Artist:Jonny LangSong:Still Rainin'
Album:Wander This World
Jonny Lang was hailed in the mid-90s as a teenage guitar phenom. Obviously it's a good gimmick to get record sales but can he really play? He's had his ups and downs but the bottom line is he can play. He not as big a deal today as he was when Wander This World was released in 1998. He was born Jon Langseth Jr. Jan. 29, 1981 in Fargo, ND. His dad took him to see the local band Bad Medicine Blues Band and Lang took lessons from the band's guitarist Ted Larsen. Obviously he took to it very well because he soon joined the band which was renamed Kid Jonny Lang & The Big Bang. They moved to Minneapolis and signed with A & M Records in 1996. His 1997 debut CD Lie To Me caused a sensation mostly because of Lang's age. The album was uneven. They seemed to solve that with the 1998 CD Wander This World probably because the band didn't produce it themselves. They brought in David Z. (David Rivkin). His brother Bobby Z. is Prince's original drummer and David has also worked with Prince. Little Feat drummer Richie Hayward and Booker T. & The MG's guitarist Steve Cropper did guest shots. Still Rainin' was written by keyboard player Bruce McCabe. The video and song got airplay. So it did well and the kid really can play. The CD is available in its original release but for a few more bucks it's available with a bonus track. Lang didn't record again until 2003 so he was forgotten. Supposedly he had some alcohol and drug issues but he recovered and became a Christian. His 2006 CD Turn Around is about that transformation. He left A & M after that CD and his latest CD Live At The Ryman was released on Concord in 2010. He recently guested on Cyndi Lauper's latest CD Memphis Blues and appeared with her on The Tonight Show. He also appeared on Carlos Santana's latest CD Guitar Heaven. So it appears that teen guitar sensation Jonny Lang is older and wiser and can start making great music for the next 30 years. Here's the video for Still Rainin' by Jonny Lang.
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