Greg Douglass – Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2016

Greg Douglass is one of the busiest musicians you thought you had know before, but probably couldn’t forget! He is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the Steve Miller Band for his writing and lead guitar work on ‘Jungle Love.’ Ok…so he’s got that going for him, not to mention the hit in the 80’s with the Greg Kihn Band ‘Jeopardy.’ He recorded on that album…and he’s known by others to be the ‘Best Electric Guitarist’ and often cited as a best kept secret while touring with Eddie Money and Tom Fogerty…and he’s still at it today!

This man is nearly twice my age but has the energy of someone half my age. When we watched, as Greg was getting ready for his event on May 22^nd at the Carlsbad Village Theater, you could see that the man is serious about his music. He looked stressed and at his limit; however, when the lights dimmed, and the buzz of the amplifier was all you could hear, Greg Douglass appeared as fresh as he was the day he ran into Van Morrison before his start in Hot Tuna. Those familiar guitar sounds rung back as other members of the band slowly joined him on stage throughout the night. They were at the Carlsbad Village Theater to record a new promo, and it was amazing!

I had the opportunity to sit down with Greg Douglass, not once, but twice! The fast-fingered rocker talked freely about his love of music and his movement along the years. From his early days of the 1960’s with Hot Tuna and Jefferson Airplane to now where he’s part of three bands while also performing studio work and giving lessons! Tonight we were witnessing what Greg refers to as the best iteration of The Greg Douglass Band to date. Rose Gill, a.k.a. ‘Wild Rose,’ joins us in the interview just before the show and they talk about how they met and what was the impetus for this band. You can see how cool as a cucumber Greg is as the hustle and bustle builds behind us. We’re back stage before the show is about to start. Along with Singer / Drummer Hector Toro (YEAH…that’s a Drummer who can sing, very rare) and Joe Hastings, who has been by Greg’s side for over 15 years, the Greg Douglass Band rocked a crowd hungry for those classic rock songs.

Their set list included a medley of Steve Miller Band songs that led into a showcase of the multiple facets that the band can take on. From older pop songs like California Dreaming to hard rockers like Joan Jett’s “I Love Rock & Roll,” the Greg Douglass band showed us that he hasn’t taken a break from playing since he began in the 1960’s. He has decided to step out of the shadows and make himself known as a star once more, and I believe he’s on the right track. Check out his album, available for purchase or download now, at amazon and give it a share. This guy can shred a guitar like nobody’s business!