When Louisiana-based singer/songwriter/slide-guitar great Sonny Landreth releases his ninth album in May, it will mark an artistic turning point of sorts.
“From the Reach” features collaborations between Landreth and renowned guitar players Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler, Robben Ford, Eric Johnson and Vince Gill plus performances by legendary entertainers Dr. John and Jimmy Buffett.
“I’ve been wanting to make this kind of record for a long time — to do an entire album that would feature some of my favorite players as special guests,” said Landreth. “The other thing was how to do it without being yet another cliched ‘duets’ album. Then I got the idea to write the songs specifically for each of the artists and that was the real hook for me, as a writer as well as a guitar player.”
Solo exchanges and multilayered guitar playing are among the musical jewels expected on this album that shifts from blues to country to rock to genres in between.
Publicists note that the album comes from an “honest place” in Landreth’s history. That’s not surprising when you consider Landreth has made a career of pure, unpretentious playing that literally goes back to his New Orleans roots. One recent example is when he recorded his live album “Grant Street” — released in 2005 — at Layfaette’s Grant Street Dancehall to showcase his band’s reinvention of songs from it’s previous eight albums.
As fans know, slide guitar master player Landreth approaches his shows as production pieces, filled with energy and elegance.
Combine that with his incredible skill and it’s easy to understand why so many musical greats jumped at the chance to play with Landreth. Clapton has said publicly that Landreth is “probably the most underestimated musician on the planet and also probably one of the most advanced.”
Landreth honed his musical chops an early age. He learned to play trumpet at age 10 when he became enchanted with the Delta blues sound. When he was about 13, he began to play guitar, emulating his blues heroes. Before long, Landreth had a fan base all his own.
“I have no idea what drove me,” said Landreth. “That is the bliss of youth. No limitations, desire and a ton of energy for adventures.”
If you go
Sonny Landreth
Where: The Barns at Wolf Trap, 1635 Trap Road, Vienna
When: 8 p.m. Jan. 29
Details: $24; 877-965-3872; www.wolftrap.org
