The blues have been good to Matt Stubbs for a while now. But lately, they’ve been even better.
For more than a decade, the Boston guitarist has been touring the world and recording with harmonica master Charlie Musselwhite. More recently — and more importantly — Stubbs is making his mark with the rapidly rising trio GA-20. Named for a vintage guitar amp, the bare-bones outfit — which also includes singer-guitarist Pat Faherty and drummer Tim Carman — deliver rough ’n’ ready, vintage-style blues nuggets that sound a little like JD McPherson fronting The Black Keys at Buddy Guy’s Legends. On their latest (and so far, greatest) album Crackdown, they’ve expanded their sonic horizons somewhat, adding bits of soul, R&B, country and early rock ’n’ roll into their gritty mix. If you haven’t heard them yet, now’s the time to start. But first, watch as Stubbs tells me about life with Musselwhite, his most treasured guitar, and why their third album is really their second — and, in a way, also their first album.
