Derek Trucks – Guitarist Extraordinaire

With regard to the slide guitar, Duane Allman was such a commanding figure that any discussion of the instrument always comes back to him. Indeed, it’s rare to find an article about slide guitar that doesn’t mention Duane Allman. For decades it seemed like his unrivaled supremacy on the slide guitar would never be questioned. Then came Derek Trucks.

In the case of Derek Trucks, there are valid reasons to mention Duane Allman. First there are family ties. Derek’s uncle, Butch Trucks, was a founding member of the Allman Brothers Band. Derek’s parents named him in honor of the great LP “Layla” which resulted from the legendary recording sessions in Miami, Florida involving Eric Clapton and Duane Allman under the name of “Derek and the Dominoes.” The comparisons naturally increased when Derek Trucks took over Duane Allman’s slide duties when he joined the Allman Brothers Band. Finally, the buzz reached the world in 2006/07 when Derek recreated the original magic of the Derek and the Dominoes legacy by performing much of that recording on stage with Eric Clapton.

Despite all this, Derek is finally emerging from behind the giant shadow cast by Duane Allman and is being recognized as an extremely gifted player who has his own sound, style and artistic vision.

When Derek Trucks looked like this, he sounded like this. By the age of eleven he was already performing professionally. Wade Tatangelo of the McClatchy Newspapers chain interviewed Derek in January of 2007:

Most twentysomething guitarists would be petrified at the thought of sharing a stage with Clapton. But Trucks has been blowing audiences away for more than a decade. His first brush with a genuine rock legend occurred in Clearwater, Fla., in 1992. Trucks, 12, was the opening act for Bob Dylan.

Barbara Dennerlein

Born and raised in Munich, Barbara began playing the organ at age 11. In a fortunate twist of fate, her instructor was himself a jazz loving Hammond B3 player who used his foot pedals. Barbara’s parents were jazz lover, and Barbara seemed to naturally absorb their sophisticated tastes. She was particularly drawn to Charlie Parker and Bebop in general. She seems to have inherited her creativity from her father Hans, himself a painter with a flair for color. On her most recent CD, “Change of Pace”, a live recording with a symphony orchestra, Barbara surprised her father by using his artwork on the cover.

Barbara took lessons for a year and a half and afterwards was essentially self taught. At 15 she caused quite a stir around the jazz scene in Munich when she played three sets a night at a well known jazz club. Barbara finished high school, but continued performing at every opportunity during school breaks. She formed a quintet (organ, alto and tenor saxophone, trombone and drums.) Despite all the buzz in the clubs, the record labels weren’t interested in a young German girl playing American music on an instrument nearly twice her age.

Undaunted, Barbara formed her own label, BEBAB, when she was only 21. This was a pivotal decision which was rewarded – literally. She received a prestigious award by the association of German music critics and the LP did quite well in Germany. Suddenly labels were interested and Barbara was able to do a stunning recording entitled “Tribute to Charlie” on the Koala label with a big band.
This recording appeals to me on several levels. Despite the big band, the arrangements are such that the B3 is backed up and augmented, and as with the many great Jimmy Smith/Oliver Nelson productions, the B3 is front and center and not simply one among many. Generally Barbara prefers to record her own compositions, but on this recording she does six numbers by Charlie Parker, one by Charles Mingus, and three of her own. It’s quite an accomplishment for a 23 year old.  Here’s a video clip of her doing the title track in a trio formation.