Dave Isaacs has been called "a master musician" and "a natural-born storyteller". His virtuoso abilities as a guitarist are anchored by finely developed songcraft, a lifelong love of traditional music, and a jazzman's improvisational spirit. Formally schooled in classical music but inspired by folk, blues and classic rock guitar, this is an artist that is difficult to sum up in a single sentence.

Best known as a solo artist and the former frontman for acclaimed country-rock band Jackalope Junction, Isaacs’ latest CD Flying is an all-instrumental project showcasing his skills as a guitarist and composer. The album was improvised on the spot in the studio and performed on an array of Parker Fly guitars, which he endorses and recently began promoting as a guitar clinician for US Music Corporation.

Dave performs across the eastern US both as an acoustic singer-songwriter and fronting his blues-based electric trio, and plans to release a live album in the coming months.

Influences

guitar: Eric Clapton, Jerry Garcia, David Gilmour, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Jim Messina, Pat Metheny, Bill Frisell. Vocal/songwriting: Rodney Crowell, Lyle Lovett, Elton John, Van Morrison

Bio

Dave Isaacs has been called "a master musician" and "a
natural-born storyteller". His virtuoso abilities as a
guitarist are given flight through classically-trained
technique and a jazzman’s improvisational spirit, but his
songwriting is anchored firmly by the folk, blues, and
country roots that created rock & roll and now form the
heart of contemporary Americana music.

In his solo acoustic performances, Isaacs infuses the troubadour tradition with foot-stomping authority. In an electric setting, the troubadour becomes a guitar slinger, leading his trio through fiercely melodic blues-rock-inspired improvisations that conjure up shades of Cream-era Eric Clapton jamming with Grateful Dead.

As the leader of the nationally-acclaimed country-rock band Jackalope Junction from 1996-2005 and as a solo artist since 2002, Dave has performed across the eastern US in venues large and small; from coffeehouses and dive bars to dance halls, theatres, and festival stages. His two CD releases with Jackalope Junction and two subsequent solo recordings have received significant radio airplay nationwide, with 2003's Prodigal Son making a strong showing on the Americana Airplay, Roots Music Report, and Progressive Country charts.

Isaacs' most recent recording Flying, released in late 2004 by New Orleans-based Louisiana Red Hot Records, is a collection of instrumentals featuring the contributions of veteran drummer Steve Holley (Paul McCartney, Elton John, Bob Dylan). The guitarist's versatility is evident, with tracks ranging from straight-ahead jazz to ambient rock, Latin, and Celtic sounds, performed on a fleet of Parker Fly instruments. Dave endorses and performs clinics for Parker Guitars, and has also maintained a busy teaching studio in the New York area for the past eighteen years.