DAVID GWYNN: ONE GUITAR GREAT

DAVID GWYNN: ONE GUITAR GREAT

This is the third, and final interview and article, in the series about three guys that taught me more about guitar and guitars, than they will ever know.

The first of these interviews was with Steve Soest, “famous guitar guy”, musician, and author, as well as a contributor to Jackaboutguitars with his “Keepin’ It Real” column where he fields your guitar questions.

The second was with guitarist Larry Hanson, another “famous guitar guy” and musician who has played with a lot of the greats.  If you need more info on Larry, check out the article.  It’s worth your time.

The third and final interview is with David Gwynn, the guitarist I have known the longest of the three mentioned, and the lead guitarist of the first band I ever had the opportunity to be a part of, that actually made money playing for people, when I was just sixteen years old.

A GUITAR PLAYER LIKE NO OTHER

David Gwynn (originally David Guynes) was born December 4, 1952 in San Francisco, California into a family with a deep musical tradition.  His father was a country songwriter, and his grandmother would critically listen to his attempts at playing the blues while she sang old Bessie Smith and Billy Holiday tunes.  The sound of country, blues, and rock and roll was a constant companion during his youth.

At ten years of age he was playing guitar instrumentals with his first band.  After that was the strong influence of the “British Invasion” of the sixties.  A little later David was going out to see The Butterfield Blues Band, other unique west coast groups such as Spirit, and great guitarists such as Roy Buchanan at every possible opportunity. He became interested in Indian classical music, attending numerous concerts of the renowned masters around the San Francisco Bay area.

David worked professionally on the west coast as a guitarist throughout the 70’s, including with some legends of country music history.  In 1984, David lands in Madrid, Spain and has since worked as a producer, composer, and studio musician – recording and touring with many Spanish artists and groups.

He has two solo albums: “David Gwynn” 1996 and  “Last of the Buffalo” 2001. His music is a mixture of ancestral tradition, blues feeling, and cultivated psychedelic soul.

David Gwynn

Unfortunately I didn’t have the luxury of traveling to Madrid to get this interview in person with David.  We both put in a bunch of computer time getting the interview together.  It was a fun process, however, as all of these interviews have been.  Here’s what David had to say.

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