For the final collaboration of the “Sitting In” miniseries, I’m excited to share a fantastic multi-instrumentalist, fluent in clawhammer banjo and slide blues guitar, named Cristina Vane. Born in Italy, and living many places overseas before arriving in America at 18 years old, Cristina accumulated a wealth of culture and a diverse range of songs before discovering her love for pre-war blues and the likes of the pioneers Skip James, Robert Johnson, Blind Willie Johnson and Rory Block who have all shaped her guitar technique and song catalogue. She worked at the famous McCabe’s Guitar Shop in LA, and studied finger-style guitar under her mentor Pete Steinberg before exploring country blues picking and old folk guitar styles on her own in the years that followed. She has said, “I’m essentially a rock kid who is obsessed with old music.”⁠

⁠Cristina just released her debut full length record on April 2nd, titled "Nowhere Sounds Lovely", and American Songwriter premiered one track titled “Badlands” adding: “Like a young Bonnie Raitt, Vane sings from both her voice and her supple, bluesy guitar playing almost simultaneously–her sound as earthen as the South Dakota landscape…”⁠

Cristina shares a story of how she got into American Folk and Blues music outside America, and her quest to music preservation. Enjoy!

Links:

Cristina’s Official Site

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Follow Cristina on Social Media:

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