GEARED catches up with CRAIG CLAXTON, the GUITAR BROTHER and mastermind behind the GUITAR SHOWCASE SERIES.

Craig Claxton talks excitedly when I speak to him. It has been a big year for the Guitar Brothers’ retail store, and he seems determined to cap it off with something grand. The Guitar Showcase Series was an idea Claxton and business partner Reece Specis had a while ago: to bring a range of guitarists at the top of their field together for a relaxed, unpretentious concert. Now, things always take longer to organised than expected, so what was initially planned as a series has now become the unofficial Guitar Brothers Christmas Party, with plans to start the series proper sometime next year. So, with a bunch of great guitarists (and to prove all guitarists are egotists, himself) on the bill, Claxton happily plugs his little endeavour.

“The thing about the showcase is there’s four different acts on the night, they’re all different genres, and they’re all quite distinct styles on acoustic so you’re guaranteed to find at least something that you like. Jim Kelly is a Sydney session supremo who left to become Head of Guitar Studies at Southern Cross Uni and is a jazz heavyweight: a very, very good player. He’s bringing Matt Smith, who is one of his star students, they’ve actually formed a duo together. I think that’s a fairly glowing recommendation: to have him saying ‘I want form a little band with you.’”

The show also features Alesa Lajana: a unique guitarist and singer, and composer of remarkable talent. She blends intricate finger-style guitar skills with soaring vocals. Her music draws on the complex ornamentation of traditional Scottish and Irish bagpipe and fiddle tunes, blues, and the music of Eastern Europe. I remark that it’s good to see female guitarists like Lajana and most recently Kaki King getting recognition for playing uniquely, and escaping the whole ‘girls can’t play guitar’ nonsense that virtuoso wankers often spout.

“Alesa has a trip of her own,” Claxton agrees, “for a start playing acoustic lapsteel, but in DADGAD tuning, so it is music inspired by Scottish and Irish pipe tunes but played on acoustic guitar; but she’s also a sterling finger-style guitarist. She’s a gun player and she’s a female, which is hard to find these days. There’s plenty of boys out there who play guitar, you don’t find many killer girl guitarists.”

Speaking of killer guitarists leads us smoothly to Michael Fix, whom I admit to not knowing, despite reading in the press release that he’s “considered to be one of Australian Music’s finest acoustic guitarists.” Claxton is bemused by my ignorance.

“Oh man, Michael is worth the price of admission on his own. He’s a finger-style guitarist in the vein of Chet Atkins. So in other words the same sort of style as Tommy Emmanuel, in fact Michael was Tommy’s protege 25 years ago. Michael’s far too old to be called a protege any more, he’s well and truly established in his own right. He is the number one Maton clinician. He’s exceptionally popular in Europe, he’s touring all over Germany and Italy as we speak, and he literally hops off the plane a day before the show. It’s that sort of thumb-pick, finger-style popularised by Chet Atkins but he’s exceptional and highly entertaining.”

Closing the evening is a collaboration between Claxton, Tim Gaze and Bridget O’Donoghue. I smirk at this: ‘I see you put yourself on last,’ I say. But there is method to supposed egotism.

“It’s kind of a bluesy, party, sort of a thing,” he justifies. “We mainly put that on last so that others can get up and relatively easily jam if we can organise it.”

Seven acoustic guitarists sounds like a sweet wall of sound. And certainly a grand way to end the year. See you there.

THE GUITAR BROTHERS GUITAR SHOWCASE SERIES plays at MAGGIE BLACKS Jazz Club, 20 Park Road, Milton, Sunday December 9. Tickets are $20, with all the money going directly to the artists. Booking is essential, so call 3367 2280 to secure your place. Things kick off at 7:30pm.

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