Joey Stuckey, Francis Randall, Jeff Weiss & Audrey Martinovich

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Maryann Bates

Joey Stuckey and guitar.

Joey Stuckey

media release:  Mead Witter School of Music Guest Artist Series

$20 general admission; students free (ticket required).

Featuring Joey Stuckey, Francis Randall, Jeff Weiss, and Audrey Martinovich

There are any number of credits, awards and accomplishments given Joey Stuckey throughout his multifaceted, 30-year career.

An award-winning artist, producer, educator, mentor, and speaker whose efforts transcend the boundaries of sight, sound, and genre, Joey has done it all, both personally and professionally. So too, there’s another credit that should be added to that list of achievements, and that’s of “Survivor.” Blind since the age of two, he’s overcome any number of life-threatening obstacles and medical issues and has gone on to achieve tremendous success in each endeavor he’s undertaken.

“My early life was focused on survival,” says Stuckey. He’s clearly reached well beyond that original goal. At the same time, his commitment to offering the gift of making music is evident in every effort he undertakes. Given the title of “Music Ambassador of Macon,” he holds to a consistent philosophy that melody is, at its very essence, an uplifting gift to all.

“I want people to connect,” he insists. “One of the things I worry about is that we've forgotten how to be neighbors to each other. We've forgotten how to to cherish the fact that the coolest thing you can do is get to know another person and hear their stories and tell them yours. That is at the heart of what I do.”

That’s never been more evident than in the six tracks that grace his new King of Strings EP (arriving October 23 via his label imprint), a varied set of tunes inspired by its recording at the Les Paul Recording Studio, the first album to be recorded in those hallowed environs as, to date, it's mainly been an education center.

Strings runs the gamut, from the progressive Americana, power pop parameters of lead single,“Temple In the Wind” to the solid strut of “Born To Be Your Toy,” the decisive drive that marks the upbeat “King of Strings, the bluesy stride of “Hertsmere Blues,” and the rocksteady, immersive attitude of “Baby Don’t.” A riff-ready and wholly-compelling cover of Cream’s “Sunshine Of Your Love” caps the entire effort.

Stuckey took the role of producer and was, as always, responsible for vocals, guitar and writing all the songs, except "Sunshine Of Your Love.” Likewise, all those involved in the project — Dusty Wakeman (bass), David Raven (drums and mix engineer on "Temple in the Wind”), Tom Camuso (recording engineer at the Les Paul Recording Studio, mix engineer of all tracks except "Temple in the Wind”), Jessica Thompson (mastering engineer), and Jack Hackett (artwork layout) — shared the same mission.

“I wrote ‘Temple in the Wind’ in about 15 minutes,” explains Stuckey. “Literally, as I was putting my guitar down to go to bed and stopped working for the day, this song came out. I basically have two speeds — full speed ahead and off. So either I'm creating or I'm asleep. And honestly, I resent having to sleep. ’Temple in the Wind’ is about that sanctuary in life where no matter what's going on all around you, you’re safe in that place. And for me, that place is a person… my lovely wife Jennifer.”

“Born To Be Your Toy," which was co-written by Charlie Hoskyns of the UK band The Popes, is a fun song with a lot of swagger about a supremely unhealthy relationship. Simple, yet with an edge, the music paints a picture that there's something happening that's not exactly where it should be.

“King Of Strings” is a tribute to his hometown, eternally linked to the Allman Brothers, and Duane Allman in particular. “I initially wrote that last year because someone had asked me to play this charity benefit, which was called 'Skydog’ in honor of Duane but ‘King of Strings’ refers to a lot of very fine guitar players out there that have that have truly made a difference in in music, and Les Paul is one of those. So I rewrote the first verse to make it about Les.”

As far as “Hertsmere Blues” is concerned, Joey claims that its only function was to provide a vehicle that allowed him to show off his vocal chops and guitar savvy within the context of a straight-ahead blues tune. "It’s absolutely a placeholder name, because it was the street in the UK where I was staying when I was on tour in 2022 and I was too lazy to change the title.”

He has an equally succinct explanation for "Baby Don’t.” “I thought about if the Beatles had played with Chuck Berry. It was really just a silly little song, but it does have some interesting things musically. It starts off in the key A, ends up in the key of C, and there's a couple of little fun things in there, like the ending riff which is this sort of mutilation of a standard sort of Duke Ellington thing,” recalls Stuckey.

“Sunshine Of Your Love” was added out of a desire to add a bit of edge to the proceedings. “I hadn't played it in ten years, and I just thought Cream and Eric Clapton were appropriate to channel in the Les Paul studio."

Naturally then, being the first artist to record in the Les Paul Recording Studio had a major effect on the proceedings overall. “I lobbied them, for lack of a better word, to be the first artist to record there. I thought that somebody should record in that space, although that’s not its initial purpose. They had to restore and revitalize the equipment he was using back in 1957.”

As a result, the historical significance of inhabiting those unique environs helped frame the proceedings. “They have all these tapes that he left behind. Some of them are released, some unreleased. They are literally going back and remastering and remixing all these amazing things. However they have to use his original equipment because the tapes won't play on anything else. As a blind person whose universe is absolutely all about sound, I thought what an interesting sonic journey it would be to go back to 1957 where you have only eight channels, all tubes, in the console. That studio is the mecca of sound recording and to be using Les Paul's gear that he helped invent was absolutely inspirational,” recalls Stuckey.

That praise was returned. “I can’t think of a better pairing than Les’ original equipment and King of Strings,” insists Tom Camuso, the Official Recording Engineer with the Les Paul Foundation. “Joey’s music and his approach to capturing it made this record very special. We tried to keep the process simple —  a great band playing great songs together, live, through great gear— and nothing more.”

With a half-dozen highly-acclaimed albums to his credit, the accolades have consistently followed. He was named Jazz Artist of the Year by the Georgia Music Awards, given multiple honors by the Atlanta Society of Entertainers and recognized with the Reader’s Choice Award for Singer-Songwriter by 11th Hour Magazine. Famed producer Harold Bradley has called him “amazing” while noted agent Ian Copeland once said of him, “Joey's one of the most amazing guitarists I know.” Rolling Stones and Eric Clapton keyboardist Chuck Leavell simply stated, “Dude's the greatest” with Alan Parsons championing him as having "the best ears in the music business!”

In 2017, Stuckey was honored with a proclamation from the mayor of Macon, dubbing September 29, “Joey Stuckey Alive Day” which then led to the formation of a free annual family-friendly music festival that celebrates the day that he successfully beat the brain tumor that was “supposed” to take his life as a child. This year's 8th annual Joey Stuckey Alive Day is set for September 30 at Stuckey's Shadow Sound Studio in downtown Macon.

Stuckey will visit Madison in October for three events, two at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a student chat on 10/13 and a concert on 10/17, both at the Hamel Music Center while hosting a masterclass at Audio for the Arts Recording Studio on October 15.

“To me, music is a uniquely human expression, and it's all about telling stories that allow people to learn and grow and explore and bond,” he says. “I think that I can make a difference in the world by trying to make it slightly better than I found it when I got here — one person and one song at a time.”