Interview With Eric Culberson
Eric Culberson no doubt gets the question a lot... the one all musicians who don't have a multimillion-dollar contract in hand, a platinum album on the charts and a regular gig at a high-dollar venue are frequently asked: Why do you keep doing this?
But the Savannah, Georgia Blues guitarist, whose first gig was playing "Silent Night" at a school Christmas program when he was 6 years old, has a ready answer.
But the Savannah, Georgia Blues guitarist, whose first gig was playing "Silent Night" at a school Christmas program when he was 6 years old, has a ready answer.
by Carlton Fletcher
"I still love playing," Culberson says, simply. "As long as I hold onto that feeling and we keep moving forward with what we're doing, it's easy to keep playing. The gigs are getting better, the music's getting better, the money's getting better, and I'm getting better.
"People who don't love music can't understand; this is not a job to me, it's a way of life."
Culberson, now 40, has been playing guitar for almost 35 years. He got the bug watching his father, his sister and his brother-in-law play when he was a pre-schooler, and after a few impromptu lessons, he quickly picked up the simple dynamics. Three albums into what is an increasingly promising career, he's now hailed as one of the country's finest young practitioners of Blues guitar.
"I've always listened to all types of music, from Abba to Frank Zappa" Culberson said. "But I always loved the diversity of Blues music. It can be applied to all different types of music... you can go funky, old-school Delta, mambo, rock and roll... you can do everything with Blues.
"I listened to heavy metal, heard what artists like Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton did with Blues music. But I've always loved the old masters ? Muddy Waters, Albert and Freddie King, Albert Collins, Hound Dog Taylor, Buddy Guy, Otis Rush."
"People who don't love music can't understand; this is not a job to me, it's a way of life."
Culberson, now 40, has been playing guitar for almost 35 years. He got the bug watching his father, his sister and his brother-in-law play when he was a pre-schooler, and after a few impromptu lessons, he quickly picked up the simple dynamics. Three albums into what is an increasingly promising career, he's now hailed as one of the country's finest young practitioners of Blues guitar.
"I've always listened to all types of music, from Abba to Frank Zappa" Culberson said. "But I always loved the diversity of Blues music. It can be applied to all different types of music... you can go funky, old-school Delta, mambo, rock and roll... you can do everything with Blues.
"I listened to heavy metal, heard what artists like Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton did with Blues music. But I've always loved the old masters ? Muddy Waters, Albert and Freddie King, Albert Collins, Hound Dog Taylor, Buddy Guy, Otis Rush."
Culberson and his rhythm section - drummer Stuart Lusk and bassist Nate Saraceno - have begun to develop the "ESP" the guitarist says is necessary to become a top-notch band.
"I've known Stuart almost 13 years, and we've sandwiched time playing together around the time he went to college," Culberson said. "Nate's been with us for the last year and a half, and I think our music has come a long way. We're communicating now, forming that ESP that bands need, and I think we're playing some of our best stuff."
"I've known Stuart almost 13 years, and we've sandwiched time playing together around the time he went to college," Culberson said. "Nate's been with us for the last year and a half, and I think our music has come a long way. We're communicating now, forming that ESP that bands need, and I think we're playing some of our best stuff."
You can here Culberson and company doing what they do best on their latest album, the critically acclaimed "Live at the Bamboo Room," which was recorded at Lake Worth, Florida last year. The disc follows earlier releases "Blues Is My Religion" and "No Rules to the Game." And you can see the band play locally at Charley B's in Albany June 30.
You can here Culberson and company doing what they do best on their latest album, the critically acclaimed "Live at the Bamboo Room," which was recorded at Lake Worth, Florida last year. The disc follows earlier releases "Blues Is My Religion" and "No Rules to the Game." And you can see the band play locally at Charley B's in Albany June 30.
"We're looking forward to coming there," Culberson said. "As long as there are some people there who love the Blues, we'll have a good time. We've played with some of the legendary Blues artists at festivals and at larger venues, but some of our best nights have been at dive bars with maybe a half-dozen people listening."
If Culberson's love of the Blues was not enough to sustain him musically, he got a big boost recently while listening to an interview with Buddy Guy during an NPR radio broadcast.
"The interviewer asked Buddy Guy - this legendary Blues man - if he'd heard any young musicians that fans should be listening to, and Buddy mentioned my name and my album, which I'd recently given him a copy of," Culberson said, a touch of awe in his voice. "It's an awesome feeling knowing that someone like that appreciates what we're doing to keep the Blues alive."
That's enough to keep a guitar man on the road another 35 years.
If Culberson's love of the Blues was not enough to sustain him musically, he got a big boost recently while listening to an interview with Buddy Guy during an NPR radio broadcast.
"The interviewer asked Buddy Guy - this legendary Blues man - if he'd heard any young musicians that fans should be listening to, and Buddy mentioned my name and my album, which I'd recently given him a copy of," Culberson said, a touch of awe in his voice. "It's an awesome feeling knowing that someone like that appreciates what we're doing to keep the Blues alive."
That's enough to keep a guitar man on the road another 35 years.
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