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Jimmy Herring
They say, “It ain’t braggin’ if you can do it.” Jimmy Herring is too modest to brag, but his guitar does a lot of the talkin’. And with the release of his first solo recording, Lifeboat, people are going to hear what Jimmy and his guitar have to say. Jimmy Herring is known for his limitless improvisations , long flowing phrases, and highly charged (and always very soulful) lead work. Lifeboat features Jimmy’s fiery guitar playing, and six Herring originals that showcase his stylistically diverse songwriting.
Jimmy Herring developed his reputation as a unique guitar player from years of performing and recording with top-tier musicians. After playing on the local scene of his hometown of Fayetteville, North Carolina, Jimmy attended and graduated from the Guitar Institute of Technology. In 1986, Jimmy moved to Atlanta, Georgia to teach at the Atlanta Institute of Music and quickly established himself. Herring still lives in Atlanta with his wife and two children.
In 1989, Jimmy joined singer and bandleader Col. Bruce Hampton and his group Aquarium Rescue Unit--a seminal jam band which mixed rock, free-jazz and bluegrass--and stayed until 1996. From 1998-99, nationwide exposure would come to Jimmy with the band Jazz Is Dead; which also featured drummer Billy Cobham (Mahavishnu Orchestra), bassist Alphonso Johnson (Weather Report), and keyboardist T Lavitz (The Dregs). This group was known for playing jazz-fusion instrumental interpretations of classic songs by The Grateful Dead. Billy Cobham calls Jimmy Herring, “One of the best I have ever played with.”
Jimmy then played with The Allman Brothers Band for a summer tour in 2000. After the death of guitar great Jerry Garcia, The Grateful Dead’s bass player Phil Lesh continued to tour under the name Phil Lesh & Friends. Herring was a full-time member of this group from October 2000 to November 2005. In 2003 and 04 the surviving members of The Grateful Dead reunited and Herring was asked to fill the guitar chair.
Throughout this time, Jimmy Herring has continued to play in various side projects, notably Project Z with Jeff Sipe (drums) and Ricky Keller (bass). Lincoln Memorial, the second Project Z recording, was released in the fall of 2005. August 2006 found Jimmy taking over the guitar spot in the hugely popular jam band Widespread Panic; a gig that he continues to this present time.
With Lifeboat, Jimmy Herring is poised to move from sideman to the center of the stage. Lifeboat is a wide-ranging work. From foot stomping southern-flavored rockers; to modern bop and fusion; to a cover of the Wayne Shorter composition “Lost”; and melodic pieces full of subtlety and nuance; the music of Lifeboat allows Jimmy to express a full-range of emotions through his guitar.
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Allman Brothers Band: Trouble No More: 50th Anniversary Collection
by Doug Collette
The gold-embossed lettering on the front and back cover of the roughly 5" by 7" slipcase enclosing the Allman Brothers Band's box set Trouble No More belies its otherwise generic art work. Yet the graphic design isn't all that gives the lie to an otherwise positive first impression gleaned from 50th Anniversary Collection. A glance at the sixty-one tune track-listing plus a cursory perusal of Kirk West's stellar photos inside the eighty-eight page booklet are also somewhat deceiving: while this ...
read moreJimmy Herring: Talkin' Blues, Bluegrass and More
by Alan Bryson
The spark of bringing together unusual combinations, like a classically trained bluegrass fiddler, a Cameroonian bassist, and a high energy guitarist, could have resulted in a musical culture clash, but for Jimmy Herring the bet paid off. While he might be modest and deferential on a personal level, his latest album is bold and expansive. It reveals a musician and composer comfortable tackling a wide array of styles and moods. “I thought of the studio itself an instrument, ...
read moreJimmy Herring: Subject to Change Without Notice
by AAJ Staff
With his first record since his stunning 2008 debut as a leader, Lifeboat (Abstract Logix), guitarist Jimmy Herring capitalizes on that album's strengths and ups the ante even further on Subject to Change Without Notice (Abstract Logix, 2012), featuring a core group of players with all the chemistry he needs, and some high-powered guest artists to ratchet things up even further. By Alan BrysonMy favorite groups and albums often have this in common: the whole is ...
read moreJimmy Herring: Subject to Change without Notice
by Ian Patterson
It's been four years since Lifeboat (Abstract Logix, 2008), guitarist Jimmy Herring's outstanding debut as leader. Herring hasn't been idle though, recording and touring with Widespread Panic. And given that it took several decades to make the first CD, four years isn't so long to wait for another-especially one this good. The emphasis is emphatically on melody, with tunes inspired, according to the guitarist, by the human voice. Herring's six-stringed voice is as sweet as a silver-tongued lark, but there's ...
read moreTalkin' Blues with Jimmy Herring
by Alan Bryson
Jimmy Herring is a musician who blurs lines, both in terms of genres and roles. Over the past two decades his work with the Aquarium Rescue Unit, Gov't Mule, The Allman Brothers Band, Frogwings, Phil Lesh & Friends, Project Z, Jazz is Dead, and Widespread Panic has cemented his position as one of the world's premier progressive rock guitarists. He has the uncanny ability to fuse the visceral power of rock with the ingenuity of jazz harmonics without diminishing the ...
read moreJimmy Herring: Lifeboat
by Ian Patterson
Jimmy Herring Lifeboat Abstract Logix 2008
Jimmy Herring is widely considered to be one of the greatest electric guitarists in the world. Long years lighting up the music of the Aquarium Rescue Unit, Jazz is Dead, Project Z and--in recent years--the Dead, Phil Lesh and Friends, and Widespread Panic have established his reputation as a guitarist with very few peers. Lifeboat, his first solo release, has plenty of electrifying playing from the man from ...
read moreJimmy Herring: Lifeboat
by John Kelman
No matter how adept they are at finding the place where rock energy and jazz harmony meets, fusion guitarists almost invariably favor one side of the equation. As raw and visceral as John McLaughlin and John Scofield can be, jazz remains the core of who they are, just as Jeff Beck and Carlos Santana are rockers at heart, despite occasionally turning to more jazz-centric material. Which makes Jimmy Herring all the rarer-- a guitarist sitting right in the middle, possessing ...
read moreComing Attractions Include Jimmy Herring, Snarky Puppy, Bett Butler
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St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman
Catching up with the contents of the email inbox here at StLJN HQ, here's info on three upcoming shows by touring musicians coming to town to promote new releases that may be of interest to StLJN readers: Guitarist Jimmy Herring will be coming to St. Louis to perform at 9:00 p.m. Wednesday, August 29 at the Old Rock House. Herring, who's currently working with the band Widespread Panic, has played with a “who's who" of the jam band world, including ...
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Jimmy Herring - Renowned Lead Guitarist Of Widespread Panic – Debuts New Album & Offers Free Download To Fans
Source:
Michelle Gutenstein
JIMMY HERRING - RENOWNED LEAD GUITARIST OF WIDESPREAD PANIC – DEBUTS NEW ALBUM & OFFERS FREE DOWNLOAD TO FANS SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE SET FOR AUGUST 21ST RELEASE ON ABSTRACT LOGIX FALL TOUR SET - INCLUDING DATES WITH VICTOR WOOTEN (Los Angeles) Beginning today, worldwide fans of guitar-great JIMMY HERRING will have the opportunity to hear all 10 tracks of his soon to be released solo album, Subject to Change Without Notice, by visiting JIMMY’s facebook page or the ...
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Abstract Logix to release New Universe Music Festival double-CD compilation featuring John McLaughlin, Jimmy Herring, Lenny White, Wayne Krantz, Zakir Hussain and more on July 19, 2011
Source:
Michael Ricci
On November 20 and 21, 2010, maverick record label Abstract Logix hosted a series of spectacular performances, featuring an array of artists who handily defy genre categorization in favor of unbridled expression. The first New Universe Music Festival, primarily sponsored by Godin Guitars and DIY Music was a die-hard music lover's dream, defined by artists who seamlessly mingle compositional ingenuity and improvisational grace and fervor. A double-CD compilation will be released on July 19, 2011, featuring pioneering guitarist John McLaughlin ...
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Jimmy Herring Tour Dates
Source:
JamBase
TOUR KICKS OFF THIS WEDNESDAY IN NORFOLK, CT Jimmy Herring is hittting the road with his current line-up, featuring Herring on guitar, drummer Jeff Sipe (Aquarium Rescue Unit, Jazz is Dead, Shawn Lane), keyboardist Matt Slocum (Susan Tedeschi, Derek Trucks), and Neal Fountain on bass (Col Bruce Hampton, Alex Machacek). Tour dates are below. The Jimmy Herring Band will be performing a wide range of material, including compositions from Herring's long- awaited and much-acclaimed 2008 solo debut Lifeboat. “The music ...
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Lenny White Tour with Jimmy Herring on Guitars
Source:
Michael Ricci
PIONEERING FUSION DRUMMER LENNY WHITE TO EMBARK ON FIRST SOLO TOUR IN OVER A DECADE
Via his genre-defining stint in Return To Forever, his long-admired contributions to Miles Davis's legendary Bitches Brew album, and sessions with everyone from Gil Evans to Stan Getz to Joe Henderson, Lenny White has played a crucial role in expanding the boundaries of jazz, adding a thrilling dose of rock muscle to its inherent improvisational fabric. His influence is widely felt, and his still-evolving creative ...
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Super Bad Sunday: Jimmy Herring
Source:
JamBase
WE LOVE SHREDZILLAS!
Welcome back to JamBase's new weekend triple shot that celebrates super gifted folks that play the holy heck out of their instruments for our listening pleasure. We began this new segment last week with Jeff Beck (check it out here) and continue this week with Widespread Panic lead guitarist and illustrious alumni of Aquarium Rescue Unit, Jazz Is Dead, Phil Lesh & Friends and more, Jimmy Herring. The mind of a jazz technician and the soul of ...
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Jimmy Herring Band Announces Summer Tourdates
Source:
Abstract Logix
If you live west of the Mississippi, it's time to get your jam on. Guitarist Jimmy Herring has announced 15 shows this summer, including stops in Wakarusa Festival on June 4 and Telluride Jazz on June 7. Pioneering a daring hybrid which crosses rock energy with the sophistication and improvisational fire of jazz, Herring's dynamic, exploratory guitar playing has been a key component of such renowned groups as the Aquarium Rescue Unit, Jazz is Dead, Project Z, and, most recently, ...
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Enter the Abstract Logix "Jimmy Herring - Lifeboat" Giveaway Contest
Source:
All About Jazz
All About Jazz members are invited to enter the Abstract Logix “Jimmy Herring - Lifeboat“ giveaway contest starting today. We'll select SIX winners to receive autographed copies of Lifeboat at the conclusion of the contest on June 21st. Click here to enter the contest
(Following Jimmy Herring at AAJ automatically enters you in the contest.)
Good luck! Your Friends at Abstract Logix
About Jimmy Herring and Lifeboat
They say, “It ain't braggin' if you can do ...
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Jimmy Herring: Don't Say No
Source:
JamBase
By: Dennis Cook
Jimmy Herring Superheroes don't always look super in their day-to-day lives. Case in point, Jimmy Herring, a quiet, perfectly gracious Southern man, who'll shake your hand and let you yack his ear off longer than he probably should. In short, the definition of mild mannered, but put an electric guitar in his hands and he is transformed into an octopus-fingered, quicksilver smooth marvel, notes gleaming as ...
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From: Lincoln MemorialBy Jimmy Herring
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Jimmy Herring
Instrument: Guitar
Born: January 22, 1962
Publicist: MAD Ink PR
