Derek Truck's Band Biography

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Biography Derek Truck's Band

Derek Truck's Band


Derek Trucks (born June 8, 1979) is an American guitarist, bandleader (The Derek Trucks Band), and member of The Allman Brothers Band.

Early life

Born in Jacksonville, Florida, Trucks took up the guitar at age 9, and soon many came to see him as a child prodigy. He was playing with a band and touring within two years. Anonymous. (2006). "Derek Trucks Band" DerekTrucks.com (accessed March 23, 2007) Trucks and poet G. M. Palmer grew up in the same Jacksonville neighborhood and often played pick-up games of football.

Career

The Derek Trucks Band was formed in 1994, and has been one of Trucks' primary musical outlets ever since.Tennille, Andy. "Finding His Path" San Francisco Chronicle, February 5, 2006

The current members of the band are:
  • Derek Trucks ? guitar
  • Kofi Burbridge ? keyboards, flute, and vocals
  • Todd Smallie ?bass and vocals (1994-present)
  • Yonrico Scott ? drums, percussion, and vocals (1995-present)
  • Mike Mattison ? lead vocals (2002-present)
  • Count M'Butu ? percussion


In 1999, Trucks joined his uncle, drummer Butch Trucks, as a member of The Allman Brothers Band, after years of performing as a guest of the band at live performances (he has continued his own band as well). With the Allmans, Trucks has performed on three live releases, which include the platinum-certified Live at the Beacon Theatre DVD, as well as the studio album Hittin' The Note (2003). He has also performed with the band during eight summer tours and the band's annual multiple night stand at New York City's Beacon Theatre.

In 2003, he was ranked 81st on Rolling Stone's list of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time", and has been hailed as one of the greatest slide guitarists since Duane Allman. Fellow Allman Brothers Band guitarists Duane Allman, Warren Haynes and Dickey Betts were also on the list.

Trucks was an accompanying guitarist in Eric Clapton's 2006/2007 touring band. In early 2006, an equipment trailer with Trucks' gear was stolen. Some of the gear was recovered from a field outside Atlanta, including his 1965 Fender Super Reverb (the amp he's been playing since he was a young boy), a 1968 Super Reverb (one of the backup amps), a Hammond B-3, two Leslie rotating speaker cabinets, a Hohner E-7 Clavinet, and a few other minor items.

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Trucks was pictured on the cover of Rolling Stone (#1020) in February 2007, along with John Frusciante and John Mayer. He was named as one of the "New Guitar Gods" and the cover nicknamed him "The Jam King."Fricke, David (2007). "The New Guitar Gods" RollingStone.com (accessed February 13, 2007) Trucks also received the honor of performing at Eric Clapton's 2007 Crossroads Guitar Festival with his own band as well as in Clapton's band.

Influences, style, and equipment

Trucks' early repertoire was heavily blues-based, inspired by The Allman Brothers Band slide guitarist, Duane Allman. Derek's uncle, drummer Butch Trucks, was a founding member of the band so Derek was exposed to their style of music from a young age. Older bluesmen like Howlin' Wolf and Albert King, jazz musicians Miles Davis, Sun Ra, John Coltrane, Charlie Christian and later Wayne Shorter and many others, became an influence for Trucks a few years later. In recent years, the influence of traditional Southern Sacred Steel can be heard in Derek's slide work.

Trucks avoids processing and effects, preferring to get the purest tone possible by connecting his guitar (2000 '61 reissue Gibson SG) directly to his amplifier, a 1965 Fender Super Reverb loaded with four Pyle Driver MH1020 speakers. He modifies his tone with the controls on the guitar. He plays without the use of a plectrum (pick), using his fingers instead, plucking primarily with the thumb, index and middle finger and occasionally the ring finger. His guitar is usually tuned to Open E, the notes from the low to high string being EBEG#Be. Open tunings are popular with slide players as they allow them to use chord tones more easily.

Personal life

In 2001, Trucks married singer/guitarist Susan Tedeschi, and the couple has two children. Charles Khalil Trucks, born in 2002, is named for saxophonist Charlie Parker, guitarist Charlie Christian, and author Khalil Gibran. Sophia Naima Trucks, born in 2004, takes her unusual middle name from the Coltrane ballad, which was also the jazz legend's first wife's name.

Discography

With the Derek Trucks Band

  • The Derek Trucks Band (1997)
  • Out of the Madness (1998)
  • Joyful Noise (2002)
  • Soul Serenade (2003)
  • Live at Georgia Theatre (2004)
  • Songlines (2006) (Legacy Recordings)
  • Songlines Live (DVD) (2006 (Legacy Recordings)


With the Allman Brothers Band

  • Peakin' at the Beacon (2000)
  • Hittin' the Note (2003)
  • Live at the Beacon Theatre (DVD) (2003)
  • One Way Out (2004)


Collaborations

  • Come On In This House (1996, Junior Wells)
  • Searching for Simplicity (1997, Gregg Allman)
  • Croakin' at Toad's (2000, Frogwings)
  • Wait For Me (2002, Susan Tedeschi)
  • Little Worlds (2003, Béla Fleck and the Flecktones)
  • The Best Kept Secret (2005, Jerry Douglas)
  • Hope and Desire (2005, Susan Tedeschi)
  • The Road to Escondido (2006, J. J. Cale, Eric Clapton)


References

External links



American rock guitaristsAmerican blues guitaristsFree funk guitaristsBlues-rock musiciansThe Allman Brothers Band membersFlorida musiciansJam bandsPeople from Jacksonville, FloridaSlide guitaristsMusical groups established in 19941979 birthsLiving people

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Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derek Trucks Band
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