Knickerbocker Saloon to
host blues gutarist
 By
Jamie Teibel
Staff Writer
He has opened for legends such as B.B. King and
Buddy Guy. Eric Clapton once called him the greatest guitar player alive.
His agent, manager, producer and songwriter said his live charismatic
performances are comparable to that of Mick Jagger.
His name is Johnnie Marshall and he is performing
at 10 p.m. today and Saturday at the Knickerbocker Saloon, 113 N. Fifth
St. in Lafayette. Cover charge is $3.
Marshall has been playing the blues for nine years
since learning to play his Fender Stratocaster guitar. "That's when
I really got into the blues," he said.
He's from a small, laid-back town in Georgia where
hard-working churchgoers give Marshall the inspiration to play the blues.
"They inspire you to play music and give you the feel of ‘Mississippi
flavor,’ you can feel the music within you," he said with a slight
southern drawl.
Marshall said the blues aren't all about being
blue, but about the truth. "It's good and it's bad," he said. "Blues
is the facts of life."
He said his style of playing the blues is totally
different. "That's what makes it special. It has a different feel, a
different groove.
"I've been blessed with the ability to create my
own style, to be able to paint my own picture in a way no one else can."
He said God blessed him with the talent to put
music and words together. "If you can take everyday situations and put
music to it, it's special," he said. "The music comes from a higher
power, you don't just pick up a pen. For you to be able to play and
write is a gift. It's pretty powerful to put music with a song that
means something."
He compares his blues to language and learning
that language means understanding the music. "People understand and
are touched (by the music) everywhere I go."
"He's the real thing," said Bruce Feiner, of the
Feiner Talent Group and Marshall's agent, manager, producer and songwriter.
Nick Vukas, owner of the Knickerbocker Saloon,
agrees. "His first CD, I thought it was killer."
Vukas said that Marshall's music fits into the
category he calls soul blues. "It's not slow-moving, but more upbeat
and more contemporary than classic blues."
Vukas said that bringing in talent such as Marshall
has given the Knickerbocker the attention it deserves. "The Knickerbocker
has quite established itself in the past few years," he said, attributing
most of the success to its blues reputation.
"Once a band plays at the Knickerbocker, nine out
of 10 times they want to come back because of the atmosphere," said
Vukas.
Feiner said Marshall normally plays smaller blues
clubs, occasional festivals and visits Nick's a couple times a year.
"This is a man that's really living the struggle, the experience," he
said. "He's earning honest money and just trying to pay the bills."
"This is my livelihood," said Marshall. "It's not
about making money, it's about doing what you love to do — that
makes you happy. I make people happy through my music."
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