Newsgroups: alt.music.deep-purple
Subject: Steve Morse Profile 
From: manishk@bnr.ca (Manish Kumar) 
Date: 17 Oct 1995 12:06:55 GMT 

This is from Mahesh Sinivas:

A profile of Steve Morse that appeared in the pages of Jorgensen Auditorium's 40th Anniversary Season Playbill.

Steve Morse is one of the most highly regarded guitarists in the music business today. The recipient of seven Grammy nominations, he was named Best Overall Guitarist by Guitar Players's readers' poll five years in a row, and was inducted into that magazine's "Gallery of Greats" in 1986. A virtuoso on both the electric and acoustic guitar, he is widely respected for his versatile style, broad musical background and spectacular technique. Born in July, 1954, in Hamilton, Ohio and raised in the Detroit area, Steve Morse began studying guitar at a local music store around 1965. He was a tenth grader at Augusta, Georgia's Richmond Academy military school when he met classmate and bass player Andy West. They both enrolled in the University of Miami and formed a band that eventually became the Dixie Dregs. While at Miami, Morse studied studio music, jazz and classical guitar, a curriculum that contributed to his uniquely broad style. Signed to the Capricorn label in Christmas of 1976, the band released its debut album the following spring. Morse recorded four more albums with the Dixie Dregs, and five more with the renamed Dregs. The band broke up in 1982 and Morse recorded his first two solo albums. In 1986, he joined the midwestern supergroup Kansas and recorded two albums with them; he performed with that group until 1989. When he signed with MCA in 1989, Morse was already one of the most respected and decorated guitarists in the history of rock and roll. The Steve Morse Band recorded three highly successful albums for that label to date. His latest, Structural Damage, is just out on the High Street label. In 1992, the Dregs reunited for a February tour sponsored by Capricorn Records. The success of the performances resulted in a live album, and they completed their first studio album in twelve years. Guitar Player's review of the album said of Morse, "Incredibly, his playing has become faster, more precise and more expressive." Morse has recently joined another rock supergroup, Deep Purple; their first recording will soon be released and the group will embark on a world tour later this year. Morse finds time in his busy playing schedule to enjoy his other passion: flying. For a while, back in 1987, Morse actually took a hiatus from his music to work as a commercial airline pilot full-time.

Rock on,
Mahesh Srinivas
Email: mxs@mvuts.att.com