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Joe Bonamassa
Photo: Florian Stangl / www.metal-fotos.de, 2013 (Wikimedia Commons / Flickr, CC BY 2.0)
Modern

Joe Bonamassa

Born: May 8, 1977, New Hartford, New York• United States
Blues RockContemporary Blues
Joe Bonamassa has, at this count, more number-one Billboard Blues Albums than anyone in the chart's history — 29 solo entries, 30 counting a collaborative record — a statistic that makes him less a blues guitarist with a career and more a one-man industry built entirely around keeping the genre commercially alive. He was born Joseph Leonard Bonamassa on May 8, 1977, in New Hartford, New York, and grew up in nearby Utica in a family of Italian descent. His parents ran a music shop in upstate New York — later renamed Bonamassa Guitars — and his father, an avid record collector, steered him toward British blues-rock rather than the American originators: Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and above all the guitarists on John Mayall's "Beano Album." Bonamassa has said plainly, "my heroes were the English guys" — Paul Kossoff, Peter Green, Clapton — because "the English interpretation of the blues just hit me a lot better" (Kilde: Wikipedia). He started playing at age four, and by eleven was being mentored by the virtuoso guitarist Danny Gatton. At twelve he formed a band billed as "Smokin' Joe Bonamassa," playing weekend club dates around western New York and Pennsylvania on a crimson 1972 Fender Stratocaster nicknamed "Rosie," a gift from his father. In 1989, at just twelve years old, he opened roughly twenty shows for B.B. King — an almost unheard-of apprenticeship that set the trajectory for everything after. Before he turned eighteen he was playing in the band Bloodline alongside the sons of Miles Davis, Robby Krieger and Berry Oakley (Kilde: Wikipedia). His solo debut, "A New Day Yesterday," came out in 2000 and reached number 9 on the Billboard Blues chart. From there his career became a study in sheer, relentless output: three albums hit number 1 on the blues chart between 2002 and 2006, and every one of his solo records since has cracked the Top 10. In 2009 he sold out London's Royal Albert Hall, with Eric Clapton joining him onstage for a duet — a full-circle moment for a guitarist whose whole style had been shaped by Clapton's records as a child (Kilde: Wikipedia). He built his career almost entirely outside the major-label system, releasing music through his own imprint, J&R Adventures, and touring at a pace few artists in any genre attempt. In 2011 he founded the nonprofit Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation, and in 2020 launched Keeping the Blues Alive Records (KTBA) with Roy Weisman, a label he has used to produce and promote other blues artists including Dion, Joanne Shaw Taylor, Joanna Connor and Larry McCray. His own catalog since 2000 runs to seventeen studio albums, alongside collaborative projects with Beth Hart ("Don't Explain," "Seesaw," "Black Coffee"), the hard-rock supergroup Black Country Communion, and the jazz-funk unit Rock Candy Funk Party (Kilde: Wikipedia). He is as well known among gearheads as among blues fans for his guitar and amplifier collection — more than 400 of each, housed in a space fans affectionately call the "Bona-seum." His favorite instrument is a heavily modified 1951 Fender Telecaster nicknamed "The Bludgeon"; he also owns nearly a dozen Gibson Les Paul "bursts" from 1958–1960 and a rare 1958 Gibson Flying V he calls "Amos." Fender has released a signature Bonamassa amplifier, and he has been outspoken about tone purism, calling an over-reliance on boutique effects pedals "insulting to people who spent 35 years playing and learning" (Kilde: Wikipedia). He holds five Grammy nominations, including Best Blues Album for "Seesaw" (2013) and Best Contemporary Blues Album for "Royal Tea" (2022), "Blues Deluxe Vol. 2" (2025) and "Breakthrough" (2026), and won the Blues Music Award for Instrumentalist – Guitar in 2015. He continues to release and tour at a remarkable clip into his late forties, guesting on The Who's farewell tour in September 2025 and releasing "B.B. King's Blues Summit 100" on KTBA in February 2026 (Kilde: Wikipedia).

Musical Influence

Joe Bonamassa built something close to a parallel economy for blues music — his own label, his own foundation, his own festival-scale touring circuit — proving an artist could sustain a career on pure blues-rock virtuosity without major-label backing. His record-setting run of Billboard Blues Album number-ones and his mentorship of younger blues artists through Keeping the Blues Alive Records have made him arguably the single most commercially important figure in 21st-century blues (Kilde: Wikipedia).

Influences

Eric ClaptonJeff BeckRory GallagherB.B. King

Family and personal life

Parents
Bonamassa family

Ran a music shop in upstate New York, later renamed Bonamassa Guitars; his father steered him toward British blues-rock records.

Formative experiences

  • •Age 4: Begins playing guitar. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
  • •Age 11: Mentored by virtuoso guitarist Danny Gatton. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
  • •1989, age 12: Opens roughly twenty shows for B.B. King. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
  • •2000: Solo debut "A New Day Yesterday" reaches #9 on the Billboard Blues chart. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
  • •2009: Sells out the Royal Albert Hall; Eric Clapton joins him for a duet. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
  • •2020: Founds Keeping the Blues Alive Records (KTBA) with Roy Weisman. (Kilde: Wikipedia)

Instruments & Equipment

Guitar

1951 Fender Telecaster ("The Bludgeon")

His favorite guitar, heavily modified with a humbucker pickup.

1972 Fender Stratocaster ("Rosie")

Gift from his father; used in his earliest club dates as a child.

Guitar and amplifier collection

Over 400 guitars and 400 amplifiers, housed in a space fans call the "Bona-seum."

Stories & Anecdotes

"Opened roughly twenty shows for B.B. King at just twelve years old, in 1989. (Kilde: Wikipedia)"
"Played in the band Bloodline as a teenager alongside the sons of Miles Davis, Robby Krieger and Berry Oakley. (Kilde: Wikipedia)"
"Eric Clapton — one of his own childhood heroes — joined him onstage for a duet at his sold-out 2009 Royal Albert Hall show. (Kilde: Wikipedia)"
"Has said flatly that his musical heroes were British, not American: "the English interpretation of the blues just hit me a lot better." (Kilde: Wikipedia)"
"Called an over-reliance on boutique guitar effects pedals "insulting to people who spent 35 years playing and learning." (Kilde: Wikipedia)"
"Holds the record for the most #1 albums in Billboard Blues Albums chart history. (Kilde: Wikipedia)"

Collaborators

Eric Clapton

Childhood hero who joined him for a duet at the Royal Albert Hall in 2009.

Beth Hart

Recorded three collaborative albums: "Don't Explain," "Seesaw" and "Black Coffee."

Black Country Communion

Hard-rock supergroup he co-founded; guitarist and secondary lead vocalist.

Danny Gatton

Virtuoso guitarist who mentored him at age eleven.

Watch & Listen

Featured

Joe Bonamassa Official - "Sloe Gin" - Live From The Royal Albert Hall

One of his signature live showpieces, from his sold-out 2009 Royal Albert Hall show.

JoeBonamassaTV

Joe Bonamassa Official - "Mountain Time" - Live From The Royal Albert Hall

Joe Bonamassa Official - "Mountain Time" - Live From The Royal Albert Hall

Joe Bonamassa - Sloe Gin Live Montreux 2010

Joe Bonamassa - Sloe Gin Live Montreux 2010

Watch & Listen

Henter videoer fra YouTube…

Discography

YearTitleProducerStudioLabelChartSalesMusiciansYouTubeNotes
2000A New Day YesterdayTom Dowd—Blues Bureau International———Solo debut; reached #9 on the Billboard Blues chart.
2009The Ballad of John HenryKevin Shirley—J&R Adventures————
2009Live from the Royal Albert HallKevin Shirley—J&R Adventures———Sold-out show featuring a duet with Eric Clapton.
2011Dust BowlKevin Shirley—J&R Adventures————
2012Driving Towards the DaylightKevin Shirley—J&R Adventures————
2013An Acoustic Evening at the Vienna Opera HouseKevin Shirley—J&R Adventures————
2014Different Shades of BlueKevin Shirley—J&R Adventures——Michael Rhodes (Bass), Anton Fig (Drums), Reese Wynans (Keyboards), Lee Thornburg (Horns), Paulie Cerra (Vocals, saxophone)Reached #8 on the Billboard 200; #1 on the Blues chart. Recorded with his standing touring band.
2020Royal TeaKevin Shirley—J&R Adventures/Mascot———Grammy-nominated, Best Contemporary Blues Album.
2021Time ClocksKevin Shirley—J&R Adventures————
2023Blues Deluxe Vol. 2Josh Smith, Joe Bonamassa—J&R Adventures———Grammy-nominated, Best Contemporary Blues Album (2025).
2024Live at the Hollywood BowlJosh Smith—J&R Adventures————
2025BreakthroughJosh Smith—J&R Adventures———Grammy-nominated, Best Contemporary Blues Album (2026).
2026B.B. King's Blues Summit 100——Keeping the Blues Alive Records———Collaborative tribute album released via his own KTBA label.

Famous songs

01Sloe Gin
02Mountain Time
03Django
04Blues Deluxe
05The Ballad of John Henry

External links

YouTube Music Wikipedia

Booking / Contact

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Sources

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