with your journey into slide guitar, grab your free Get Going With Slide Guide and let's get stuck in!