Gary Smith

For three decades, San Jose harmonica player Gary Smith has been an influential figure in the San Francisco Bay Area Blues scene. His band was the first to grace the stage at the inaugural San Francisco Blues Festival way back in 1973. Long regarded as the Godfather of San Jose Blues Harmonica, he really demonstrates his harp playing prowess and Little Walter influenced tone on Blues For Mr. B.
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Slow Blues Instrumental - Gary Smith, David Barrett, Aki Kumar

Front man and harp player for the San Francisco Bay Area band Tip of the Top, Akarsha Aki Kumar is an ardent student of the blues and a master of the amplified Chicago blues sound.

Kumar derives his style mainly from American harp masters Little Walter, Sonny Boy Williamson, Big Walter Horton and George Smith, among others. His own playing reflects elements of these players, blended in with a signature sound of his own.

Gary Smith has been a huge influence on numerous harmonica players in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has largely influenced harmonica players Mark Hummel, David Barrett, Byrde Hale, Andy Just, and untold others. He currently has two CD's and a new instruction video just released by Mountain Top Video. Being in the San Jose and San Francisco Area in the sixties he was present when Paul Butterfield made his imprint on the harmonica world.

David Barrett is the world's most published author of blues harmonica lesson material (over 60 book/CD sets and videos published through Mel Bay Publications). Having played saxophone and trumpet for many years, David already had a solid musical background before playing the harmonica at age fourteen. By age sixteen he was already performing in blues jam sessions and harmonica shows in the California Bay Area. By age eighteen he was studying music theory in college and started teaching harmonica at local music institutes. By age twenty he released Building Harmonica Technique (Mel Bay Publications), the first serious blues harmonica method to be released in the market.
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