In 2012-13 I produced/composed a very rewarding album dedicated to our veterans called Guitars for Wounded Warriors originally released by Cleopatra Records in 2014. Being moved by the lack of support for returning veterans, I decided to compose a heavy instrumental rock album as a way to show my appreciation to all veterans. I enlisted top notch players to guest on the album as: Billy Sheehan, Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal (Guns N’ Roses), Reb Beach (Whitesnake), Steve Morse (Deep Purple), Chris Poland (Megadeth), Chuck Loeb (Fourplay), Hal Lindes (Dire Straits), Gary Hoey, Alex De Rosso (Dokken), and The Flyin' Ryan Brothers. I also engineered and performed on every song with the guests.
The song “Taliban Terror” featuring Ron ‘Bumblefoot’ Thal and Reb Beach was a blast to record. I wanted a song to be inspired by those military soldiers who have fought for our country. I tried to capture the heavy grudge of war by the detuned rhythm guitar riffs yet have a soft half time break to represent the internal struggles of war where my guitar solo is featured. The end solos are Bumblefoot and Reb Beach respectively, while I keep down the heavy rhythm on guitar & bass with my longtime drummer Reggie Pryor. I recorded all of the basic tracks, rhythm guitars, drums and bass in a 200-year-old farmhouse in the New York Catskill Mountains. Then I recorded the guitar melodies and solos at my recording studio, Jungle Room Studios. Unfortunately, during the recording of the album, the old farmhouse, which had been a family holiday place dear to my heart succumbed to a chimney fire, so we were forced to relocate the studio to my college town New Paltz. In 2016, Guitars for Wounded Warriors received a Best Compilation Album nomination by the Independent Music Awards in New York. Proceeds were donated to the Fisher House Foundation from sales.
You can learn more about Brian Tarquin here
About the Curator: Brian Tarquin
Multi Emmy Award winning Brian Tarquin is an established top rate composer/guitarist. He has won 3 Emmy's for “Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition for a Drama Series” and has been nominated for an Emmy 6 times. In 2019 Tarquin received a Global Music Gold Award for his release Orlando In Heaven for “Best Album.” Three years in a row (2016-2019) Tarquin received “Best Album of the Year” nominations from the Independent Music Awards for his releases: Guitars for Wounded Warriors, Orlando in Heaven, and Guitars for Veterans. On which, Tarquin shows his guitar prowess alongside such world-class shredders as: Steve Morse, Larry Coryell, Billy Sheehan, Bumblefoot (Guns N’ Roses), Reb Beach (Whitesnake), Chuck Loeb (FourPlay) to name a few. In 2006 SESAC honored him with the Network Television Performance Award. Tarquin has graced the Top Billboard Charts with such commercial releases as: This is Acid Jazz, Vol. 2, Sweet Emotions, and Bossa Brava: Caliente on Instinct Records, followed by several solo jazz albums, which charted Top 10 at Smooth Jazz Radio R&R and Gavin charts. Brian has appeared on 38 releases, selling over 140,000 records in his career.
