Gary Clark Jr. was newly introduced to my world, which is a shame because his EP Bright Lights came out last year. He played Bonnaroo last year, he just played Coachella, and he will play Lollapalooza this summer, where I hope to see him live. He played at the Red, White, and Blues event at the White House alongside B.B. King and Mick Jagger, among others, this past February. He’s also performed with Alicia Keys who has glowing praise for him, and their version of “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” is quite good.
Gary Clark Jr. is a blues guitarist and performer from Austin that is truly embodying the return of blues guitar. While if I heard this song in passing, I would probably assume it was The Black Keys, when you listen closer, the guitar is much more blues than the Keys. The end of this song in particular reaches a place that feels a lot more improvised and blues-inspired than any Keys song. (Strangely, for me, there also is just a touch of Lenny Kravitz from the ’90s in his music too, like perhaps Kravitz would be what happened if you created a watered-down pop version of Clark Jr.)
Pleasantly Piquant 