Stacy Hobbs - Guitar Harpist

I mentioned in another part of this blog that I’ve been playing guitar for twenty years now. In all that time I had only one guitar instructor. In the early 90’s the Southern Conservative helped turn me on to bluegrass and I wanted to learn how to play it. I struggled for a few years and then decided it was time to seek out help. I went to the Fret Mill, a high-end acoustic instrument store and local bluegrass hangout. There I was able to get lessons in bluegrass guitar through Stacy Hobbs. I had been playing for 10 years by this time. Stacy was able to get me straightened out on the flat-picking basics (I had been doing everything wrong). Then he taught me about fingerstyle, going through old country blues and Old Time, and then we even did a few classical pieces. I stayed with Stacy for about a year and a half before I stopped. Stacy was a wonderful teacher and a friend. He even played at my wedding. When I left Stacy he was still playing a six string. Some time later he switched over to a guitar harp. I knew that Stacy had been leaning more and more towards fingerstyle and he had already created some incredible effects on the six string. He was using a third hand capo and combining that with multiple finger tappings (think Eddie Van Halen on acoustic) to get an amazing sound. I have Stacy’s first two solo CDs, Seller’s Remorse and Beggars’ Dance. Both showcase Stacy’s incredible talent and dedication to fingerstyle. In preparation for writing this entry I did a Google search and was happy to find that Stacy has a website. He’s also offering a new CD. I’ve lost touch with Stacy over the years but hope to use this opportunity to catch up with him. Check out his albums and if you ever get a chance to see him live, don’t miss it.