Ben Poole (41) is at the forefront of a new generation of young, rock-influenced blues musicians from England. He quickly made a name for himself when, at age 16, he began playing at British blues clubs. His father was a professional musician, but of all the instruments available at home, the nine-year-old Poole was only interested in the guitar. He had a guitar teacher who encouraged him to play whatever music he wanted, and that’s how he learned Jimi Hendrix’s “Voodoo Chile.”
At first, he played heavy metal because that was what his friends were into. Eventually, he “drifted” over to the blues, but still with a rock-oriented approach. In 2010, he was named “the guitarist to watch” by the British magazine Total Guitar (1994–2024). The following year, he received three nominations at the British Blues Awards, and in 2012, he took third place as the UK’s representative in the European Blues Challenge. Just before the pandemic, Poole was also named one of the best blues guitarists in the world by the American magazine Guitar World. Among the fellow guitarists who have heaped praise on Poole are Jeff Beck, Gary Moore, John Mayall, and Walter Trout.
Poole has released three studio albums and four live albums, the last two recorded at Montreux and the Royal Albert Hall, respectively, in 2014. Now he’s finally going to show the Dark Season Blues audience what he’s capable of!
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