Michael Falzarano has been playing guitar with some of the top bands of this and the past century for 35 years. Outlaw country rock never had it so good.
He is one of those indispensable guys who’s known by everybody in the industry, while at the same time remaining nameless and unnoticed by the fans. The perfect sideman, as defined by many: A more than competent musician who doesn’t try to steal the spotlight from the star, no ruffles and flourishes, no antics; just straight ahead professional musicianship designed to make the star look good. Falzarano’s been touring recently with famous 1960s group New Riders of the Purple Sage who, while having only one real radio hit in their career [“Panama Red”], was and is still in heavy demand at music festivals worldwide. There’s a great chance for him – and for his new fans – to correct that lack of name-awareness.
Musical greats with whom Falzarano has played or recorded with would easily fill a page in itself. A few of these luminaries include Bob Weir, Robert Hunter, Levon Helm, Rick Danko, John Lee Hooker, Hubert Sumlin, Vassar Clements, Paul Simon, Dr. John, Graham Parker, Warren Haynes, Warren Zevon, Greg Allman, David Crosby, Arlo Guthrie, John Sebastian, Peter Rowan, Derek Trucks, Paul Kantner, Trey Anastasio, Commander Cody, Pinetop Perkins, Mark Karan, John Popper, and Professor Louie and the Crowmatix.
Falzarano’s groups, The Extended Family and The Memphis Pilgrims, as Grateful Dead, are always in heavy demand and have been the recipient of many laudatory press comments, such as this one from the East Coast Rocker: “… Michael Falzarano and The Memphis Pilgrims were hailed by the press as one of New York’s “best new bands” who were “simply and wonderfully a real rock ‘n’ roll band.”
And how ‘bout Hot Tuna, fronted by two founders and alumni of Jefferson Airplane, Jorma Kaukonen and Jack Casady? Jorma was the Hot Tuna guitarist who was the “other guy,” the spine of the group, but who was always hiding from the camera. Casady was the long-haired guy with sunglasses and the Wyatt Earp hat.
We Are All One is multi-talented Falzarano’s third solo effort (14-cuts, 57 minutes). He’s also done some producing and remastering of Hot Tuna CDs. In addition to all the tunes on this CD, Falzarano has penned many of the most enduring songs of Hot Tuna, including a number of them on a sometimes hard to find Tuna CD title, Pair A Dice Found.
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