GEORGE COLE

“George Cole is a major guitar talent who plays everything from gypsy jazz to rhythm & blues. It’s been a great experience playing my music with him and he’s helped me take Dawg music in many new and wonderful directions. He can sing too!” - David Grisman

"George Cole was more than a guitar teacher to me. He was a mentor that talked about great music, great songs, good taste, and everything in between. I feel grateful and lucky that he showed me how to express myself with a guitar" - Billie Joe Armstrong

"George Cole has a sound that incorporates some of the finest elements of '30s/'40s-era European and American music. Cole's excellent Django-style guitar work and his band's enticing instrumental and vocal harmonies make them a must-see for any fan of vintage jazz." - Art Thompson, Senior Editor, Guitar Player Magazine

"… Cole's guitar playing is a marvel to see up close, his fingers leaping all over the fret board, his pick churning out the notes with a velocity and verve that would make Django Reinhardt proud. This night was all about musicianship, of the highest order." - Joe Sweeney, The Buffalo News

ABOUT GEORGE COLE:

Big band leader, vocalist, and breakneck electric/acoustic guitarist George Cole lives in a musical world all his own.... a world in which Django Reinhardt, The Ramones, Nat King Cole and Doc Watson get equal billing with Brian Setzer, George Gershwin, Willie Nelson and the Great American Songbook. A musician's musician, George Cole hails from San Francisco, a BAMMIE award winning acclaimed guitarist whose expertise is founded in Rock and Roll and the best of American music. With George Cole, the music never stops and making music is the name of the game. He was an early mentor of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Billie Joe Armstrong and Mike Dirnt (Green Day); Chris Isaak had Cole lay down guitar tracks on platinum selling Forever Blue; Jazz legend Keely Smith handpicked Cole to play guitar and sing duets with her on her last tour; A San Francisco native and BAMMIE award winner, George Cole brings an expertise to his guitar playing and singing that is filtered through Rock and Roll, Gypsy Jazz and All things American. The music he makes summons the old adage “Everything Old Is New Again”. He is the guitarist for the David Grisman Sextet and his latest projects include The Hot Jazz Network Podcast and performing with the George Cole Orchestra.  Always entertaining, find him at www.GEORGECOLE.net