Blues wonder Jonny Lang isn't just brilliant for his age
by Patrick MacDonald

CONCERT PREVIEW: Jonny Lang and Matthew Ryan, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Moore Theatre; sold out.
In print and TV ads for the upcoming movie "Blues Brothers 2000," opening Feb. 6, blues and
R&B greats James Brown, Aretha Franklin and B.B. King are prominently featured, along with skinny blond teenager Jonny Lang
His inclusion isn't just a gimmick. Although the singer-guitarist is only 16 - he turns 17 a week from today - and has released just one album, "Lie to Me," he has amply demonstrated that he has the
chops to stand alongside such established veterans. King, who is among Lang's blues guitar heroes, is one of his strongest supporters. When Lang opened for him last summer, King brought him back to the stage during his set and jammed with him on three songs. Lang said afterward that he could now die happy, having been acknowledged by America's greatest living bluesman. Lang has been invited to jam onstage with many of his other blues guitar inspirations, including his first great influence, Luther Allison, as well as Lonnie Brooks, Kenny Neal, Jimmy Thackery, Syl Johnson and Buddy Guy. Opening for Aerosmith on several shows of its summer tour, Lang was invited onstage to trade solos with Joe Perry.
Tomorrow and Saturday, Lang opens for the Rolling Stones at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, and
will open for them again Jan. 30 and 31 at the Rose Garden in Portland. He first opened for Mick Jagger and company earlier this month at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y., and afterward Keith Richards said what so many have felt about Lang: He's not just great for a teenager, he's just plain great. Jon Langseth (his real name) was 12 when he attended his first blues concert, by a band called Bad Medicine, in his hometown of Fargo, N.D. He became so mesmerized that he ended up sitting onstage near guitarist Ted Larsen. A few months later, Lang got his first guitar for his 13th birthday, and Larsen became his teacher. Within months, Lang became lead guitarist for Bad Medicine - renamed Kid Jonny Lang and The Big Bang - and Larsen stepped back to become rhythm guitarist.
Lang's parents, recognizing his genius on guitar, took him out of school, hired tutors for him so he
could devote most of his time to playing, and moved band and family (including Lang's three sisters) to Minneapolis, to be closer to a vibrant live-music scene. There Lang soon became a sensation, playing clubs he was too young to enter through the front door. His first independently released album sold 25,000 copies in the Minneapolis area, attracting the attention of A&M, who signed the young prodigy to a four-album contract. His first album was released just about a year ago, and Lang and his stripped-down band - Paul Diethelm on guitar, Bruce McCabe on keyboards, Doug Nelson on bass and Billy Thommes on drums - have been touring nonstop since to promote it. The record has gone gold and its title cut, "Lie to Me," became a hit single. Lang, who always performs barefoot, plays in both the traditional, clean style of King and in the more modern, grittier style of Robert Cray and the late Stevie Ray Vaughn. Lang's singing voice is naturally gruff, adding texture and authenticity to his songs. Close your eyes and you don't picture a kid, but rather a grizzled old blues veteran who knows of what he sings. Lang is a blur of activity when he performs. He scrunches up his face with every high note, and shakes his Dutch Boy mop of hair, often obscuring his entire face. He displays raw emotions and deep feeling beyond his young years.