ERIC GALES - Blues guitar phenom Eric
Gales was born and raised in Memphis, learning to play at age four from older
brothers Eugene and Manuel in imitation of their upside-down, left-handed style
(a tradition actually passed down from their grandfather, Dempsey Garrett, Sr.,
who was known to jam with the likes of Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf). Winning
his first blues contest at 11, four years later Eric signed to Elektra to issue
his 1991 debut LP, recorded with Eugene on bass; Picture of a Thousand Faces
followed in 1993. Manuel (who previously performed under the alias Little Jimmy
King) reunited with his siblings for 1995's Left Hand Band, credited to the
Gales Brothers.
A newly matured Gales returned in spring 2001 to release his debut for MCA,
That's What I Am. Often billed as the second coming of Jimi Hendrix, Gales, an
adequate singer at best but a dynamite guitarist, suffered for the comparison.
Always influenced by Hendrix and the power trio format, Gales' next albums,
2006's Crystal Vision and 2007's Psychedelic Underground, both released by Blues
Bureau Records, seemed like facsimile Hendrix albums, right down to the album
art. His next two releases from Blues Bureau, 2008's The Story of My Life and
2009's Layin' Down the Blues, found the Hendrix influence muted somewhat, but
Gales, a breathtaking guitarist at times, still seemed to be looking for a way
out of the Hendrix shadow and into his own voice. Gales returned in 2010 with
Relentless, a collection of 13 originals.
~ Jason Ankeny & Steve Leggett, Rovi
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