Rik Emmett is a Canadian guitarist with a fair bit of gold and platinum hanging on his wall. Highlights of his career range from Best Guitarist at the ‘81 Junos to Best Smooth Jazz Guitarist in 2005, along with induction into the Canadian Rock Hall of Fame in ‘93, the Music Industry Hall of Fame in 2007, and the Junos Hall of Fame in 2008.
Rik was a relatively unknown singer/songwriter/guitarist when he joined a newly-formed hard rock trio called Triumph in September of ’75. By ‘79 three albums had gone platinum in Canada and two charted in the States, receiving serious radio airplay. By ‘81 Triumph was firmly established as one of the premier touring rock acts in North America, with generous FM radio airplay support and a heavy rotation on the fledgling MTV cable channel.
In the next seven years, the band released ten gold albums, with four turning platinum in Canada. In the U.S., two went gold. Emmett’s name frequently appeared in guitar magazine polls and he won several prestigious awards, including Best Lead Guitarist nationally in 1981. The band was inducted into the Canadian Rock Hall of Fame in ‘93, the Music Industry Hall of Fame in 2007, and the Junos Hall of Fame in 2008.
Among his peers, Rik Emmett is widely considered to be one of the most proficient and versatile guitarists of all time. Although he is best known as a premier rock guitarist, his playing style incorporates rock, blues, jazz, classical, bluegrass and flamenco techniques. Similarly, his songwriting and discography demonstrate his ability to employ and blend multiple genres and in April 2005, Emmett was lauded with the Canadian Smooth Jazz Award for Guitarist of the Year. I think you’re going to like his music. Enjoy!
Midsummer’s daydream: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUyYz8a0Eu4
Taste of Steel: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8p-nUBOuP0
Saved by love: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXhYMwzbw2k&feature=related
Taste of steel: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8p-nUBOuP0&feature=related
Anything you say: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPkuHnyYLxo&feature=related
Up in the air: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3XdLlLBvm4
Lay it on the line: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7LPISg_d8Q
Out of the blue: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLz_-q-Oof4&feature=related
With Bruce Cockburn: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-Y_2iTZNKY
Suitcase blues: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdiSR1rw4lI&feature=related
Since the temperature/humidity index spiked back above 107 today, I’m going to pair Rik with a beautiful, light 2010 Pinot Noir from Chad Wine Company ($18.00). It has a nose of cherry and spice, with a medium ruby color. It’s a smooth, easy drinking Pinot, with cherries, strawberry, Asian spice on the palate. Excellent persistence and lively on the back palate, with a kind of freshness rarely found in Carneros. Very nice wine and perfect for a steaming hot night in the Midwest, or anywhere else as you listen to the guitar genius of Rik Emmet. Enjoy!
Cheers!
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