Tommy Emmanuel
Encyclopedia
William Thomas "Tommy" Emmanuel AM (born 31 May 1955) is an Australia
n guitarist
, best known for his complex fingerpicking style, energetic performances and the use of percussive effects on the guitar. In the May 2008 and 2010 issues of Guitar Player
Magazine, he was named as "Best Acoustic Guitarist" in their readers' poll. In June 2010 Emmanuel was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia
(AM).
in 1959 at age four, being taught by his mother to accompany her playing lap steel guitar
. At the age of 7 he heard Chet Atkins
on the radio. He vividly remembers this moment and says it greatly inspired him.
By the age of 6, in 1961, he was a working professional musician. Recognizing the musical talents of Tommy and his brother Phil, their father created a family band
, sold the family home and took his family on the road. With the family living in two station wagons, much of Emmanuel’s childhood was spent touring Australia
with his family, playing rhythm guitar
, and rarely going to school. The family found it difficult living on the road; they were poor but never hungry, never settling in one place. His father would often drive ahead, organize interviews, advertising and finding the local music shop where they'd have an impromptu concert the next day. Eventually the New South Wales Department of Education insisted that the Emmanuel children needed to go to school regularly.
After his father died in 1966, the family settled in Parkes. Tommy eventually moved to Sydney where he came to be noticed nationally when he won a string of talent contests in his teen years. By the late 1970s, he was playing drums with his brother Phil in the group Goldrush as well doing session work on numerous albums and jingles. He gained further prominence in the late 1970s as the lead guitarist in The Southern Star Band, the backing group for vocalist Doug Parkinson
. During the early 1980s, he joined the reformed lineup of leading '70s rock group Dragon
, touring widely with them, including a 1987 tour with Tina Turner
. He left the group to embark on a solo career.
Throughout his career he has played with many notable artists including Chet Atkins
, Eric Clapton
, Sir George Martin
, Air Supply
, John Denver
, Les Paul
and Doc Watson
.
In 1994 Australian music veteran John Farnham
invited him to play guitar next to Stuart Fraser from Noiseworks
for the Concert For Rwanda. Emmanuel became a member of Farnham's band.
Emmanuel and his brother Phil performed live in Sydney at the closing ceremony of the Summer Olympics in 2000. The event was televised worldwide with an estimated 2.85 billion viewers. When performing together the pair will sometimes share and play just one guitar with each having one hand free.
In October 2002 he was invited to perform the Australian folk song Waltzing Matilda
at a service at the Washington National Cathedral
held for the victims of the Bali bombings
.
In December 2007 he was diagnosed with heart issues and was forced to take a break from his hectic touring schedule due to exhaustion, but returned to full-time touring in early 2008.
In late January 2010, having been deeply touched by the tragic 2010 Haiti earthquake
earlier in the same month, Emmanuel announced that he would be auctioning off three guitars, that he personally played and owned, on eBay
, in order to raise money to donate to UNICEF in Haiti.
In June 2010 Emmanuel was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia
(AM).
Emmanuel has said that even at a young age he was fascinated by Atkins’ musical style – sometimes referred to as Travis picking – of playing bass with the thumb and melody parts with the first two or three fingers at the same time. This technique became the basis of Tommy's guitar style.
While Emmanuel has never had formal music training, his playing ability has won him fans from all over the world. He is known to play percussion parts on the body of his guitar. As a solo performer he never plays to a set list and uses a minimum of effects. He usually completes recordings in one take.
Emmanuel frequently uses his left thumb to fret bass notes on the 5th and 6th strings as well as playing chords such as Am and E with just two fingers. He uses a thumb pick mostly, a flat pick or just fingers. He also integrates amongst his trademark blazing runs and kaleidoscopic chord progressions a quick note / chord "dive," imitating a tremolo system effect on his fixed-bridge acoustic guitars, by pressing the palm of his right hand against the body of the guitar directly above the fret board close to the neck joint while maintaining forward pressure with his left (fretting) hand.
His main guitar is a small-bodied custom Maton
EBG808, that is fitted with a pickup and an internal condenser microphone, to which he has given the nickname "Mouse" due to its quieter volume unplugged but massive sound when plugged into an amp. Two of his three main stage guitars, notably his signature TE1 Maton dreadnought, are battered and worn from his excessive playing and percussive techniques on them. He recently stated at a workshop during his annual festival, Tommyfest UK (2008), that all three of his stage guitars have been broken and repaired numerous times over the years.
In 1997, Emmanuel and Atkins recorded as a duo and released the album The Day Finger Pickers Took Over The World, which was also to be Atkins' last recorded album before he died. Emmanuel and Atkins appeared together on The Nashville Network's 'County Christmas' in late 1997 and on that occasion Atkins stated about him: "He is one of the greatest guitar players I've ever seen."
In July 1999, at the 15th Annual Chet Atkins Appreciation Society Convention, Chet presented Tommy with a Certified Guitar Player award, an honor Atkins has bestowed on other guitarists. This award gains its fame from being bestowed by Atkins himself, a widely recognized leader in guitar music. The award states: "In Recognition Of His Contributions to the Art Of Fingerpicking." Tommy performs at the Chet Atkins Appreciation Society (CAAS) in July each year in Nashville.
Emmanuel released the DVD "Live At Her Majesty's Theatre, Ballarat, Australia" on 11 July 2006 and also the "Center Stage" accompanying DVD in late 2008.
Emmanuel has produced 3 instructional videos: Guitar Talk (1993), Up Close (1996), Emmanuel Labor (2008)
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
, best known for his complex fingerpicking style, energetic performances and the use of percussive effects on the guitar. In the May 2008 and 2010 issues of Guitar Player
Guitar Player
Guitar Player is a popular magazine for guitarists founded in 1967. It contains articles, interviews, reviews and lessons of an eclectic collection of artists, genres and products. It has been in print since the late 1960s and during the 1980s, under editor Tom Wheeler, the publication was...
Magazine, he was named as "Best Acoustic Guitarist" in their readers' poll. In June 2010 Emmanuel was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia
Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
(AM).
Biography
Emmanuel was born in Australia in 1955. He received his first guitarGuitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
in 1959 at age four, being taught by his mother to accompany her playing lap steel guitar
Lap steel guitar
The lap steel guitar is a type of steel guitar, an instrument derived from and similar to the guitar. The player changes pitch by pressing a metal or glass bar against the strings instead of by pressing strings against the fingerboard....
. At the age of 7 he heard Chet Atkins
Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins , known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, created the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.Atkins's picking style, inspired by Merle...
on the radio. He vividly remembers this moment and says it greatly inspired him.
By the age of 6, in 1961, he was a working professional musician. Recognizing the musical talents of Tommy and his brother Phil, their father created a family band
Band (music)
In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
, sold the family home and took his family on the road. With the family living in two station wagons, much of Emmanuel’s childhood was spent touring Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
with his family, playing rhythm guitar
Rhythm guitar
Rhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...
, and rarely going to school. The family found it difficult living on the road; they were poor but never hungry, never settling in one place. His father would often drive ahead, organize interviews, advertising and finding the local music shop where they'd have an impromptu concert the next day. Eventually the New South Wales Department of Education insisted that the Emmanuel children needed to go to school regularly.
After his father died in 1966, the family settled in Parkes. Tommy eventually moved to Sydney where he came to be noticed nationally when he won a string of talent contests in his teen years. By the late 1970s, he was playing drums with his brother Phil in the group Goldrush as well doing session work on numerous albums and jingles. He gained further prominence in the late 1970s as the lead guitarist in The Southern Star Band, the backing group for vocalist Doug Parkinson
Doug Parkinson
Douglas "Doug" Parkinson is an Australian singer who first came to fame with his band, Doug Parkinson In Focus, in 1969. He has had numerous hits on the Australian Top 40 charts.-Career:...
. During the early 1980s, he joined the reformed lineup of leading '70s rock group Dragon
Dragon (band)
Dragon is a popular New Zealand rock band, they were formed in Auckland, New Zealand in January 1972 and relocated to Sydney, Australia in May 1975. They were previously led by singer Marc Hunter and are currently led by his brother bass player Todd Hunter...
, touring widely with them, including a 1987 tour with Tina Turner
Tina Turner
Tina Turner is an American singer and actress whose career has spanned more than 50 years. She has won numerous awards and her achievements in the rock music genre have led many to call her the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll".Turner started out her music career with husband Ike Turner as a member of the...
. He left the group to embark on a solo career.
Throughout his career he has played with many notable artists including Chet Atkins
Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins , known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, created the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.Atkins's picking style, inspired by Merle...
, Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
, Sir George Martin
George Martin
Sir George Henry Martin CBE is an English record producer, arranger, composer and musician. He is sometimes referred to as "the Fifth Beatle"— a title that he often describes as "nonsense," but the fact remains that he served as producer on all but one of The Beatles' original albums...
, Air Supply
Air Supply
Air Supply is an Australian soft rock duo, consisting of Graham Russell as guitarist and singer-songwriter and Russell Hitchcock as lead vocalist. They had a succession of hits worldwide, including eight Top Ten hits in the United States, in the early 1980s...
, John Denver
John Denver
Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr. , known professionally as John Denver, was an American singer/songwriter, activist, and humanitarian. After growing up in numerous locations with his military family, Denver began his music career in folk music groups in the late 1960s. His greatest commercial success...
, Les Paul
Les Paul
Lester William Polsfuss —known as Les Paul—was an American jazz and country guitarist, songwriter and inventor. He was a pioneer in the development of the solid-body electric guitar which made the sound of rock and roll possible. He is credited with many recording innovations...
and Doc Watson
Doc Watson
Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson is an American guitar player, songwriter and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues and gospel music. He has won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Watson's flatpicking skills and knowledge of traditional American music are highly regarded...
.
In 1994 Australian music veteran John Farnham
John Farnham
John Peter Farnham, AO, formerly billed as Johnny Farnham , is an English-born Australian pop singer. He was a teen pop idol from 1964 to 1979, and has since forged a career as an adult contemporary singer. His career has mostly been as a solo artist although he briefly replaced Glenn Shorrock as...
invited him to play guitar next to Stuart Fraser from Noiseworks
Noiseworks
Noiseworks is an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1986 with bass guitarist Steve Balbi, guitarist Stuart Fraser, drummer Kevin Nicol, keyboardist Justin Stanley and lead vocalist Jon Stevens...
for the Concert For Rwanda. Emmanuel became a member of Farnham's band.
Emmanuel and his brother Phil performed live in Sydney at the closing ceremony of the Summer Olympics in 2000. The event was televised worldwide with an estimated 2.85 billion viewers. When performing together the pair will sometimes share and play just one guitar with each having one hand free.
In October 2002 he was invited to perform the Australian folk song Waltzing Matilda
Waltzing Matilda
"Waltzing Matilda" is Australia's most widely known bush ballad. A country folk song, the song has been referred to as "the unofficial national anthem of Australia"....
at a service at the Washington National Cathedral
Washington National Cathedral
The Washington National Cathedral, officially named the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, is a cathedral of the Episcopal Church located in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. Of neogothic design, it is the sixth-largest cathedral in the world, the second-largest in...
held for the victims of the Bali bombings
Bali bombings
Bali bombings can refer to either of two separate incidents on the Indonesian island of Bali:* The 2002 Bali bombings, occurred on 12 October 2002 in the tourist district of Kuta on the Indonesian island of Bali...
.
In December 2007 he was diagnosed with heart issues and was forced to take a break from his hectic touring schedule due to exhaustion, but returned to full-time touring in early 2008.
In late January 2010, having been deeply touched by the tragic 2010 Haiti earthquake
2010 Haiti earthquake
The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake, with an epicentre near the town of Léogâne, approximately west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital. The earthquake occurred at 16:53 local time on Tuesday, 12 January 2010.By 24 January, at least 52 aftershocks...
earlier in the same month, Emmanuel announced that he would be auctioning off three guitars, that he personally played and owned, on eBay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
, in order to raise money to donate to UNICEF in Haiti.
In June 2010 Emmanuel was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia
Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
(AM).
Musical style
While Emmanuel has never had formal music training, his playing ability has won him fans from all over the world. He is known to play percussion parts on the body of his guitar. As a solo performer he never plays to a set list and uses a minimum of effects. He usually completes recordings in one take.
Emmanuel frequently uses his left thumb to fret bass notes on the 5th and 6th strings as well as playing chords such as Am and E with just two fingers. He uses a thumb pick mostly, a flat pick or just fingers. He also integrates amongst his trademark blazing runs and kaleidoscopic chord progressions a quick note / chord "dive," imitating a tremolo system effect on his fixed-bridge acoustic guitars, by pressing the palm of his right hand against the body of the guitar directly above the fret board close to the neck joint while maintaining forward pressure with his left (fretting) hand.
His main guitar is a small-bodied custom Maton
Maton
Maton is an Australian manufacturer of guitars and other fretted musical instruments.Maton was founded in 1946 as the Maton Musical Instruments Company by Bill May and his brother Reg...
EBG808, that is fitted with a pickup and an internal condenser microphone, to which he has given the nickname "Mouse" due to its quieter volume unplugged but massive sound when plugged into an amp. Two of his three main stage guitars, notably his signature TE1 Maton dreadnought, are battered and worn from his excessive playing and percussive techniques on them. He recently stated at a workshop during his annual festival, Tommyfest UK (2008), that all three of his stage guitars have been broken and repaired numerous times over the years.
Association with Chet Atkins
As a young man in Australia, Emmanuel wrote to his hero Chet Atkins in Nashville. Eventually Atkins replied with words of encouragement and a longstanding invitation to drop by to visit.In 1997, Emmanuel and Atkins recorded as a duo and released the album The Day Finger Pickers Took Over The World, which was also to be Atkins' last recorded album before he died. Emmanuel and Atkins appeared together on The Nashville Network's 'County Christmas' in late 1997 and on that occasion Atkins stated about him: "He is one of the greatest guitar players I've ever seen."
In July 1999, at the 15th Annual Chet Atkins Appreciation Society Convention, Chet presented Tommy with a Certified Guitar Player award, an honor Atkins has bestowed on other guitarists. This award gains its fame from being bestowed by Atkins himself, a widely recognized leader in guitar music. The award states: "In Recognition Of His Contributions to the Art Of Fingerpicking." Tommy performs at the Chet Atkins Appreciation Society (CAAS) in July each year in Nashville.
Discography
- 1979 From Out Of NowhereFrom Out of Nowhere (Tommy Emmanuel album)From Out of Nowhere is an album by Australian guitarist Tommy Emmanuel, released in 1979. It is Emmanuel's first solo recording and features pedal steel player Pee Wee Clark...
- 1987 Up From Down UnderUp From Down UnderUp From Down Under is an album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel. It was re-released as Two Originals: Up From Down Under/Dare to Be Different by Sony.-Track listing:# "Up From Down Under"# "Raindance"# "Daybreak"...
- 1990 Dare to Be Different
- 1992 DeterminationDetermination (Tommy Emmanuel album)Determination is an album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel.It was re-released by Sony International along with Terra Firma in 2004.-Track listing:#"Who Dares Wins"#"Mountain of Truth"#"Determination"#"'Cross the Nullabor"#"Initiation"...
- 1993 The JourneyThe Journey (Tommy Emmanuel album)The Journey is an album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel. The Canadian and US releases do not include "Amy" which is on the original Australian release.It was re-released by Sony International along with Classical Gas in 2003.-Track listing:...
- 1993 The Journey ContinuesThe Journey Continues (Tommy Emmanuel album)The Journey Continues is an album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel. It is a double CD release and contains the original Australian release of The Journey plus nine additional songs.-Track listing:# "Tailin' The Invisible Man"# "Big Brother"...
- 1995 InitiationInitiation (Tommy Emmanuel album)Initiation is an album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel, released in 1995. Some songs were released on The Journey Continues.-Track listing:#"The Hunt"# "Day Tripper/Lady Madonna" # "Initiation"# "Precious Time"...
- 1995 Terra FirmaTerra Firma (Tommy Emmanuel album)Terra Firma is an album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel and his brother, Phil Emmanuel.It was re-released by Sony International along with Determination in 2004.-Track listing:# "Back on the Terra Firma"# "Love Gone West"...
(with Phil Emmanuel) - 1995 Classical GasClassical Gas (Tommy Emmanuel album)Classical Gas is an album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel, backed by the Australian Philharmonic Orchestra.It was re-released by Sony along with The Journey in 2003.-Track listing:# "Classical Gas" # "The Journey"...
- 1996 Can't Get EnoughMidnight Drive (Tommy Emmanuel album)Midnight Drive LP is an album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel. This release is called Can't Get Enough on its original release in Australia...
- 1997 Midnight DriveMidnight Drive (Tommy Emmanuel album)Midnight Drive LP is an album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel. This release is called Can't Get Enough on its original release in Australia...
(US release of Can't Get Enough) - 1997 The Day Finger Pickers Took Over The WorldThe Day Finger Pickers Took Over the WorldThe Day Finger Pickers Took Over the World is an album by US guitar player Chet Atkins with Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel. Recorded when Chet was 73, this would be his last release of original material in the 20th century....
(With Chet AtkinsChet AtkinsChester Burton Atkins , known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, created the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.Atkins's picking style, inspired by Merle...
) - 1998 CollaborationCollaboration (Tommy Emmanuel album)Collaboration is an album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel, released in 1998. It was re-released as Two Originals along with Can't Get Enough on CD in 2004 by Sony...
- 2000 OnlyOnly (Tommy Emmanuel album)Only is an album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel. It is Emmanuel's first solo acoustic guitar release.-Track listing:All songs written by Tommy Emmanuel.#"Those Who Wait” – 4:19#"I've Always Thought of You" – 3:40#"Mombasa" – 3:01...
- 2001 The Very Best of Tommy Emmanuel
- 2004 Endless RoadEndless RoadEndless Road is an album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel. It was originally released in Emmanuel's native Australia in 2002. It was later released in the United States in 2005 with two extra tracks....
- 2005 Live OneLive One (Tommy Emmanuel album)Live One is a live double album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel.-CD1 Track listing:#"Beatles Medley"#"Peter Allen Medley/Waltzing Matilda"#"Classical Gas"#"Old Fashioned Love Song"#"Son of a Gun"#"Dixie MacGuire"#"Country Wide"#"Saltwater"...
- 2006 Happy HourHappy Hour (Tommy Emmanuel album)Happy Hour is an album by Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel and Jim Nichols. It was originally titled Chet Lag and contains two additional tunes.-Track listing:#"Happy Hour" # "Nine Pound Hammer"...
(with Jim Nichols) - 2006 The MysteryThe Mystery (album)The Mystery is a Grammy nominated album by Australian guitarist Tommy Emmanuel, released in 2006.-Track listing:All songs by Tommy Emmanuel unless otherwise noted.#"Cantina Senese” – 1:53#"Gameshow Rag/Cannonball Rag" – 2:26...
- 2008 Center StageCenter Stage (Tommy Emmanuel album)Center Stage is a live album by the Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel, released in 2008. It contains two CDs, and is the 21st album he released.- First CD :#The Finger Lakes #Papa George #Train to Duesseldorf #I Go To Rio...
- 2009 Just Between Frets (with Frank Vignola)
- 2010 Little by LittleLittle by Little (album)Little by Little is the 17th studio album of Australian guitarist Tommy Emmanuel, released in 2010.- First CD :#Half Way Home#The Jolly Swagman#Locomotivation#Haba Na Haba #Tears For Jerusalem#Waiting For A Plane#The Fingerlakes...
- 2010 Tommy Emmanuel Essential 3.0
Emmanuel released the DVD "Live At Her Majesty's Theatre, Ballarat, Australia" on 11 July 2006 and also the "Center Stage" accompanying DVD in late 2008.
Emmanuel has produced 3 instructional videos: Guitar Talk (1993), Up Close (1996), Emmanuel Labor (2008)