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Joe Bonamassa: The Quiet Prince

When asked about musicians whose careers he admires currently, Bonamassa quickly rattles off Slash, Chris Isaak, B.B. King and Eric Clapton. While the first two might be more surprising than the latter pair, he sees a common denominator to these four musicians: the authenticity in what they do. With Slash, for example, “he does what he does,” and, Bonamassa states that all of these guys create their work “unapologetically.”

Bonamassa places high value in this sense of artists having authenticity in their work. While he professes admiration for singers like Bono and Mick Jagger, he asserts, “I can’t see myself as a performer on a catwalk” like them. He believes that his music works best in smaller rooms than giant arenas and he doesn’t want to do something that feels disingenuous.

The guiding philosophy of “staying true to who you are” has taken Bonamassa to explore a variety of musical directions. As Hughes describes him, “Joe is focused, or he tries to be. He’s gonna do what he’s gonna do.”

While he is known for his muscular, bluesy guitar work, he explores a spectrum of styles (country, rock, R&B) seemingly effortlessly. He even talks about doing a jazz album some time in the future. His longtime producer Kevin Shirley (Rush, Iron Maiden, Black Crowes) proclaims that Bonamassa “can play any style you throw at him, which is amazing.”

His various musical explorations don’t seem to phase his fans, but Bonamassa believes that “they know I have many interests.” He has, however, spent years building a loyal grassroots following and maintaining a personal touch with the fans. This strong relationship pays off in ways like his recent Europe acoustic tour where Bonamassa was pleased to discover that audiences dug his renditions and that he didn’t need to do four-minute solos.

Bonamassa’s “if it feels right” attitude also has resulted in recording a diverse choice of cover songs. While you’d expect him to do tunes by blues masters like Robert Johnson and Willie Dixon or more British blues rockers such as Bad Company or the Jeff Beck Group, you will also see that Bonamassa has covered songs by Willie Nelson, Leonard Cohen, Broadway showman Anthony Newley and Rocky Horror star Tim Curry. Bonamassa explains that “good lyrics sell me on a song” so that he can make a connection.

Some of these cover songs will undoubtedly be part of the setlists for Bonamassa’s next major endeavor. At the end of March, he will go to London to play each of the venues he had performed at in the past, starting with The Borderline and moving up to the Shepherd’s Bush Empire, then the Hammersmith Odeon and culminating at the regal Royal Albert Hall. Each show, featuring a different band and material, will be recorded.

Bonamassa estimates that he will be rehearsing 90 songs for the quartet of concerts, which his producer Shirley describes as “groundbreaking.” However, it all just seems to fit into Bonamassa’s “if it feels right” approach to his career.