Ladies First . . . A Salute To Gretsch’s Distaff Side

News

| February 15, 2010

Ladies First . . . A Salute To Gretsch’s Distaff Side

We love to showcase Gretsch artists here on Gretsch.com. And we particularly love to feature female artists, because . . . well, frankly, there aren’t enough of them in the music business today, and we’d like to see that change. So it’s with great pleasure that we’re currently featuring not one but two terrific female musicians in the Featured Artist section of Gretsch.com.

Cindy Blackman

Dinah & Fred Gretsch with Cindy Blackman (Photo by Dino Perucci)

While, as we said, females are under-represented among all instrumentalists, it’s particularly rare to find a high-profile, multi-talented woman behind a set of drums. But that’s exactly where you’ll find the great Cindy Blackman. Actually, Cindy is no stranger to drummers “in the know.” She’s been a legitimate drumming star for many years. She’s perhaps best known to the music world in general as the driving force behind rocker Lenny Kravitz—a position she’s held for approximately fourteen years. But Cindy is also a dyed-in-the-wool jazzer, with a particular reverence for the legendary Tony Williams (himself a long-time Gretsch artist). Cindy has several critically-acclaimed jazz albums as a bandleader to her credit, and she’s appeared at many of the major jazz and music festivals. You can learn more about Cindy’s past and present career at www.cindyblackman.com.

Lynda Kay

Fred Gretsch & Joe Carducci with Lynda Kay

While it’s not so rare to see a female country singer in the spotlight these days, it is rare to see one whose singing style is tied to a particular guitar. But that’s the case with Lynda Kay, an artist who’s described as being “like Patsy Cline and Kitty Wells all rolled up into one.” The Texas-born singer/guitarist conjures the ghosts of classic country’s past, including the songwriting influences of Willie Nelson and Roy Orbison. Her voice—which has been described as “furiously beautiful” and “fringed with hand-wringing regret”—is complemented perfectly by the twangy sound of her recently re-issued Gretsch 6130 Knotty Pine Roundup guitar. It’s a match made in musical heaven. Find out more at www.lyndakay.com.

Gretsch salutes these two talented ladies. And we encourage all musically-inclined women out there to take Cindy and Lynda as examples and inspirations. Get out there and play!