Shawn Lane Videos

I was telling SteveAudio the other day about my treasured acquaintance Shawn Lane, now sadly departed, when I found a trove of videos of Shawn playing on Google Video (which is now shut down, so I've changed all the links to YopuTube).  From his biography on allmusic:

Shawn Lane was a phenomenally talented guitar player who never quite broke out beyond guitar enthusiasts and critics, but will remain influential to players for many years to come. Originally hailed as a child prodigy, Lane joined Black Oak Arkansas as a teenager, and could have been part of the guitar shredder movement of the late '80s and '90s, but his restless musical inclinations led him down a different path.

Shawn was too lyrical and too much the composer to be satisfied with shred. When I returned home to Memphis in 2000, I started catching his shows. He played synth live along with his awesome guitar playing; and his taste ran the gamut from rock to classical to fusion to Indian music. He could put you in a state of bliss. Then, on one daunting day in 2003, I attended the funeral of Paul Burlison of Rock 'n' Roll Trio fame and then went to Shawn's wake. Celebrate Shawn's life again with me, though, by watching his videos; and help his family by buying his records. Below is Shawn performing "Gray Pianos Flying" from his Powers of Ten album. Click the play arrow and enjoy!