Two guitar greats, Slash and Joe Bonamassa, teamed up Thursday night for a bluesy jam session as part of the Soho Sessions. Video from the night shows the two busting out a rendition of Bobby Bland’s 1957 classic “Farther Up the Road.”
Slash takes the first lead, playing a creamy solo full of vibrato, a few pick squeals, and some impressively funky turnarounds. After a short breather, he kicks things up with a second go-around that charges forward in a higher register. While some notes sing, others grind, making for an impressive lead.
Larry Campbell then takes a turn, leaning into the rhythm to give his playing some extra swing, paving the way for keyboardist Eric Finland to fire off arrays of pentatonics. After a vocal break, the jam ends with Bonamassa playing his own lyrical solo, summarizing everything that came before it with deft, dexterous blues playing. Bassist Andy Hess and drummer Shawn Pelton anchored the jam.
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The gig, an invite-only affair, was well attended. Michael J. Fox, Gina Gershon, Steve Guttenberg, Susie Essman, Hank Azaria, Don Lemon, Van Jones, and Bobby Flay were all in the audience. The event raised funds for Keeping the Blues Alive, a nonprofit organization whose aim is to keep music education in schools.
Slash told Rolling Stone about how he fell back in love with the blues in 2024, as he prepped to release a new album, Orgy of the Damned. “With the blues, you just get together and play and you don’t have the pressure of being a ‘super this’ or fucking ‘Grammy-winning that’ — you’re just jamming and having a good time,” he said. “That’s something that I really relate to in music, and sometimes it can get away from you. So having this has opened up the idea that I can do that all the time.”