The Troy Gonyea
3-21-2020
Troy Gonyea is an emerging American artist; a musical descendant of the original Blues lineage. His remarkable 25-year musical journey as a distinguished guitarist/sideman has earned him the inheritance of deep Blues roots. And as a bandleader, guitarist, singer and songwriter Troy has his own vision of where Blues can exist in our contemporary world.
Gonyea has worked both sides of the musical street: touring the world supporting hall-of-fame-stature legends and using that unique experience to perfect his own sound. And now, with the release of his new live album, “Click Click Spark,” that two-lane journey has led this supremely talented guitarist, singer, songwriter and bandleader to the intersection with stardom.
Troy strapped on his first guitar at age thirteen and before he was out of his teens, he was gigging with members of Muddy Waters’ band, playing at Buddy Guy’s Legends club in Chicago, and fronting his own trio. By his mid-thirties, he had toured the globe and recorded with legendary performers like Booker T Jones, Kim Wilson, Sugar Ray Norcia, James Harman, Jerry Portnoy and Anthony Geraci, held down the prestigious guitar chair in the Fabulous Thunderbirds for four years, played on two Grammy-nominated recordings, and been nominated for a Blues Music Award and a Boston Music Award. And through it all he continued to front his own band, perform as a solo act, write his own music and record two well-received CDs of his own.
“Click Click Spark” is the ultimate synthesis of what Troy Gonyea has learned from others and about himself. As writer Kim Field has noted, “His music is not blues, it’s not rock and roll, it’s not ‘roots music.’ It’s Troy Gonyea music.” Front and center is Gonyea’s incredibly emotional and versatile guitar mastery, which has made him first call for tours and recording dates with so many stars. Gonyea is an utterly convincing and remarkable vocalist as well. His soulful singing and his unique original tunes are testament to how much he has taken to heart another lesson from the bluesmen - that the best music tells a story.
"You can feel the spirit of Magic Sam and Peter Green but Troy has his own way of expressing himself. Troy is a beautiful singer and master guitar player who in the short time of listening to him playing a slow-blues song I was able to hear the whole history of The Blues." - Ronnie Earl, May 2019
Troy Gonyea is an emerging American artist; a musical descendant of the original Blues lineage. His remarkable 25-year musical journey as a distinguished guitarist/sideman has earned him the inheritance of deep Blues roots. And as a bandleader, guitarist, singer and songwriter Troy has his own vision of where Blues can exist in our contemporary world.
Gonyea has worked both sides of the musical street: touring the world supporting hall-of-fame-stature legends and using that unique experience to perfect his own sound. And now, with the release of his new live album, “Click Click Spark,” that two-lane journey has led this supremely talented guitarist, singer, songwriter and bandleader to the intersection with stardom.
Troy strapped on his first guitar at age thirteen and before he was out of his teens, he was gigging with members of Muddy Waters’ band, playing at Buddy Guy’s Legends club in Chicago, and fronting his own trio. By his mid-thirties, he had toured the globe and recorded with legendary performers like Booker T Jones, Kim Wilson, Sugar Ray Norcia, James Harman, Jerry Portnoy and Anthony Geraci, held down the prestigious guitar chair in the Fabulous Thunderbirds for four years, played on two Grammy-nominated recordings, and been nominated for a Blues Music Award and a Boston Music Award. And through it all he continued to front his own band, perform as a solo act, write his own music and record two well-received CDs of his own.
“Click Click Spark” is the ultimate synthesis of what Troy Gonyea has learned from others and about himself. As writer Kim Field has noted, “His music is not blues, it’s not rock and roll, it’s not ‘roots music.’ It’s Troy Gonyea music.” Front and center is Gonyea’s incredibly emotional and versatile guitar mastery, which has made him first call for tours and recording dates with so many stars. Gonyea is an utterly convincing and remarkable vocalist as well. His soulful singing and his unique original tunes are testament to how much he has taken to heart another lesson from the bluesmen - that the best music tells a story.
"You can feel the spirit of Magic Sam and Peter Green but Troy has his own way of expressing himself. Troy is a beautiful singer and master guitar player who in the short time of listening to him playing a slow-blues song I was able to hear the whole history of The Blues." - Ronnie Earl, May 2019