Peter White’s musical voice speaks on the nylon-string guitar and what he’s saying on his latest record is sure to make people grin.
“You can make your own adventure with the music, I just set the scene,” explained White, 60, who was born in Luton, raised in Letchworth—both suburbs of London—but currently resides in Los Angeles. “Not everything on the record is the same dynamic or the same tempo. I’ve never tried to make something one style or genre.”
The master guitarist is set to release “Smile,” his fourteenth recording as a leader, on Oct. 7. The record is filled with an array of special guests including saxophonist Mindi Abair who sings vocals, trumpeter Rick Braun, soprano saxophonist Euge Groove, keyboardist Phillipe Saisse, bassist Nate Phillips, violinist—and Peter’s daughter—Charlotte White, bongo player Ramon Yslas, and vocalist Stevo Theard.
White was excited to work with all of them on “Smile.”
“What’s better than playing music you like with people you like and taking people away from their problems are or whatever they’re going through? I’ve worked with Mindi before and I’ve done hundreds of shows with her. People don’t get to hear her voice enough,” said White who asked Abair to sing the lead vocals on the title track and lend her voice on the beautiful “Hold Me Close.” My daughter Charlotte was 13 years old when she recorded the song. I’ll probably continue working with her throughout the years. She was never interested in the guitar but her school gave her a violin and I’m glad they did. I just melt when she plays.”
“Smile” is White’s third recording for Heads Up, a division of Concord Music Group, of all original songs. The partnership started in 2009 with “Good Day” and continued with 2012’s “Here We Go” and now “Smile.”
White played the clarinet, trombone, violin and piano before settling on the electric guitar. He was inspired by Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page. White started his professional career at the age of 19. A year later he joined folk singer Al Stewart and stayed with him for 20 years. White was originally hired as a pianist but Stewart saw something in the hungry musician and put a nylon-string guitar in White’s hand in 1974. White’s big break was on Stewart’s 1976 hit “Year of the Cat” and he also co-wrote songs many songs on his mentor’s 1978 LP, “Time Passages.” White moved to Los Angeles and formed his own band, Shot in the Dark. His brother, Danny, was one of the founding members of the British pop group Matt Bianco, which included singer Basia. When she went solo, Peter and his brother recorded several albums with her including her 1987 debut, “Time and Tide” and her 1990 follow up “London, Warsaw, New York.”
After years of working as a session musician with some of the world’s greatest musicians including Boney James, Richard Elliot, Warren Hill, and Marc Antoine, White stepped out on his own in 1990 and recorded his first solo album “Reveillez-Vous,” that same year. His other solo recordings include 2001’s “Glow,” 2004’s “Confidential,” “Playin’ Favorites” in 2006, “Good Day” in 2009 and “Here We Go” in 2012
“I learned a whole lot from Al Stewart: How to write a song; how to record a song’ how to perform on stage and how to talk to the audience. It’s impossible for that not to rub off after being with him for 20 years. He was very big on songs having an instrumental motif that runs through the music, and I have that same concept in my music now,” White said.
The charismatic musician gave his Pittsburgh fans a treat on July 25 when he played at Robert Morris University—along with fellow musicians Euge Groove and Rick Braun.
“That was a fun show the place was packed. That was only my second time playing in Pittsburgh. I played there in the 1990’s and then it stopped until this summer. That show was all ages and it was a mixed crowd,” White said.
Two songs on “Smile” hold special meaning to White.
“‘Beautiful Love’ is my tribute to Barry White. I was 16 or 17 when I heard him back home in England. The BBC radio played all kinds of music of all genres there was no difference. There was no urban radio etc radio was not classified. With Barry White I heard this rift and it kept going and going before he finally started singing,” White fondly recalls. “I was like ‘Wow what a groove’. He started slowly and softly and then built up. I never got the chance to meet him I wished I had met him and taken a photo with him and it’d have called it the White brothers!”
“Don Quixote’s Final Quest”— which was co-written with keyboardist Freddie Ravel a long, long time ago and almost didn’t end up on “Smile—is White’s nod to Mason Williams’ “Classical Gas.”
“That influenced me to take up the Spanish guitar when I was a kid. I was heavily in to rock and roll. But this guitar being playing finger-style had so much power, I said ‘wow! I want to play guitar like THIS’ It took us three days to the song, there were so many elements to it,” White said.
When White isn’t touring, performing or recording music, he enjoys juggling and writing his autobiography.
“If you have a good song people will remember it. I just try to keep doing what I’m doing and get better at performing and keep trying to write good songs. I’m surprised I got this far. I wanted to be the guy in the band playing music. I wasn’t interested in writing songs,” White said. “I knew that could be in a band, but that all changed when the smooth jazz radio stations started. I heard myself on the radio. I had no idea I would be doing this for 40 years and be releasing albums.”
