Jeff Lang

Jeff Lang has become a legend around these parts. Over the course of his 20 year career he has released 11 studio albums and in the process, become one of the most accomplished and loved guitarists in the country. When I spoke to Lang in March this year, he was very excited about the prospect of the project that he was going to take on the road. Maru Tarang, played at the Brunswick Music Festival as well as Port Fairy and it is the first thing we speak about when we begin to chat.
“That run of shows, was just spectacular. It always is mighty and a complete honour to play at Port Fairy. I played a couple of solo shows and a few with Maru Tarang and it was great fun. The audience reaction to what we were doing was quite great because we were doing something a little different – my one criticism about those shows was that the tour was too brief. I Could have done with more of it. It’s always great fun to play with those guys and I will jump at any opportunity to play with them again,” he says.
From just one look at Lang’s website, I am quick to ask about the lifestyle of a travelling musician in 2015. It seems that you do a lot of driving in the commodore to get to the gig. “I think that it really depends on your schedule because some weekends I am driving all around the place and then you get a gig where you fly in and fly out of a show and you play two or three shows in a weekend. It’s definitely different to when I was just starting out in the ‘90s, where I was playing 250+ shows and living in the back of a van. I don’t know whether you would call that easier, but in my 20s I just needed petrol money to get to the next gig – I have a whole lot of other responsibilities now,” Lang says.
Over the weekend of the 8th and 9th of August, some of Australia’s finest are set to converge on the Caulfield Racecourse for the return of the Melbourne Guitar Show. Featuring the likes of Nick Charles, The Davidson Brothers, Lloyd Spiegel and Jeff, he can’t wait to get up on stage and play.
“It will be awesome to play at this festival, there are some of Australia’s best players and I highly urge everyone to come out and embrace such an experience. There will be quite a few guitar makers exhibiting and I will be playing a solo set. The thing about my solo shows is that they are quite often loose and spontaneous and I pick the song I want to start with and the instrument and the show evolves from there. I can’t wait to see what is going to happen,” he says.
For many years, Lang has played David Churchill guitars exclusively and if you have been to the stage show, you will know that Lang puts 100 per cent into the performance. Talking about his rig, it has over time become known as the ‘Australasian experience’.
“On the road, I play a flat top acoustic, that David Churchill made, and he also has made me an acoustic resonator. For bottleneck playing, I have a resonator made by Steve Evans from New Zealand,” Lang says.
This guitar show is set to be a highlight of the Melbourne music calendar and leads into events such as AWME, Face The Music as well as the summer festival season. Having been to similar shows in the past, I cannot recommend this two-day event enough. Great if you are in the market to purchase or just in the mood to check out some stunning playing.
When&Where: Melbourne Guitar Show, Caulfield Racecourse – August 8 & 9
Written by Tex Miller