Chicago-based guitarist Melvin Taylor is a star in Europe, but it may take
some time for U.S. audiences to catch on to just how phenomenally talented
a bluesman he is. Part of the problem for Taylor may be his own natural
eclecticism. He's equally adept playing jazz or blues, but in the last few
years, he's forged a name for himself as a blues guitarist with a slew of
releases for Evidence Music. Taylor may well be the most talented new guitarist
to come along since Stevie Ray Vaughan.
Taylor
was born in Mississippi but raised in Chicago after the family moved there
in 1962. He learned guitar from his mother's brother, Uncle Floyd Vaughan,
who jammed to tunes by Muddy Waters, Jimmy Reed and Howlin' Wolf with his
buddies. By the time Taylor was 12, he was sitting in with his uncle and
other grown-ups at those sessions. Almost entirely self-taught, the young
Taylor learned slide playing, finger-picking and flat-picking styles from
his favorite recordings by B.B. King, Albert King and Jimi Hendrix.
In
his teens, Taylor joined the Transistors, a group managed by his future
father-in-law, and they made their mark playing popular music of the 1970s
at talent shows and night clubs. After the Transistors broke up in the early
1980s, Taylor again devoted his full attention to playing blues in the Windy
City's West Side clubs. Shortly after, pianist Joe Willie "Pinetop"
Perkins came looking for a guitarist for a string of European dates. Taylor
joined the Legendary Blues Band for a year and made such an impact in Europe
that several club and festival bookers wanted him back with his own group.
Since the late 1980s, he's been making regular tours of Europe, often backed
by former members of the Transistors, where they opened for the likes of
B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Santana, George Benson and Canned Heat.
Aside
from taking his musical inspiration from guitar heroes like Albert King,
B.B. King and Stevie Ray Vaughan, Taylor also became enamored with the jazz
stylings of George Benson and Wes Montgomery, incorporating their styles
into his playing.
Taylor's
recordings include two he first recorded for a French label that have seen
been reissued on the Pennsylvania-based Evidence Music: Blues on the Run,
originally recorded in 1982, and 1984's Melvin Taylor Plays the Blues for
You. Back in the U.S., Taylor continued to build a buzz around the strength
of his marathon live shows at Rosa's Lounge and other venues in Chicago.
Several small labels tried to sign Taylor, but they weren't successful.
In 1995, Taylor was signed to Evidence Music and entered the studio with
blues impresario John Snyder to record his debut for the label, Melvin Taylor
and the Slack Band, which showcased his original songwriting. He returned
in late 1996 to record his second U.S. album, Dirty Pool. Taylor's debut
remains the Evidence label's best-selling release ever. Both records showcase
Taylor's awe-inspiring guitar playing and original renderings of classic
Chicago blues tunes. Bang the Bell followed in 2000, featuring racy cover
art and a somewhat funk-influenced sound, but it was his teaming with Lucky
Peterson and Mato Nanji on 2002's Rendezvous With the Blues that cemented
his reputation as a mainstay in the American blues and roots rock scene.