Jesse Black is a Tennessee native with a background in roots music. In his early teens he got his start playing bar gigs and blues music events with a heavy focus on blues, country, bluegrass, and rock. With now 10+ years of experience under his belt he has performed in 24 states and internationally in Norway.
Jesse performs typically as a solo acoustic act, using his percussive style of guitar playing and mixing of bass lines and lead melodies to bring a full sound to a one man show. If you catch him live, you’ll hear a broad mixture of country, bluegrass, and blues as he performs his original songs in addition to classic standards with his own twist.
“When I was 16 my mom gave me a copy of Doc Watson on Stage to listen to in my dad’s truck when I started driving. I still remember listening to it and being in awe of his guitar playing style and his unique way of captivating the live audience on the album. Over the years I learned more and more of his songs and started applying some of his guitar playing techniques to what I already knew. Over time he became a large inspiration to who I wanted to be in my music career, especially as someone who performs mainly as a solo act. As I dove deeper into his music and the history behind him, I eventually learned about his connection to Gallagher guitars.
I took a wrong turn on the way to a show in Murfreesboro with some extra time to kill and wound up in front of the Gallagher factory and walked in and met a few of their employees. After returning for another visit and meeting with David, I ended up buying a slightly customized G-50 for my main guitar.
I’ll never forget the full circle moment of sitting in my quiet living room playing my new guitar for hours the night I picked it up, thinking about driving around my hometown listening to Doc for the first time in my dads truck. Although owning a Gallagher doesn’t make me sound like Doc (I wish), it’s truly special to me to get on stage weekly with a top notch guitar made in my home state with a rich history I care deeply about. I thank David and all of my new buddies at the shop for welcoming me into the Gallagher family and I’m proud to have that big “G” on my headstock” – Jesse Black
“Jesse has served as our acoustic guitar intern at the Pinetop Perkins Foundation camp, serving with our Masterclass instructor Doug McLeod. Jesse is also a two-year recipient of the Terry Apel guitar scholarship award. This award goes to the guitar intern who helps nurture and encourage guitar students. In addition to being our guitar intern, Jesse has also worked very hard to manage the nightly jams at Hobson’s and the Ground Zero showcase which concludes the PPF Workshop Experience every year. Not easy when you are managing close to 20 guitar players for a 4-hour show! As you already know, Jessie has a keen understanding of the music business, has an incredible work ethic and is a joy to be around, not to mention he is a master entertainer.” Shared by John Sillaman, Vice President, Pinetop Perkins Board of Directors
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