Truetone Lounge

Chris Rodriguez is one of the most in-demand sidemen in the music business. In our Truetone Lounge interview, Chris talks about an exceptional career playing music with some of the world's most beloved artists.

Daniel Carson is the long-standing studio and road guitarist with singer-songwriter, and Christian music artist, Chris Tomlin. In Our Truetone Lounge interview, Carson takes us from the Suburban to the tour bus on his career that started with Tomlin while Daniel was still in high school. Besides sharing his fascinating story, he also passes on important playing concepts, how he uses effects, and how he began learning the craft of songwriting from Tomlin and others.

David Grissom is one of the top American roots guitarists. His singular playing style and tone have garnered him multitudes of sessions, tours with acts from the Allman Brothers to John Mellencamp, and a long-running successful signature model from Paul Reed Smith Guitars. In our Truetone Lounge interview, Grissom takes us from his childhood in Kentucky and Indiana to the storied music hub he has called home for over 30-years, Austin, Texas. Along the way, David sheds light on his voracious appetite for music and the formidable work ethic that helped forge him into one of the most revered guitarists today.

In January of 2019, Daniel Tashian won the coveted Album of the Year award at the Grammy’s for his work on the Kacey Musgraves Golden Hour album. In our latest Truetone Lounge interview, we sit down with the award-winning producer/songwriter/guitarist to talk about the album, and how he began collaborating with Musgraves. He also shares how he was inspired by seeing his father perform with Emmylou Harris and the Hot Band, and his journey as an artist, songwriter, and producer. Daniel also talks about the ephemeral nature of inspiration, his attempts at capturing it, and how sounds and tones influence him.

In our visit with Derek in the Truetone Lounge, we talk with him about his gear, and he demonstrates some of his session tools in Part 3 of this 3 part series.

Derek Wells is one of the top session guitarists in Nashville, TN. He has played on numerous top 10 albums, singles, and was recently nominated for the 2016 Academy of Country Music Musician of the year award, in the guitarist category. We talk with him about his beginnings as a touring guitarist in Part 1. https://truetone.com https://truetonelounge.com

Guitarist Greg Martin lives at the intersection of hillbilly, blues, gospel, and rock, and is one of the greatest proponents of pure guitar and amp tones. In our Truetone Lounge interview, we cover his years of playing the club circuit, work with country star Ronnie McDowell, and his meteoric rise to fame with the Kentucky Headhunters.

Duke Levine is an in-demand sideman, solo artist, and is one of the foremost roots-based guitarists of that last 30-years. His well-crafted instrumental albums contain melodies and moods, which is why he has also done acclaimed soundtrack work with Mason Daring for many of the films of John Sales. Duke can also burn on the guitar when needed while playing with Peter Wolf, and the J. Geils Band, play Honky Tonk, or Country Soul guitar with his own combo. In today's Truetone Lounge, Levine walks us through his work with Mary Chapin Carpenter, Jonatha Brooke, Otis Rush, soundtrack work, his solo recordings, and covers his gear through the years. For all the serious gear heads, we look at Duke's 1953 and 1963 Telecasters, 1963 Stratocaster, and Relic Tele.

Derek Wells is one of the top session guitarists in Nashville, TN. In our visit with Derek in the Truetone Lounge, we talk with him about his break into the session world in Part 2 of this 3 part series.

Guthrie Trapp is one of the finest guitarists in Nashville, TN. In our Truetone Lounge interview, we talk with Trapp about his early playing experiences on the Gulf Coast, why he moved to Nashville, and how performing with the Don Kelley Band punched his career into overdrive. We also discuss his musically eclectic new album, Life After Dark, that features Vince Gill, Sam Bush, Stuart Duncan, Jimmy Hall, The McCrary Sisters, and Bekka Bramlett as guests.

In our Holiday Recap and Viewer Favorites episode, we take a trip down memory lane and look back at some of the best moments of our first season of the Truetone Lounge.

Guthrie Trapp is one of the finest guitarists in Nashville, TN, a town known for its amazing musicians. In Part 2 our Truetone Lounge interview, we learn about his Country Guitar ArtistWorks lesson series, and how his students all over the world are able to share their videos with him and get personalized help with their playing. We also dive headfirst into gear talk, with Trapp sharing some of his tone concepts. These concepts include how he dials in his amps, and how he uses pedals to enhance an already great-sounding amp tone. Guthrie also showcases 3 of his favorite instruments, a 1969 Gibson ES-335, Russ Pahl Jr Tele-style, and his Danocaster Double-Cut Strat-style.

In the latest installment of the Truetone Lounge, Jedd Hughes sits down with us to amaze us with his playing and jaw-dropping stories. From growing up in the Australian outback to his “first gig” in Nashville being at the Grand Ole Opry, to his stellar work as a sideman, session work, and of course his deeply moving new album, West, it all gets covered here. Throughout the interview, Jedd’s singular playing style showcases why he is such an in-demand musical collaborator with many of the finest artists in modern music. Hughes also covers a bit of his favorite gear including a mid 60’s Teisco K2L, 1957 Telecaster, Collings OM-1JL acoustic, Ebo amplifier, and his small pedalboard.

We chat with our good buddy, JD Simo, and see what he has been up to in 2020. Simo also shares a lesson in the challenges of playing simple parts, and in arranging multiple guitar parts.

In our Truetone Lounge interview with session guitarist Jerry McPherson, we look at his beginnings in Texas, early tours and sessions with Amy Grant, and his transition to his current position as a full-time and in-demand session player. We also look at his favorite session tools, and his patented robot arm, that at the touch of a button, moves a set of microphones to various cabinets in Jerry's amp isolation room. But this episode is about so much more than his bio and gear. It is packed with Jerry's insights on playing parts, how to use effects, and how to keep a listener engaged throughout the course of a song. This episode is pure gold for the aspiring session guitarist.

Jeff Senn, renowned guitar builder and guitarist, is the second guest on our Truetone Lounge series. During the interview, Senn speaks in-depth on his beginnings as an instrument repairman, his years as a touring professional, his transition over a decade ago into a well-respected guitar builder, and his instrumental band, Crazy Aces. Interspersed, Jeff demonstrates 2 of his own Original Senn instruments, along with a vintage 1959 Guyatone that helped inspire his latest release, the Original Senn Model 1.

Grammy Award-winning producer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist, John Leventhal, shares what he has been up to in 2020, and clues us into his guitar part on Shawn Colvin's "Get Out Of This House."

In part 4 of our Truetone Lounge interview, John plays and tells the stories of some of his favorite guitars.

In the latest Truetone Lounge, we take a trip down to Muscle Shoals, Alabama, to meet up with Swamper, Jimmy Johnson at 3614 Jackson Highway, home of the Muscle Shoals Sound. In our interview, Johnson covered everything from his early days as Rick Hall’s first employee, through all of his groundbreaking work with Aretha Franklin, the Rolling Stones, Wilson Pickett, Paul Simon, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Bob Seger. Along the way, we get amazing anecdotes about Tom Dowd, Jerry Wexler, Arif Mardin, Duane Allman, Eddie Hinton, and Pete Carr. Jimmy also shares of his involvement in the award-winning Muscle Shoals documentary, and how the film came to fruition.

In this Truetone Lounge episode, we present Justin Ostrander, part of the new crop of session guitarists in Nashville, TN.