HARVEY REID INTERVIEW
(Originally aired on August 13, 2009)
One of America's finest acoustic musicians, Harvey Reid is known for his vast repertoire that includes folk, blues, bluegrass, old-time, ragtime, classical and Celtic tunes. A superb flattop guitarist and autoharp player (he won the 1981 National Fingerstyle Guitar Championship and the 1982 International Autoharp competition), he also shines on mandolin, bouzouki, Dobro and 6-string banjo. Reid has more than 20 albums to his name, all on his own Woodpecker Records label. A staunch advocate for home recording, Reid started his label in the late '80s, well before "indie" became a household word.
In 1996, Acoustic Guitar magazine rated Reid's Steel Drivin' Man one of the "10 essential folk albums of all time." The first artist to endorse Taylor Guitars, Reid began doing promotion for the company way back in 1983. He has discovered innovative and deeply musical ways to use partial guitar capos, and his books and recordings have established Reid as the world's foremost authority on the subject.
In our exclusive interview, Reid details how he approaches home recording, reveals partial-capo secrets, explains why playing traditional music is so important and takes us behind the scenes of his album, Blues & Branches. During the interview, we'll hear selections from Blues & Branches that showcase Reid's powerful playing and partial-capo techniques.