Tony Furtado plays Botetourt April 28

Tony Furtado Acoustic bluesman, slide guitarist, banjo wizard songwriter with an emotionally riveting voice. “…one of his most accessible and engaging records yet…. An essential collection, Golden is every bit as radiant as its title implies.”— Lee Zimmerman, Blurt

“Furtado’s extremely impressive, furious slide guitar skills and 25+ years of banjo experience will blow away the musicos; for the lovers of a story in a song, Furtado has a few tales to tell; and to those who are looking for a performance, get ready to be captivated, charmed, and entertained.” — Banjomusic.com

Tony Furtado is an indie record label’s dream artist. An enthralling live performer, he has lived primarily on the road for the last two decades. Tony is gregarious, insanely talented, engaging and entertaining, on and off stage. Granted, he’s had places to live, but they’ve been temporary spaces (to paraphrase George Carlin) “they were places to put his stuff”. That is, until he moved to Portland, OR. Now, Tony Furtado, the trouveur, has found a place to call home. And it makes sense that the atmosphere of ‘home’ would allow him to write and produce his most accessible, engaging album to date entitled Golden.

Golden is the album Tony has been moving towards making his whole career. Having received international attention at a young age for his banjo work, he began his recording career with a 10-year stint with Rounder Records working with the likes of Allison Krauss, Kelly Joe Phelps and Jerry Douglas. During that time, he was drawn to the slide guitar by artists such as Ry Cooder and David Linley. Over the years,Tony continued to broaden his musical palette and began singing and songwriting as well. He co-wrote with the likes of Jules Sheer, Al Anderson and Jim Lauderdale. On his newest release, Tony took on the role of writer, arranger and producer. The ease and comfort with which he stepped into this role clearly comes through in the music and you can hear Tony in every note.

He’s been called a genius on banjo and slide guitar and his own creative interpretation/hybrid of Americana and indie rock is captivating. Onstage, whether playing with a band or solo, he owns the room, mixing stories of his travels with musicianship that is off the charts. On Golden, he has not only come into his own comfort zone, but he has surpassed all expectations for this record. From the instantly riveting opening track, “Toe The Line”, to the poignant “Angelina,” Golden travels all the emotions of the human heart. Heartbreak, joy, frailty, love of beauty, sadness, etc; all have their place on Golden.

 www.tonyfurtado.com

-submitted by BOTCO Tourism