When Kenny Wayne Shepherd began popping up on the mainstream’s radar as a child prodigy, some met him with cynicism. More than 20 years later, he says he dealt with those critics by letting the music speak for itself.
“They’d just see this 13-year-old wanting to sit in with bands,” Shepherd says. “The minute someone gave me a chance to play, it silenced most.”
While Shepherd’s natural guitar ability could stifle the haters, singing hasn’t come easily – partly because he wanted to sound like Muddy Waters.
“I’m a naturally born guitarist, not a born singer,” he admits. Shepherd sang lead on one song in his first three records. His self-consciousness grew almost phobic.
“It’s like the first time you hear your greeting on your answering machine, but amplified,” he says.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of Shepherd’s debut album Ledbetter Heights and he says the milestone has put him in a perpetual state of gratitude.
“A lot of people would do anything to have a career as a professional musician for even a short amount of time,” he says. “And I’ve had a career, and have been successful, for 20 years.”
Shepherd’s eighth Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band record, 2014’s Goin’ Home, was nominated for Blues Music Awards Blues Rock Album of the Year and marks his best.
On top of heartfelt covers of Bo Diddley’s keyboard jam “You Can’t Judge A Book By The Cover” and a soulful ode to Freddie King “Palace of the King,” Goin’ Home’s brilliance reveals itself by way of restraint. Flooded with special guests, including Rebirth Brass Band, Ringo and Robert Randolph, Shepherd allows the attention to shine elsewhere.
Shepherd has a new record with his band The Rides, a blues-rock trio that includes Stephen Stills and Barry Goldberg. The album features mostly originals, including “The Groove,” which Shepherd likens to a Rolling Stones jam. With legendary songwriters like Stills in the mix, The Rides provides an education.
“I’ve learned a lot just through the way [Stills] sees the world,” Shepherd says. “He can pick out ordinary, everyday things to write amazing lyrics out of.”
KENNY WAYNE SHEPHERD BAND 8pm Friday, March 13. Golden State Theatre, 417 Alvarado St., Monterey. $27-$52. 649-1070.