Joe Robinson

Joe Robinson reflects on acoustic highlights and offers insights into his new album and signature Maton.

Ja OE ROBINSON IS frighteningly fantastic acoustic and electric player who can leave you contemplating one of two things: quit while you’re behind, or join his quest onward toward ultimate guitar expression. Just turning 30, Robinson is already a seasoned vet of the Guitar Army with Robben Ford and Lee Roy Parnell, and he works regularly with Nashville royals Rodney Crowell and Emmylou Harris as well as his mentor and fellow Australian transplant, Tommy Emmanuel. The prodigiously talented guitarist made a huge splash with his 2009 American debut of acoustic instrumentals, Time Jumpin’, and earned Best New Talent in the 2010 GP Reader’s Poll before turning 20. A huge factor in how Robinson got so good so fast may be his waking up at 4 a.m. to ensure a productive practice session each day, and he confirms that’s still his routine. Such a dedicated cat isn’t about to let the pandemic or anything else slow his creative roll.

Now he’s turned a frustrating struggle to bring his Canadian fiancé stateside into an album of love songs. Robinson released Borders in December on his label, Joe’s Garage, which he confirms is a nod to the mighty Frank Zappa. Borders is primarily a singersongwriter affair akin to John Mayer’s solo efforts. Robinson also loves to dub dazzling, jazzy electric solos over acoustic foundations, and challenge conventional pop arrangements. The title track is a perfect example. “There’s one verse, two choruses and a gang of hot guitar solos,” Robinson says with a laugh. To understand where he’s coming from, look no further than the last track on 2019’s Undertones. Robinson tells his inspiring life story on “Temagog” in a transcendental spoken-word, stream-ofconsciousness-style over a compelling solo acoustic track.

Zealots looking for deep guitar guru-ing can subscribe to Robinson’s Guitar Synergy channel on TrueFire or take his Joes12 online course. In addition, each week on his YouTube channel, he livestreams a guitar show where he’ll offer everything from an enlightening acoustic cover to an in-depth look at his gear. Robinson is an avowed Maton enthusiast, and during NAMM’s Believe In Music Week the venerable Aussie acoustic manufacturer heralded the J.R. Signature. Watching

Robinson use it to thumb-pick a bass line while ripping melodic passages over the top at breakneck speed without breaking a sweat is a testament to his endless practice hours in pursuit of perfection. It may make you feel futile or enthused, but his unbridled passion and purely positive personality make the latter far more likely.

You have so much in common with Tommy Emmanuel. Did he inspire you to become a dedicated acoustic thumb stylist?

I grew up in a farm shack way out in the Australian bush where we didn’t even get hot water until 2001, but some family friends that ran a cattle ranch played the Chet Atkins and Jerry Reed repertoire. There was one copy of Heavy Neckin’ [a songbook of Jerry Reed transcriptions by John Knowles] that got passed around the community. Those guys showed me how to use a thumb pick. I met Tommy Emmanuel and his brother Phil at a music festival when I was 11. Tommy was clearly taking thumb picking to another level, which inspired me to figure out what he had going on. I played electric guitar in a blues band as a teenager, but it was hard to find other players to be in my band when I was young. Tommy became my north star as a solo performer, and using a thumb pick provides a Merle Travis–like articulation on the bass notes that you can’t get without one. I use a Dunlop medium.

“THE WAY I WRITE IS INFLUENCED BY COUNTERPOINT. THERE IS USUALLY A DISTINCT BASS LINE AND A DISTINCT MELODY LINE”