Jeff Sipe (Drums, Percussion), Oteil Burbridge( Bass), Kofi Burbridge ( Keys and Flute), Matt Slocum (Clavinet), Greg Osby (Sax), Derek Trucks (Slide Guitar), Bobby Lee Rodgers (Leslie and Slide Guitar), Tyler Greenwell (Drums), Scott Kinsey (Organ), Ike Stubblefield (B3)
Always gutsy, adventurous, and melodic, never dorky or disingenuous, this under-recognized guitar hero just might have the power to make the F-, P-, and J-words (fusion, prog, and jam, as in “jam band”) good words again. Abstract Logix. —Jude Gold, Guitar Player Magazine
Lifeboat is Jimmy Herring’s album, and in that sense, he’s proven himself to be a great bandleader. But, more importantly, he’s opened himself up to us personally with this album, and – if you didn’t know it already – he’s a good soul. With a lot of heart. - Brian Robbins, Jambands.com
Herring's ability to confidently mix things up while playing with a refreshing honesty and lack of posturing throughout makes Lifeboat as rare a fusion record as he is a fusion guitarist. - John Kelman, All About Jazz
Lifeboat is further testimony to Herring's incandescent talent for songwriting, guitar virtuosity and his ability to serve as a catalyst for other accomplished musicians to streamline a coherent sound. Jimmy Herring ranks as one of the most gifted guitar players walking the planet...and music continues to be his everlasting lifeboat. - Swampland.com
I know I’m listening to a great guitar instrumental album when I forget that I’m listening to a guitar instrumental album. In other words, when the music grabs me more than the guitar playing. That’s what happens with Lifeboat. While the guitar playing is amazing, the music itself is equally good.- Guitar Lifestyle
Without question, this is one of the most inventive, fresh, and moving jazz releases of the year, and it's a huge triumph for Herring. - Rich Murray, Guitar Channel
Jimmy Herring's star is rising on the guitar horizon. He is one of the freshest new voices I've heard in many a year. He has successfully integrated his many fold influences while at the same time has found his own voice. No mean achievement! His future in music is assured. - John McLaughlin, Guitar Legend
Jimmy Herring, one of the best I have every played with. - Billy Cobham, Drum Legend
Influences
Allan Holdsworth, John McLaughlin, John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Bruce Hampton and many many more that wont even fit here in this little space
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.
Lifeboat will amaze people discovering Jimmy Herring for the first time…and surprise long-time fans as well.
Jimmy Herring - The Lifeboat Story (2008)
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Hope to see you there
Buy your tickets now.
1st come 1st serve camping.
$50 weekend pass $5 parking
Early entry is Noon, Thursday, July 30th for an additional $10.
thank you thank you thank you for the shows this past weekend!!! i caught you guys at cervantes, which was so amazing that i drove through my home in rock springs wyo. snagged my dude and hit slc last night.. seeing jimmy smile as he ripped out the sounds that literally sooth my soul right in front of my face is hands down one of the coolest experiences i have had yet!! see ya at mile high, & 10,000 lakes with jb and the rest of the boys.. cant wait!! much love and thank you again.
Hey Jimmy, Thanks for the add, happy to be a new friend! I've been following your career for about 10 years now (1st show JID, Fox Theatre, Boulder '99). Saw you this weekend in Denver, great shows, great band! You never cease to amaze... Be well!
Thanks so much for the Add–and your friendship. We enjoyed your music very much. Thanks for sharing it with all of us. It's a pleasure having you among our friends!
We've just added two new blogs about Umano, plus four more new compositions, making ten on our space. We hope you and your friends visit us and enjoy our music, too.
We wake up every morning and play the music of the new MySpace friends who have arrived at our site during the night. It occurred to us that these friends (you are among them) are almost universally positive, whether they be novices or legends, and without regard to their station in life or the country they occupy.
Although it's not an original thought, it also occurred to us that we couldn’t hold a verbal conversation with most of these friends, but we have bridged that gap by expressing our art honestly with each other.
We all have been filling the world with our music and art, in the hope that our messages of love and human understanding will have an impact on the world at large.
What a gift and what an opportunity we have received from this technology!
Hey Jimmy! Thanx so much for the add. Hope and wish you'll be able to play in Chicago with your band. It's been way too long of a wait!!! All the best to you and your family.
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