Jeff King - Juggling the Studio & The Road - Ask Zac 168
April 17, 2020
Jeff King was raised in the Smokey Mountains of East Tennessee, where as a young boy, he found a guitar in an attic and was immediately hooked. Though he loved music and played frequent gigs, he did not study it in college, yet post-graduation, he decided to throw in his lot with a friend that moved to Nashville in the early 80s. With luck on his side, he fairly quickly hit the scene in a big way in 1985 by landing the lead guitar spot with the then-new artist, Patty Loveless. Jeff was soon riding the wave of success with Patty who was busy sending singles up the charts and wowing crowds and critics with her soulful Kentucky sound. This led to major screen time, as Loveless guested on the TV shows of the day, including Austin City Limits, The Tonight Show, Letterman, and the various music shows on The Nashville Network. Jeff was also getting to watch Patty make her records with guitarists Reggie Young, Ray Flacke, Albert Lee, Richard Bennett, and Steve Gibson. He soon was putting his watch-time lessons to use by working on demo sessions in-between road dates to the point that he was soon able to bid the road goodbye and focus completely on studio work. After decades of studio work, he was asked by one of his clients, Reba McIntire, to go out on the road with her, which lead to him also performing road dates with Brooks & Dunn. Jeff now tours with two legendary Country Music acts, and because of their less strenuous touring, he is able to keep his studio work thriving.
On the gear front, King tells the backstory of his main guitar, a 1985 G-Bender equipped Glaser Tele-Style that is on its second neck. We also get a look at his Tom Anderson Strat, Gretsch Duo-Jet, studio pedal board, and his 1956 Fender Harvard amp.