Blues Profile
Rusty Zinn
by Ray Stiles
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1999 KBA Award Winner
Achievement for Blues on the Internet
Presented by the Blues Foundation
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Up until just a few years ago Rusty Zinn, who lives in the San Francisco Bay area, was best known for his phenomenal lead guitar playing with harmonica players Kim Wilson and Mark Hummel. A young guitarist with a monster tone and technique, Zinn (born April 3, 1970 in Long Beach) grew up in the Santa Cruz mountains in northern California. He was introduced to classic R&B through his mother's collection of 45 singles, which included rare discs from Fats Domino and Elvis. While in his teens, his brother brought home recordings by Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf, and these proved to be a revelation for the young blues aficionado. He became fascinated by the guitar stylings of Robert Jr. Lockwood, Eddie Taylor, Luther Tucker and Jimmy Rogers. These records prompted him to begin playing guitar at 17. He enjoyed another crystallizing moment when he saw Luther Tucker perform with Jimmy Rogers at a local club. He credits that show with changing his life, and he sought out all the recordings he could featuring Luther. A year later, when Zinn again went to see his idol, Tucker invited him on stage. Tucker took the young Zinn under his wing and shared guitar techniques with him. Meanwhile, Zinn was working with several northern California blues bands in the late 1980s, and he was often tapped to back touring musicians like Snooky Pryor and Rogers. After joining Mark Hummel's band, Zinn honed his craft through hundreds of shows and thousands of miles. He was next tapped by Kim Wilson for his 1993 Tigerman album and subsequent tour. This led to his being signed by Black Top Records in 1996 with whom he has released two excellent solo recordings. Rusty Zinn will also be performing at the Hall of Fame on Sunday night after the festival.
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