Whatever happened to Anson Funderburgh?

fierce_carrot

fierce_carrot

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I've had the great pleasure to have seen Anson, Sam and the Rockets many times over the years in a local club and every single show was excellent. The interplay between Sam and Anson was almost "father/son" like and when Sam died I have no doubt that Anson took it very hard.

Sam died in 2007 and Anson seems to have dropped totally out of sight. Does anybody know what happened to this utterly amazing guitarist?
 
ReddRanger

ReddRanger

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I think he's still playing around, but maybe had taken some time off? I think John Nemeth stepped in for a while after Sam passed away.

I see on the web Anson is listed for the Arkansas Blues and Heritage Festival this October, but I can't find much else.
 
S

Scott Whigham

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He plays around Dallas here from time to time - looks good too! He played at Pearl in downtown Dallas in July and is working on a project with a few locals. That's all I know.
 
karmadave

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After 20+ years on the road he probably wants to stay close to home. Unfortunately, Sam passed before I could see him...
 
J

Jd3

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fierce_carrot said:
Does anybody know what happened to this utterly amazing guitarist?
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I bought his first CD back in the day -- loved that tune "Gypsy Blood" -- he had talent, and was surprised he dropped off the radar. Not everybody is cut out for the road and life as a 'star' I guess...
 
MR.K

MR.K

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When I'm asked "Who's you favorite guitarist?", Anson Funderburgh is right there on top. He supports the song with so much skill and taste. I've learned a lot about, how to play, from him.
 
fierce_carrot

fierce_carrot

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Anson is one very scarey guitarist. He has that minimalist style of Jimmie Vaughn but has his own vibe. When he'd play here, every guitarist for miles was there to check him out. I play nothing like him but he's one of my favorites to see.

Glad to see he's back!
 
84superchamp

84superchamp

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didn't discover Anson until a couple years ago and tried to snatch up everything he had done. big fan.
 
Crowder

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mrkenny said:
When I'm asked "Who's you favorite guitarist?", Anson Funderburgh is right there on top. He supports the song with so much skill and taste. I've learned a lot about, how to play, from him.
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Me too. Since the first time I saw him he has blown me away. I've never seen anyone play so many just plain cool things on stage.

He's a really cool cat too. The first time I met him was at an outdoor festival, after an early set that was sparsely attended. I went up to meet him after and he invited me backstage to chat about amps and stuff (at that time I was playing a pre-CBS Super Reverb, as was he). A couple of years later, he was a guest speaker for a "History of the Blues" class that I was taking. We were chatting afterward and he expressed an interest in hitting some pawn shops, so I ended up hauling he and his drummer around all afternoon. He was mostly interested in wristwatches, but he'd look at any cool amps too. He told me that he could get his tone from any old Fender amp that was in good shape, so he'd pick them up a long way from home where they didn't draw as much, play them on the road, then sell them for more money when he got back to Texas.

FWIW, Anson gets phenomenal tone from both his Strats and his archtops, but I've never known anyone to do it the same way he does. He said he turns the bass and middle controls all the way down, the treble all the way up, and turns the bright switch on. Then he rolls back the tone knob until he gets to what he considers the "sweet spot." I recall he had pretty solid reasoning for doing it that way, something to do with the way the tone stack is set up on Blackface amps.

Finally, Anson has made some great records, but you must see him live to see what he's all about. I love the way he paces out the night, starting off real laid back and in the pocket, and gradually letting out more and more until the end of the night when he sets the hook on you. Just amazing.
 
Guitar55

Guitar55

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Live at The Grand Emporium is possibly my favorite Blues album.
 
Crowder

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Jd3 said:
I bought his first CD back in the day -- loved that tune "Gypsy Blood" -- he had talent, and was surprised he dropped off the radar. Not everybody is cut out for the road and life as a 'star' I guess...
Click to expand...

Pretty sure you're thinking of Mason Ruffner. Not surprising, they look somewhat alike and both play Strats.
 
Thinsocks

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Tonezilla said:
Anson is a cool guy. Mike Judge used to be his bass player, he modeled Beavis after Anson!
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I've always heard it was Johnny Moeller and Paul Size when they were younger who inspired Beavis and Butthead. That makes way more sense to me then Anson.
 
bbarnard

bbarnard

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Anson is a great guy. We had him here in Gainesville just before Sam passed. Anson readily let me pick up his Strat and play it. We also made arrangements to play golf (he's an avid golfer) the next morning and he was very gracious the next morning when I called him to see if he still wanted to play at 8:30 in the morning after doing a show until 2am the night before. We didn't end up playing but he was gracious nonetheless. My understanding from talking to his agent at Piedmont is that they are only playing festivals now. No more bar gigs and no constant touring. He's going for fewer but higher paying gigs. After all he's done for the blues, I can't blame him.
 
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