"Artistry Tuesday" featuring Ken Bonfield!

August 13, 2019 

“Artistry Tuesday” 

Featuring Ken Bonfield

by Randal L Meek

Ken Bonfield is an artist’s artist in every sense of the word. True and dedicated to the art of music, guitar and fingerstyle in particular. Having taken the stage for going on five decades, Ken has seen firsthand the many changes of the musical landscape. Ken’s early influences included Dylan, the Dead, Simon and Garfunkel, Gordon Lightfoot, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, John Prine and Cat Stevens to name a few. In his early 20’s Ken was performing covers at clubs at the exhausting rate of four to five 45 minute sets each night! 

Then life took him in a different direction professionally while he continued in his spare time to hone his craft with a 1936 Martin 000-18 and a Santa Cruz 14-fret Koa & Spruce guitar.  His days of doling out 100+ covers/night long passed, Ken began to really focus on the intricate possibilities of fingerstyle and alternate tunings in that golden age of 1989 through the early 1990’s when David Wilcox, John Gorka, El McMeen, Martin Simpson, Duck Baker, Chris Proctor Ed Gerhardt and others were both creating new music and creating Tab for others to follow in their footsteps. Ken dove in head first in every spare minute he could muster. 

In Taos, NM around 1993 Ken found himself in need of employment and took the plunge back into performing. The Cafés, Brew Pubs and après ski gigs of glitzy Taos afforded opportunities to meet a few superstars of the day including Michael Martin Murphy and Arlo Guthrie. Michael Martin Murphy in particular provided career advice that prompted a move to Asheville, NC where gigging opportunities increased dramatically. Ken never looked back.

This was the age of audiophile quality recordings and experimentation with alternate tunings and the immense possibilities of fingerstyle guitar, and Ken created his own style focusing on musicianship as well as guitar and a credo adopted from Ed Gerhard: “Record the very best album you can, and give the very best performance you can.” Ken has always done both resulting in 8 full LP audiophile quality albums and 1,000’s of performances along the way. In an age of streaming where quantity is rewarded over quality, Ken will not sacrifice quality. Each new piece and each new album is an exercise in world-class quality both in performance and recording. 

“Streaming” changed the world of music and Ken found his “Wiseman’s View” on Spotify’s “Peaceful Guitar” playlist. Considered the “brass ring” of current fingerstyle artists, the temptation of more tracks reaching the coveted “Peaceful Guitar”, and its concomitant financial rewards, has not altered Ken from his course of creating world-class music that moves him. If that world-class music happens to fit within the confines of the streaming world “parameters”, great, but Ken will not alter his vision nor pursuit of creating “music that moves” an audience. 

Ken’s music over the decades is an intricate and delicate balance merging traditional Celtic, new-age, and original content into a sound that is unique and compelling to both the casual listener and professional musician. Ken can take the stage alone or in concert with any of today’s artists and deliver an intimate evening of pure musical joy. If his musical career ended today, Ken is satisfied! He has wandered and explored the possibilities of the world of guitar and music in general, added his own mark and stayed true to his vision. He has been a shining example and mentor to other musicians and music lovers.

But Ken’s career is far from over and standing as one of the patriarchs of the fingerstyle world Ken delivered his crowning album to date on Valentine’s Day 2019 with “Parting Gifts”. It is a fascinating and captivating album that I have reviewed before and will close with repeating that review. I’m proud to know this man and call him a friend and “brother in music”. 

On Spotify: Ken Bonfield

On Apple Music: Ken Bonfield