Derek Trucks

Derek Trucks is an American guitarist born in Florida on June 8, 1979.

Related Topics:
American - Guitarist - Florida - June 8 - 1979

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Trucks took up the guitar at age 9, and it was quickly apparent that he was a child prodigy. He was playing with a band and touring within two years. His early repertoire was heavily blues-based, obviously inspired by The Allman Brothers Band, of which his uncle, drummer Butch Trucks, is a founding member. Older bluesmen like Howlin' Wolf, jazz musicians Miles Davis, Sun Ra, John Coltrane, and later Wayne Shorter and many others, became an influence for Trucks a few years later. Eastern Music, mainly Indian Classical, also impacted Trucks's musical development, primarily his slide guitar playing, which is often compared to that of Duane Allman but is also heavily influenced by sarod players like Ali Akbar Khan.

Related Topics:
Guitar - Child prodigy - Blues - The Allman Brothers Band - Butch Trucks - Howlin' Wolf - Jazz - Miles Davis - Sun Ra - John Coltrane - Wayne Shorter - Slide guitar - Duane Allman - Sarod - Ali Akbar Khan

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The Derek Trucks Band was formed in 1994, and has been Trucks's primary musical outlet ever since.

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The current members of the band are:

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• Derek Trucks – guitar
• Kofi Burbridge – keyboards, flute, and vocals (and brother of Allman Brothers bassist Oteil Burbridge)
• Todd Smallie – bass and vocals
• Yonrico Scott – drums, percussion, and vocals
• Mike Mattison – lead vocals

In 1999, Derek Trucks joined his uncle, drummer Butch Trucks, as a member of The Allman Brothers Band, while continuing to lead his own band.

Related Topics:
Butch Trucks - The Allman Brothers Band

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Trucks's guitar playing is unusual in a number of respects. He steadfastly avoids processing and effects, preferring to get the purest tone possible by connecting his guitar directly to his amplifier. He modifies his tone with the controls on the guitar. He also plays without the use of a plectrum, or pick: instead uses his fingers, plucking primarily with the thumb, index and middle fingers, but also using the ring finger on occasion. He developed his particular technique himself. His guitar is always tuned basically to "Open E." (From the low to high string, basically EBEG#Be. Trucks also slightly detunes his low E string.) Open E is a normal tuning for slide players, as it allows them to form chords more easily, but over the years he has become a stronger lead player and still does not revert to standard tuning (EADGBe).

Related Topics:
Amplifier - Plectrum

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In 2001, Trucks married singer/guitarist Susan Tedeschi. The couple have two children: Charles Kahlil Trucks (born March 8, 2002), and Sophia Naima Trucks (born August 9, 2004). Charles is named for saxophonist Charlie Parker and guitarist Charlie Christian; his middle name is taken from author Khalil Gibran. The name Sophia has mystic overtones (meaning "Wisdom" in Greek), and the unusual middle name comes from the Coltrane ballad.

Related Topics:
2001 - Susan Tedeschi - Charlie Parker - Charlie Christian - Khalil Gibran

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Derek Trucks: Discography ►