ArtistsGuthrie Govan

Guthrie Govan has been playing guitar for as long as he can remember: he played his first gig at the age of five, appeared on UK national TV four years later and subsequently went on to win the 1993 "Guitarist of the Year" contest sponsored by the leading UK magazine Guitarist. (More recently, the July 2011 issue of Guitar Player magazine ran a cover story on Guthrie's playing.)

He has recorded and toured extensively with acts ranging all the way from melodic rock (Asia) to jazz fusion (The Fellowship) and electronica (The Young Punx.)

Guthrie has worked as a transcriber for Guitar Techniques magazine since 1994, covering the playing of pretty much everyone from Hank Marvin to Shawn Lane. He has also taught at various noted guitar schools in the UK, such as ACM and BIMM, and his clinic tours for Suhr guitars and Rotosound strings have taken him to all manner of unusual locations. (He's particularly proud of the Kazakhstan work permit in his passport...)

Guthrie's debut solo album Erotic Cakes was released in 2006. This eclectic collection of guitar instrumentals was widely acclaimed - inspiring Joe Satriani to deliver the verdict "freakin' awesome!"

He regularly works with the sample recreation company Replay Heaven, as a result of which his guitar and bass work has graced hit singles by the likes of Sonny J, the Sugababes, Cee Lo Green and Dizzee Rascal. He has also toured extensively with Dizzee, performing in arenas and festivals throughout the UK.

Guthrie was recently invited to appear on Lee Ritenour's Six String Theory project: his re-working of the track Fives (featuring Vinnie Colaiuta, Tal Wilkenfeld and Larry Goldings) is featured alongside contributions from the likes of Steve Lukather, George Benson and B.B. King.

He is currently touring and recording with The Aristocrats, new a rock-fusion power trio featuring bassist Bryan Beller (Mike Keneally, Steve Vai, Dethklok) and drummer Marco Minnemann (UKZ, Paul Gilbert, Adrian Belew, Necrophagist.)

Another solo album is rumoured to be in the works, though no one seems quite sure when it might actually be released. Watch this space!