Gregg
Allman of the legendary Allman Brothers
will release a new solo album in April
produced by Oscar/Grammy-winning
musician T-Bone Burnett. Revamping some
blues and R&B nuggets, Allman is joined
on the recording by Eric Clapton Band
guitarist Doyle Bramhall Jr., New
Orleans piano legend Dr. John, and
Maui's Vince Esquire.
"I
went to L.A. in December and played on
two cuts, and it was awesome," says
Vince. "And I got to hang out with
T-Bone Burnett for a couple nights and
pick his brain about producing and
recording."
Vince's guitar prowess had immediately
impressed Allman back in 2007, when he
had played with the Mana'o Radio
Orchestra opening for Allman at a
memorable Castle Theater show. After the
musicians exchanged phone numbers, Vince
was amazed a few weeks later when he got
a call inviting the young Maui musician
to sit in one night with the Allman
Brothers at their annual residency at
New York's Beacon Theater.
"He
came out and saw us play and I guess he
liked my style," Vince recalls. "About a
month later he actually called and
invited me."
A
review of the historic night noted:
"Thursday's show featured a cavalcade of
guest guitarists, including Vince
Esquire, who more than held his own with
(Allman Brothers' guitarists) Warren
Haynes and Derek Trucks on "One Way Out"
and "Statesboro Blues."
Vince
couldn't quite believe he was playing
amongst such amazing musicians. "It was
intimidating at first," he reports.
"Standing between Derek Trucks and
Warren Haynes and looking across the
stage and seeing Greg Allman was kind of
an overwhelming moment, but at that
point you just have to suck it up and do
it."
The
successful gig led to another invitation
to join Gregg Allman as the opening act
for several dates of a Southern tour,
including performing at the House of
Blues in New Orleans and Dallas.
It
was while recording with Allman in
December that the 24-year-old musician
finally found out why, among so many
other great guitarists, he had been
picked.
"He
never gave me an explanation until most
recently when I was in the studio with
him," Vince reports. "And he said, the
way I play reminded him a lot of his
brother (Duane Allman). He said the
emotion and thought process behind it
was very similar. I thought that was
pretty cool."
Pretty cool indeed being compared with a
trailblazing player, ranked second on
Rolling Stone's list of Greatest
Guitarists of All Time.
Which
brings us to Vince's startlingly
impressive new CD, "Back Where You
Belong." Making waves since his late
teens with the power, passion and
precision of his guitar playing, this
album marks a major evolution. Immensely
gifted, he has ventured way beyond the
early billing as "Maui's Stevie Ray
Vaughan."
Just
take a listen to the rousing power
ballad "Better Days," that erupts with a
blazing Prince-like guitar solo.
It's
easy to imagine a crowd of thousands,
lit cel phones held aloft, swaying and
singing along to the chorus, "I just
want to go back to better days." It's
that good.
"I
was listening to bands like Journey and
Foreigner and a bunch of things like
that went into the song," Vince
explains. "At this point I just wanted
to put out an album of music that I
would personally enjoy listening to. I
wanted to put out something that
represented where I was at the time and
what I was inspired by. There is a lot
of variation on the album. Each song is
inspired by different things."
His
time with Allman obviously informs some
of the material such as the opening
title track which smolders with a
combination of blues muscle and funky
energy, while he ventures into
got-to-get-up-and-dance Tower of Power
territory with the irresistible,
horn-driven groove of "Tell Me Your
Name."
"I
was listening to a lot of Motown and
James Brown, stuff with horns, like
Tower of Power, when I wrote those
songs," he continues. "And a couple of
songs in particular were inspired by
Gregg and the Allman Brothers."
Sounding as hot as anything out of the
famed Muscle Shoals Sound Studio, major
credit goes to the horn players on "Tell
Me Your Name" - John Zangrando, Vince's
dad, Rudy Esquire, and Paul Bunuan.
The
sterling musical collective helping
craft the album includes drummer Josh
Greenbaum, bassists Don Lopez and Shawn
Michael, and keyboardist Les Adam.
With
only one cover, The Meters' funky "Cissy
Strut," the CD provides an opportunity
for Vince to excel across a spectrum of
styles, recorded live and in the studio.
The closing "EL Jam," as it's aptly
titled, captures the band and the
guitarist spontaneously launching into a
fusion instrumental that pays tribute to
guitar master Jeff Beck.
"We
were in the studio and Uncle Don (Lopez)
suggested we take a break and just jam
on something," he notes. "So basically
that recording is a live jam on the
spot. We figured it was so cool we
captured it. I was listening to a lot of
Jeff Beck at the time. I watched him at
the Crossroads Festival on DVD, and I
had to buy all his albums."
(Side
note for Beck fans: His upcoming album,
"Emotion & Commotion," features an
amazing instrumental version of
"Somewhere Over The Rainbow.")
The
centerpiece of the album, the
nine-minute rocking "War Cry," was
initially inspired hearing a Democratic
presidential debate between Barack Obama
and Hilary Clinton.
"They
were talking about the war, and I have a
friend who was in the Marines and was
injured in combat, and I picked up my
guitar and came up with it," he
explains. "And my dad's a veteran, so
that entered my thoughts, too. A lot of
people pay attention to what they see
and read, but there's not a whole lot of
understanding of what's really going on
over there."
Opening and closing with a haunting
native flute, a traditional Irish war
melody played by Trinette Furtado on
bagpipes, along with radio news combat
reports weave through this epic,
Hendrix-flavored lament. "It's a song I
would like people to listen on
headphones or in their car," he adds,
"because a lot of subtle things are
going on in it."
Besides excelling as a blues and
rock-based electric guitarist, Vince's
musical world also encompasses playing
ukulele with the group Kanekoa. Teamed
with fellow ukulele player Kaulana
Kanekoa, they will release an EP
shortly.
"It
should be done in the next month," he
notes. "That's a whole nother thing
because we do a lot of reggae, so we're
trying to hit the reggae radio market. I
love playing both ukulele and guitar,
and taking concepts from one to
another."
With
the new CD out, this versatile Maui
musician is already expanding his
creative vision.
"I
don't like to be stagnant," he
emphasizes. "These days I'm listening to
a lot of Miles Davis, and trying to get
into a lot more jazz. I've been doing
the gig on Wednesdays at the Han Hou Caf
with Dorothy Betz and Les Adam, and
they've really pushed my limits as far
as getting me into more jazz-orientated
stuff. I'm learning a lot more about
chords and scales. I feel I've got a
really good grip on the blues thing, I'm
just trying to extend and add to it."
*
Vince Esquire and his band present a
CD-release party for "Back Where You
Belong" on April 16 at Mulligan's on the
Blue in Wailea. Kanekoa will close the
evening. Tickets are $5 in advance, $10
at the door. Call 874-1131 for
reservations.
