THE POWER OF CHANGE

WHEN WE SET out to get an exclusive interview with Gary Clark Jr. for this issue, his new album wasn’t even available for preview yet. But we just knew we’d want to speak once again with the guitarist who reinvigorated the blues movement with his fusion of blues, rock and soul and has remained a player to watch, listen and learn from.

So it was a delight to hear the transformation in his musical direction on JPEG RAW, his new record, which is by turns soulful, funky, psychedelic, symphonic and, yes, even at times bluesy. As Gary explains to Joe Bosso in this issue’s interview, the pandemic gave him a chance to rediscover his love of shred and grow creatively in new directions. “I was doing whatever I wanted,” he tells us. “I wasn’t worried about being Gary Clark Jr., or whoever everybody thinks they know.”

Changing up your groove is essential for creative growth. And while it carries the risk of alienating your audience, artists who listen to their heart know of no other way forward. Frankly, I like change, and find myself inspired whenever a musician forges a new direction, as Gary has. I understand why some people prefer things to stay as they are. But change brings something new and often challenging into our lives, and gives us a chance to grow emotionally, spiritually and artistically. And the more we do it, and survive it, the less distressed we are by life’s unexpected, and more difficult, transitions. Change can be powerful, and empowering.

Transformation is a recurring topic in this issue. It’s taking place in the music of Sarah Longfield, famous on YouTube for her preternatural (and wonderfully melodic) extreme shredding skills, on an eight-string guitar no less. As Sarah tells Andrew Daly, she’s changed her approach since putting her music career on hold to pursue a college degree. “I’ve chilled out,” she says. “I’ve been trying to find a middle ground between stuff that is both fun to play and easy to listen to.”

And then there’s the Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach, who tells us how he and Patrick Carney went to great lengths to work collaboratively on their latest album, Ohio Players. In addition to writing and recording with Beck and Noel Gallagher, they teamed up with Memphis rappers Juicy J and Lil Noid to bring even more creative community to their jam. As Dan tells Gary Graff, “I know we couldn’t have done it 10 years ago, 15 years ago. It wouldn’t have been possible for us, ’cause we were just too in our own heads.”

There’s a different kind of change at work in my story about Marshall Crenshaw’s brilliant but unsung 1983 sophomore LP, Field Day. Like the other musicians mentioned here, Marshall moved purposefully to reshape his sound when he cut the record. Rather than rehash the sonic formula that worked so well for his hit 1982 debut, he made the album that he heard in his head and heart, only to pay the price. Critics balked at Marshall’s new direction, and his career momentum got knocked sideways. But some 40 years later, Field Day has earned a glowing reassessment from a growing base of fans who hear it for the power-pop sensation that it is and always has been.

So dig in! You have another packed issue of Guitar Player in your hands. I hope you find as much inspiration in these stories as I do.