In 1983, Bob Dylan wrote "no one can sing the blues like Blind Willie McTell." Who was Blind Willie? Where was he from? And what songs of his remain in permanent rotation in 2022?
The Steely Dan and Doobie Brothers legend sits down to share gear war stories, explain what makes a good session player, and discuss his first solo album, the brilliant Speed of Heat
Article Contributed by Dennis McNally | Published on Thursday, May 27, 2021
It takes enormous talent and skill to be good enough to be on the stage at all stars are well and good, but without the musicians outside the spotlight, you don’t have much.
Gary Vogensen has been one of those guys for nearly fifty years, and as you’ll hear in
Shot of Hope, there were excellent reasons why he’s been up on all those stages.
“Music was always there,” he recalls of his childhood in San Rafael, CA. He grew up singing in choirs his mother said that he sang in tune before he could talk. Then he heard James Burton, whose riffs propelled Ricky Nelson’s “Hello Marylou” and “Traveling Man” to the top. Mom kindly bought Gary a guitar when he was 17, and he never put it down. Vocally, he lists influences ranging from George Jones to The Mills Brothers, the Beach Boys and Ray Charles…and about a million other Country, Soul, Gospel, and R&B singers.