Ed Gerhard: Grammy Gospel
By Miche Archetto:
Ed Gerhard is a Grammy award-winning guitar player, appreciated for the tone of his playing. Here is his rendition of the traditional gospel “Just a Closer Walk with Thee”.
According to his website “Performing on 6-string, 12-string, slide guitar or Acoustic Hawaiian Lap Slide, Gerhard captivates his audiences with virtuosity, generosity and sly humor. Known for his gorgeous tone and compositional depth, Gerhard can move a listener with a single note. Scott Alalrik of the Boston Globe said it best when he wrote ‘Gerhard does not write instrumentals. He writes songs only a guitar can sing.
Gerhard’s relationship with the guitar began at age 10, when he happened upon classical guitar master Andrés Segovia on TV. “I’d heard all the pop music on the radio and maybe a little of that 60’s folk stuff, but this was the first time I’d ever heard the guitar all by itself and the sound just instantly got me,” he remembers. Ed finally got his first guitar at 14. His initial interest in classical guitar changed dramatically when he heard the music of bluesman Mississippi John Hurt. He quit lessons after the third one. He took some informal lessons with friends and learned by ear, slowing down LPs to half-speed to pick out the tricky parts. At fifteen, Ed was already beginning to perform in local church basement coffeehouses, playing solo and jamming with friends.“More
Author: Robert Harris
