The Musician's Guide To Everything

Legendary producer, engineer, musician, Clark Rigsby has done some things.  Starting out playing guitar in bars at age 13, he churned that into a career spanning several decades.  He later started Tempest Recording Studio at his house in Tempe.  From there he worked on projects with everyone from Alice Cooper to Waylon Jennings to Steve Gadd.  An Emmy,  a BMI award and more credits to his name tha...

Now we're talking.  Camille Sledge is, for starters, an amazing singer, songwriter and entertainer, as proven in her outstanding work with the wildly entertaining and popular Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra.  She is also a force for good in the music industry through her founding of the non profit School of HipHop PHX.  Through this school she is helping young African American/Black and minority y...

Where to even start with this renaissancewoman.  Jeremy “Bacpac” Franko is an Architect, acoustician, writer, poet, DJ, dancer, prolific mural artist and instigator.  She played guitar with the European punk band the Raincoats in the 70’s. And now she is making video art too.  A powerhouse of energy and creativity and an inspiration for how to live a long, interesting, and exciting life.  Come on...

Ali Hedrick has been booking bands since the 90’s and has the experiences and stories we all wish we could have been there for.  From interning at Touch and Go Records to starting one of the largest independent booking agencies in the country she has been working hard to get your favorite bands into the places where they can blow you away with their performances.  She has worked with an impressive...

Here's a great story!  Cody Blackbird was drawn to the Native American flute at 8 years old.  He took that early inspiration and honed it into his own Alter-Native genre incorporating rock, R & B and funk with, of course, a heavy dose of soulful flute magic.  Here we discuss the wildly improbable way his band got started in Alaska, years of touring, his inspiring activism and a wide varie...

With a smile a mile wide, Mean Gene has transcended his physical limitations and proved that a fired-up soul is the main requirement for making great music.  He's been writing and performing his grungy desert alt country songs for years now as a solo artist, as Mean Gene and the Soul Scorchers, Rockin' Chair, The Blinding Suns, and Mean Gene and the Green Sardines.  And he's just ge...

From poor farmer to guitar shop owner to Chief Luthier at Gretsch, to setting up guitar factories in Asia, Donnie Wade has had a very, very interesting life.  His passion for music started at a very young age where he risked severe punishment to sneak out and get just a glimpse of the happenings at the strictly forbidden local underground (black) music hall where Freddie King was driving 'em...

When you're good, and you're cool, everybody wants you.  Max Crawford has been charming his way into playing with loads of great bands with his warmth, ripping sense of humor and adventurous attitude.  He came by and shared generously  a few of his adventures in this realm of  music.  Not only is he a founder of an in-demand horn section called Total Pro Horns, he's played with Wilc...

Here's a treat!  Arizona's preeminent music historian, archivist and scholar came up for a rollicking, laugh-filled, wildly informative discussion about Arizona music history, becoming a DJ as a kid, his wide ranging career in the music business and his tireless efforts to preserve and document the music of Arizona.  His Audio Ranch podcast is absolutely filled with interesting, well-cur...

Head slammin.  Feet shakin.  That's how you do it.  Meliza Jackson plays guitar for the Darts (US) and is having a blast doing it.  Their new album is on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles label and is on the verge of release into the wild.  Come on in for a lively discussion about life on the road and making shit happen in the music biz.

The more you look, the more you love.  There is a mountain to discover where this man is involved.  An influential writer, creative director of Hello Merch, overseer of the world of WASTOIDS, neck deep in Aquarium Drunkard and Transmissions, and pushing great music on Range and Basin.  Look them all up.  You'll like them.  He's also a musician under the moniker JPW with a recent solo rel...

Instruments to drool over.  Fantasize about.  Lust after.  Stephen Stratton has been building stringed instruments since graduating from the Roberto-Venn School of Lutherie in Phoenix in 1998.  He now creates playable works of art from his shop in the Sacremento Mountains of New Mexico.  Stephen stopped by the Goldwater Building to chat about, you guessed it, guitars, as well as the life and times...

Billy Bob Thornton and J.D. Andrew came through town again with their band The Boxmasters.  And being the generous chaps that they are, gave us an invite to come hang out on their tour bus for a bit and get the lowdown on their current adventures.  

He's a busy man, but we finally got him! Jim Bachmann is a wizard of words and an Americana master with his signature "good timing Stonerbilly"  sound and a presence of wisdom and authenticity.  He's been making music solo and and along with his band The Day Drinkers for over a decade now and is still making the rounds.  From playing "professional busker" gigs on a si...

He’s a prolific songwriter, an alt-country pioneer, a damn good talker and a fountain of thoughtful insight about music, touring, and keeping a band together for over 30 years.  He’s the primary songwriter for the Old 97’s with 12 studio albums and a long list of song placements in movies and TV shows.  He has also released 7 solo albums in his spare time.  On top of all that, he’s got a damn good...

He’s a writer of songs. He’s a player of guitars.  He’s the winner of a multitude of songwriting competitions and is a regular performer at a long list of venues all over the southwest and beyond.  From the bars, to the coffee shops to the theaters and festival stages he’s been pouring out his special blend of bluesy folk for the last 20 some odd years. To know him is to love him and he’s right he...

Brace yourself!  Pastor Carl Wiman is about to preach!  He’s the head of a little church out in Whitman, AZ and is always bringing music to the people and giving whole heartedly to his community both locally and abroad.  He started playing in bands when he was 12 years old at the Moose Lodge in Ajo, Arizona which started him on a path of musical pursuit which took him to making records, producing...

Magnificent solo artist and, of course, front man for The Wallflowers, Jacob Dylan is one of the greats.  Grammy’s, mega-hits, quadruple-platinum, all of that.  But it didn’t come easy.  Jacob had to grind it out in the clubs and had frustrating record label problems like so many other musicians.  But the greatness of his songwriting prevailed and the body of work speaks for itself. We snuck onto...

At 15 he was playing in bars.  By 25 he was writing huge hits as a member of the Gin Blossoms.  And 30 plus years later he's still writing great songs and conjuring great sounds as a solo artist, collaborator, session player, producer and composer for TV and film.  He's pretty much done it all and he was nice enough to stop by and tell us all about it.  This is a lovely, warm, wide rangi...

They've threatened to do this for a while now.  And it's on the verge of release!  Jon and Blaine discuss the making of their fabulous new record and the great fortune that was showered upon them.  Loads of heavy hitters showed up to contribute and the results are fantastic!  Come on in and get the inside scoop on who's involved, where the songs came from and how this all came about...

This guy has pretty much done it all in the music business.  For over 50 years he’s been a performing and recording musician and played all over North America, Europe, Africa, you name it.  He’s released 17 albums and the list of great bands he has opened for is way too long to list here.  He was the owner of the Sun Club in Tempe which was a big part of the scene that helped launch a number of hu...

Cofounder of Calexico, Joey Burns and long-time compatriot Sergio Mendoza stopped by for a warm chat about what's going on with this prolific band.  With a unique blend of folk, indie rock, and Americana,  and with great respect to the traditions of Mexico and South America, Calexico has become synonymous with the sound of the desert southwest.  Decades in, they are still blooming with new ma...

Billy Bob Thornton has done an excellent job of not letting his acting, writing, and Academy Award winning get in the way of his music career.  He’s been in bands since middle school and has made music a central part of his enviable life.  J.D. has also been busy as an in-demand audio engineer and composer working with artists such as The Rolling Stones, The Pussycat Dolls and Will Kimbrough as we...

What a story.  What an inspiration.  A young hockey player, from a long line of hockey players, excels to the point of being chosen to train for the Olympics.  But he's also a killer musician and forms a band called Five Speed.  This band is so good they get a major record label deal and record some albums.  So the aspiring Olympian changes gears and tours the US with his band and they are on...

Pedal steel.  The crying machine.  Like flying a helicopter while standing in a hammock.  A few brave souls have applied themselves to this mysterious instrument and mastered it's unique, voice-like sound.  John Rickard is one of them.  He's been obsessed with this contraption since he was a boy and has played with damn near every band that has ever utilized a pedal steel in their act.  ...