Women Guitar Players
Dedicated to Women Guitar Players
Welcome! I have branched out to focus on some of my favorite guitar players, who happen to be women. This is in part due to the great response I've had from readers who enjoyed the articles devoted to women players on other sites (currently inactive). I'm starting by taking my first set of relevant modules from my other guitar sites and adding them here. Then, I'll continue to add new content. All styles and genres will be covered.
Photo Copyright © 2008, James K. Bashkin
Women Guitar Players
Some of my favorites
It is often said that guitars are instruments for guys. However, this is only said by people who don't know what they're talking about. In honor of women guitar players, I'll give capsule summaries about a few of my favorites here. This list is not comprehensive by any means, and the order is random. I'll add more on the subject at a later time.
Joni Mitchell. A master of altered tunings, hero of the singer-songwriter world, and simply a brilliant musician, Mitchell's folk music was never limited by stock song forms or harmonies. Live, her concerts included improvisation with jazz great Jaco Pastorius and many other top musicians. She was the leader, however. Mitchell has also let jazz come to the forefront on a number of albums, winning a Grammy for "best jazz vocal album" (2001) to go along with "Female Vocalist of the Year" in 1976. Her playing is a wonder to hear, and her vocals are just as outstanding. Check out Mingus, Hejira, Don Juan's Reckless Daughter, Court and Spark, Ladies of the Canyon and all the rest. Herbie Hancock received a Grammy for his interpretations of Joni's music on the new CD, River: the joni letters. Oh, and she paints, too!
Rory Block. Fingerstyle blues specialist Rory Block helps keep traditional Delta blues alive, and writes modern blues tunes of her own. A powerful performer, she is also captured well in the recording studio and has won 5 W C Handy awards for top blues albums. I have a number of signed CD's from a concert at The Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis. Check out compilation Best Blues and Originals, live album Mama's Blues and all of the others. Block has also provided a number of instructional DVDs on Delta blues, including two on the guitar styles of Robert Johnson.
Emily Remler. Tragically lost at a young age, Emily Remler was a brilliant jazz guitarist as this New York Times feature will attest (you may need to register with the NYT for free to see the article). I still remember the bell-like clarity of her harmonics on "Softly as in a Morning Sunrise" that she played upstairs at The Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis, now many years ago. Thanks to recordings, we have the benefit of Remler's instruction on Bebop and Swing and Advanced Jazz and Latin Improvisation, and well as her albums, of course. My favorites include This is Me and East to Wes, both of which I have on vinyl. Also check out Firefly.
Susan Tedeschi. A powerful, fiery electric blues player, Berklee School of Music-trained Tedeschi has received four Grammy nominations, the latest for contemporary blues album Hope and Desire, on Verve. Tedeschi played at the 2007 Crossroads Guitar Festival with a horde of other top players. Her performance DVD and CD Live from Austin Texas is great.
Emmylou Harris. A singer-songwriter, her vocals have graced countless albums headlined by others. However, you want to make sure to listen to Harris' own albums/CDs: featuring her songwriting more and more, they are masterpieces of musical beauty. Give Red Dirt Girl a listen, for example, along with Stumble into Grace and Cowgirl's Prayer. From the latter album, "Prayer in Open D" is an all-time favorite.
Finally, check out the double CD compilation Blues Guitar Women to see yet a different view of women and the guitar.
Women blues guitar players
Photos of women guitar players from Flickr - These are Flickr sites set up by others
- Flickr: Badi Assad & Brazilian Guitar Music
Featuring Brazilian Acoustic Guitar musicians in concert, while recording or elsewhere. Artists I'm thinking of: The Assad family, Badi, Sergio & Odair, Luis Nassif, Ana Caram... - Flickr: Girls and Guitars
I don't want to be sexist here, but I just love to see a person of the female persuasion playing, or just holding a guitar, or any stringed instrument, really. I guess this might be because I want to learn to play so badly myself, and am so proud whe - Flickr: Girls with Acoustic Guitars
All about female musicians armed with the acoustic guitar, to any extent (from extremely rare to common).
My blogs
- Chemistry for a sustainable world
Chemistry for a sustainable world: Green Chemistry, the environment, and science & society, for the nontechnical reader. - Nearly nothing but novels: book reviews of fiction and crime fiction
My reviews of fiction, including crime fiction. I showcase authors and books that deserve attention. For international fiction, I provide links and images to help transport the reader to the scene. There are a few remarks about science & the publ