Although his name isn't as instantly
recognizable as Steve Vai or Joe Satriani amongst the guitar masses, Stevie
Salas is just as renowned as the aforementioned guitarists in other parts of
the world (namely Japan), while he has also served as a sideman for the likes
of Rod Stewart and Mick Jagger. A Native American, Salas was raised in San Diego, California,
where he learned guitar and absorbed a wide variety of musical influences early
on -- everyone from Earth, Wind & Fire to Van Halen and Led Zeppelin. Relocating
to Hollywood
with hopes of launching a music career, Salas quickly realized it wasn't going
to be as easy as originally planned. As a result, he was reduced to working at
a recording studio, where he answered phones and did chores -- barely scraping
together enough to get by. One evening, when he was sleeping on a sofa at the
studio, he was awoken by none other than Funkadelic leader George Clinton, who
was recording and needed some guitar work done. Salas obliged, and before he
knew it, he became a much sought-after session guitarist, appearing on
late-'80s era recordings by the likes of Bootsy Collins, Was (Not Was), and Eddie
Money, among others, as well as even landing a brief spot as the 'house band'
on the TV show Fame. It was around this same time that Salas formed his
own group, Stevie Salas Colorcode, which was momentarily put on hold, as the
guitarist was offered a gig he simply couldn't pass up -- as he was invited to
join Rod Stewart's touring band. After the Stewart tour wrapped up (which
included multi-night stays at such prestigious venues as the L.A. Forum and MadisonSquareGarden),
Salas was offered his own record deal with Island Records, resulting in the
release of Stevie Salas Colorcode in 1990. Despite landing an opening
slot for Joe Satriani at the time (who was touring behind his hit release, Flying
in a Blue Dream), Salas' debut didn't exactly light up the U.S. charts, but
in Japan, Salas quickly built a large and devoted following. Salas' sophomore
effort, 1993's The Electric Pow Wow, included guest appearances from Slim Jim
Phantom, Matt Sorum, Zakk Wylde, plus Cheap Trick's Rick Nielsen and Tom
Petersson, while 1994's Back From the Living was named "Album of
the Year" in Japan (over releases by such heavyweights as the Rolling
Stones and Aerosmith). Salas has continued to issue solo releases (most of
which were only available in the U.S. as imports), including 1997's Alter
Native Gold and Le Bootleg/Live in Paris, 1998's The Sometimes Almost Never
Was, and Viva La Noise, 1999's Sol Power, and 2001's Shapeshifter.
Additionally, Salas continues to work with other artists, including Duran Duran,
Terence Trent D'Arby, Sass Jordan,
and is forming a one-off power trio with Bootsy Collins and Buddy Miles, called
Hardware. As if his schedule wasn't busy enough, Salas was handpicked by Mick
Jagger to play shows alongside the longtime Rolling Stones' frontman in support
of his 2001 release, Goddess in the Doorway.
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