In my personal pantheon of guitar heroes, Charlie Hunter ranks right up there with Stevie Ray Vaughn, Dave Matthews (c’mon, he’s an innovative guitarist!), and Slash as players who had the most influence on my style.
Hunter plays an 8-string guitar with the top three strings bass notes and the bottom five standard guitar strings. And somehow he manages to play both bass and guitar parts simultaneously.
Some have suggested he has two brains. While I don’t believe that, I do believe he writes some of the best and most original jazz pieces I’ve ever heard. His music is both accessible and interesting, and he manages to preserve melody in the midst of some fairly heady experimentation. I really admire him and the choices he’s made in his career.
This video was recorded at a concert in 2000. I hope you enjoy it.
