Dr. Wayne Goins Interview with Jazz Guitar Life

One of the GREATEST moments of my life was having a chance to share the stage with Kenny Burrell on his 75^th Birthday celebration at Royce Hall on UCLA campus. This was all due to the graces of none other than Wolf Marshall, who made sure I had a place on that stage along with other luminaries…I remember hanging backstage with Russell Malone and Pat Metheny, it was an amazing event.

Dr. Wayne Goins

I first “met” Dr. Wayne Goins via a variety of Jazz Guitar related Facebook communities and instantly liked his way with words. I soon came to realise that not only was he a top-notch educator but that he was also a die-hard researcher and published author. Over the years it had been my intention to interview him for Jazz Guitar Life, and so when he accepted my interview invite I was more than delighted.

I think you’ll find this interview both insightful and entertaining along with inspirational. As always, your comments are welcome and appreciated. Enjoy 🙂

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JGL: Thank you Wayne for taking the time to talk to Jazz Guitar Life. First off, if we can get into a little background about you that would be great. How old are you?

WG: I’m 60 until September 19, when I will hopefully turn yet another page.

JGL: Now, for those who are unaware of you, could you give Jazz Guitar Life readers an elevator pitch of who Dr. Wayne Goins is?

WG: I’m Director of Jazz Studies at Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas. I am a multi-styled guitarist whose career covers blues, jazz, rock, pop, soul, funk, reggae, and R&B. I am a university scholar, jazz band director, guitar instructor, author, composer, and performer. I own my own record label and produce my own albums, although I have performed dozens of albums on several other labels.

JGL: Whereabouts are you located?

WG: I currently live in Manhattan Kansas, but I’m from Chicago.

JGL: How old were you when you picked up the guitar?

WG: I was maybe ten years old when I received my first real guitar, my dad brought it to the house one night, he got it from my uncle Jimmy, who gave it to him to give to me. My dad knew how obsessed I was with guitar because every Christmas-–from the day I was born it seems—it’s all I ever wanted—a real guitar.

JGL: Cool…and were you interested in jazz from the beginning or were there other musical interests before jazz?

WG: I didn’t get into jazz until I was a sophomore in high school. I went to Lindblom Technical High School on the Southwest Side of Chicago, and we didn’t have a real jazz ensemble, a big band. We had a combo that played pop and R&B and funk and fusion. We played everything from Earth, Wind & Fire to Return to Forever to Average White Band to Isley Brothers to Steely Dan. Our combo was awesome, and we did serious justice to that music.

JGL: I can only imagine! So how did you find your way to this particular music and instrument?

WG: Every summer the city sponsored  summer jobs for the inner city youth, and me and a friend of mine were sent to this high school on the other side of town—Paul Robeson High School—to do groundskeeping duties. The band director, George Page, had a great marching band program and he also had a really talented Jazz ensemble. It was the first time I ever saw one up close and I was totally captured by it, and was obsessed by the sound and size of it. It was like watching and hearing a well-oiled machine turn its wheels right in front of you. It was totally mesmerising and I wanted in—IMMEDIATELY. I asked Mr. Page if I could join his band. It was risky because I knew that both he and his students knew that I wasn’t a member of Robeson H.S, but I didn’t care, I just HAD to be in that band. I was in love with the sound and size of big band music. And he saw the passion in me and he let me join. The rest is history.

JGL: Speaking of passion, who were your influences on jazz guitar when you were beginning, and have they stayed the same or have they changed over the years?

WG: The first one was George Benson, and he still is the biggest one…eventually I came to know and love the music of Kenny Burrell, Wes Montgomery, Grant Green…you know, all the main classic jazz guitar greats who were black and whose world-wide reputations were looming large and leading the way for young guys like me at that time.

JGL: Who are you listening to today (guitarists or non-guitarists)?

WG: Strictly in the realm of guitar, I have been fortunate enough to actually befriend many heroes whose music I have thoroughly enjoyed over the years—off the top, I name Kenny Burrell, Russell Malone, Pat Metheny, Ed Cherry, Perry Hughes, Will Matthews, John Stein, Mark Whitfield and Joshua Breakstone. But most recently it’s been a new friend, long-time veteran Henry Johnson, who has become one of my biggest friends/mentors who have set excellent examples of what it means to be in this business today.

Grant Green Jr., Bobby Broom, Peter Bernstein and Dan Wilson are four other examples of superior guitar men that I’ve gotten to know personally, but have yet to spend extended time with on a one-on-one basis. Rod Harris, Jr., Sean McGowan and also Randy Napoleon also have shared their time, talent and resources with me. I recently had a wonderful introduction and friendship with both Cecil Alexander from Boston and Mark Strickland from Pittsburgh that I’m excited to get to know better and spend time with—I will hopefully get to visit them soon. I hope I get a chance to know the veteran Michael Howell at some point—Ed Cherry’s been helping me learn more about him and also Roland Prince and Bruce Johnson—those last two are sadly no longer with us.

One of the GREATEST moments of my life was having a chance to share the stage with Kenny Burrell on his 75^th Birthday celebration at Royce Hall on UCLA campus. This was all due to the graces of none other than Wolf Marshall, who made sure I had a place on that stage along with other luminaries. Wolf, as most of you know, is one of the best who was ever involved in guitar method teaching, and of course he’s a great player, and an even better human. I remember hanging backstage with Russell Malone and Pat Metheny, it was an amazing event. But the one I REALLY wanna meet?  My “bucket list” moment? The one and only George Benson.

JGL: It’s not too late thankfully to fulfil that bucket list wish 🙂 Now – and in the same vein – who has been most influential in your life as a Jazz Guitarist and why?

WG: I would have to say Kenny Burrell, Russell Malone and Pat Metheny in that order because that’s the order I met them in. Kenny was in Atlanta in the early ‘90’s when I lived there, and he actually allowed me to come over to his hotel and interview him the day after his concert—the things he told me were absolutely incredible, and his generosity was unforgettable.

Russell was next. In 1991 he gave me the first Ibanez GB10 I ever played—I was in love with everything related to Benson, and I still have that guitar to this day—I gave Russell a ‘70’s model Ibanez “Lawsuit” L5 guitar in exchange for it—he told me recently that he still has it! We have been great friends forever and we have big plans on me writing his biography some time in the future when we can both sit down together and carve out some time to crank it out.

And then there is Pat Metheny, whose album Secret Story literally changed my life forever.

I was a PhD student at Florida State University at the time, and when I got hold of that album, it changed the molecules in my body. I immediately went to my major professor, Clifford K. Madsen, and told him this album would be my dissertation—a bold move for a first-year doctoral student, because they don’t usually let you declare that statement until the second half of your second year. I did write that dissertation, and it became the first book I ever got published. I titled it The Emotional Response to Music: Pat Metheny’s Secret Story. Since then, Pat and I have become good friends, and he and I see each other every time whenever he comes anywhere near where I live—I gave a pre-concert lecture for him in D.C.years ago, and I also invited him to do a concert here at McCain Auditorium some years later, and he did—he blew the audience away with his band, and spent an hour of one-on-one private time with all my jazz students. What a gift he is to the world.

JGL: He most definitely is! You mentioned the Ibanez GB 10. What was your first guitar and what are you playing now?

WG: My first guitar was a sunburst Teisco Del Rey, the serial number was 166252, I loved that guitar… but lost it when I let a friend borrow it who never gave it back. It one of my few and greatest regrets.

I mentioned the GB10 that Russell gave me, I played it so much that I wore it down, and also the chemical compound of oxidation in the pickguard caused a lot of damage–it’s being repaired now by a great luthier Danny Corwin, who works in Topeka, Kansas. I have two other GB10’s—one blond one and another tobacco sunburst one that I play. I also have a 1991 chocolate Gibson ES-175 I got from guitarist John Stein. I have a sweet  “Lawsuit” Ibanez L5, a 199 Andersen Emerald City Reserve, a ’71 vintage Fender Strat, and twenty other Strats that I personally built. I have two Epiphone ES-339’s and a couple of other vintage Strats I forgot to mention.

JGL: That’s a sweet collection Wayne! What other gear are you using?

WG: For amps I have a vintage Fender Blackface, Polytone MegaBrute and a Fender Blues Junior—I use all these for the rock, blues, reggae and R&B stuff I do. For jazz, I use a recently bought Henricksen Bud 10 that my former student and good friend Steve Knight turned me onto. Randy Napoleon and Sean McGowan also both highly recommended it.

For effects I just use an old school Boss floor pedal rack. I like to keep it simple. And I don’t use any effects when I play jazz, other than a touch of reverb from the amp.

JGL: Nice! Do you have a specific stage set-up that works best for you in a variety of musical situations?

WG: I don’t like using monitors for anything other than to hear a good balance of the other band members—I have never liked my guitar sound coming from in front of me. I like my amp located not too far behind me and to the left—or right if there’s no room on the left.

JGL: I get that! Moving away from gear for the moment, is there anyone – alive or dead – who you’d love to play and/or record with and why?

WG: I would have loved to have met or played with Charlie Christian. I did get to meet his family members when I did research in Oklahoma City for THE definitive book on Charlie Christian. I published it in 2005, title A Biography of Charlie Christian: Jazz Guitar’s King of Swing. And as I mentioned earlier, getting to play with GB would be stellar! Actually, getting to play with ANY of these guys I have mentioned previously would constitute a good day for me!

JGL: LOL…I hear ya 🙂 Tell me Wayne, did you know early on that music was something you wanted to do as a career choice and if so, what have you done to make this choice work for you?

WG: All I have ever wanted to do was play guitar. I never considered doing or being anything else my entire life. I was destined to do and be this entity that I am.

JGL: From what I have heard online, you definitely have the best of both the Jazz and Blues worlds going on. What was your practice routine like when you were beginning and what is it like now?

WG: I learned to play by ear from the very first time I picked up a guitar. I played in my uncle Jimmy’s blues band when I was maybe 12 or 13, and I loved it. My dad knew all the blues guys in Chicago—he used to hang out with the legendary harmonica player Little Walter from the Muddy Waters band. They were drinking buddies on the West Side where I grew up. I was listening to the Chicago blues music on Chess Records from the time I was born. It’s part of my DNA—it was a blessing to be born basically right up the street from the Chess Studio on Michigan Avenue!

So to answer your question, my practice routine was to play along with every vinyl 45 and LP in my house. I did that from the very start when I got a real guitar, and I did it all through high school and college and still do it to this day. Nothing beats a real human pulse, which is what the recordings capture. It’s the only way to learn how to swing. Henry Johnson and I talk about that kinda stuff all the time now. When I play I allow myself to get “dragged through the mud” by the great recordings of Pat, George, Russell, Henry, etc. I just try to play alongside  their lines and hang on for the ride. It’s something I still enjoy doing when I have time, and it’s still the best way to get my juices flowing!

JGL: Are there specific areas that you work on or do you just play through tunes?

WG: I just play through tunes mainly, and try to apply what my ears indicate and what my hands are capable of executing—it’s really as simple as that. You try to work in a few new things that you heard that might be beyond you at the moment, and hopefully over time they will become the new part of your expanding repertoire. This approach applies to everything, whether you’re trying to incorporate fresh licks, entire tunes, styles/genres, picking or chordal techniques. There is sooo much music out there man, and it’s all hiding somewhere in that jazz box you’re holding, you just gotta find a way to dig it out with your hands. We’re all in the same boat in that regard.

JGL: In a similar vein – and apart from your post secondary formal education – did you study privately when you were coming up and if so, with whom?

WG: I’ve only had a few real teachers in my life. The first was Milton Jackson, a wonderful classical and jazz trumpet player and guitarist who was my instructor when I went to college at UAPB in Arkansas. We are still great friends to this day and he was my first biggest influence when it comes to jazz guitar he introduced me to all the music of Wes Montgomery, and it changed my life.

I studied with Randy Roos, a guy who was a student of Mick Goodrick when I moved to Boston, but he didn’t do much for me, and our time didn’t last very long—maybe because what I REALLY wanted was to study directly with the guy who taught Pat Metheny! But Mick was really busy teaching at New England Conservatory at the time, so I understood and respected that. Mick was very nice to me about it, he’s a great guy. I had a nice one-on-one lesson with Mark Whitfield when I visited NYC with my student Steve Knight who introduced me to him—it was a  great time. Henry Johnson has also been teaching me a LOT of things—not just guitar but life stuff—over the zoom session we have had recently. That dude has a TON of wisdom about the world of music and jazz guitar!

JGL: Wow…I can imagine. These one on one lessons makes me wonder…even though you teach formally in an academic classroom like setting, is there an argument to be made for learning Jazz solely via the passing down of information from experienced mentors and on the bandstand? Or is it a question that some students may thrive in a formal setting while others need to seek knowledge through other, less formal sources?

WG: Yes and no. Yes, the best way in my opinion is to learn the way the griots taught us throughout history: through listening and imitating until you can own it. That method, as far as I know, is an African tradition, and, for my money, is still the way that has worked best for me. No, in a sense that this isn’t the only way for everybody. Obviously, as a jazz instructor, some students learn through just watching videos, some learn though hands-on experience, some learn through hearing it in person, and bang, they get it.

JGL: On the topic of education, you are currently the Director of Jazz Studies at Kansas State University and in 2015 was awarded the designation: University Distinguished Professor of Music! First off, congratulations on such an illustrious title, that’s quite the accomplishment and well deserved I might add given your almost life-long dedication to Jazz and its educational pursuits. If you don’t mind saying, how did this come about and how are you enjoying the experience so far? Did you get a raise…lol?

WG: It’s quite honestly one of the greatest honors that can bestowed upon an individual whose life is dedicated to higher education. The only other thing might be receiving an honorary degree from a well-loved alma mater or some other prestigious school of merit. For me, this was probably the proudest academic achievement in my career, because I and so many others know just how hard it is to achieve such a high honour. I have to admit that I am the only African-American to ever achieve such a title in the entire history of this University, which is quite a thing, in both good and bad terms—I do wish it weren’t so, for while I am honoured to carry the banner as the first to climb that ladder, I truly wish that there was someone I could look across the field and identify as one from my own tribe, so to speak. It’s ok, though—it just means that we still have a lot of work to do. And to answer your other question, yes I did get a raise—one that I am still very grateful for at the moment! 🙂

JGL: Definitely an honour and if I may, well deserved! It’s obvious that you love the educational component of Jazz studies and have shared your vast knowledge of this music to many a student over the years. What got you into teaching in the first place and did you ever think it would go as far as it has? Do you teach privately as well and if so, how can someone get in touch with you?

WG: The guitar teaching started when I had my first student after I went to college at University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff in 1979—there was a woman her brough her son to me—he was a young kid I taught when I was a sophomore in 1980. That was the first time I realized I was good at it, and I have been doing it ever since. I never knew or planned that it would go this far, but it did feel quite natural to me to serve in a teaching role. I have always been proud of the fact that I can teach anyone anything that I know—the transfer of knowledge comes quite natural to me. I do teach privately in my spare time, and I am extremely picky about the kind of quality student I chose to give my time to, because it is more precious than money to me. The knowledge about music, jazz, guitar, etc. is something that have spent my entire life gathering and collecting material to disperse to those worthy of receiving it, and it’s a gift that I don’t take or give lightly. Any interested can easily send me a Facebook post, or email me at wgoins@yahoo.com or at my university address at weg@ksu.edu. If one succeeds in getting past those gates, they might be able to get a cell phone number from me where we can text and communicate from there.

JGL: Your Kansas State University bio mentions that you have “…performed with guitarist Kenny Burrell, vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, saxophonists Bobby Watson and Joe Lovano, trumpeter Clark Terry, organist Jimmy McGriff and many others.” There is also YouTube footage of you playing with the renowned Jerry Hahn of early Gary Burton Band fame. These artists definitely place you in eminent and celebrated company and must have been a wonderful experience all around. For brevity sake, what was it like playing with Jerry and Mr. Burrell? How did these situations come about and what experiences did you walk away with?

WG: I mentioned earlier about the Kenny Burrell 75^th Celebration, and that the Jerry Hahn meeting happened when I discovered he was living happily in Wichita, which is only two hours away from Manhattan. I made a beeline down there when a mutual friend gave me his contact information and helped broker a meeting between us, and boy, did we have one helluva jam session at his house! What a super nice guy and monster player he is. We met again later at a performance venue that was set up for us to play at to the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum on January 29, 2016. This was for the opening of the exhibit called “The Electric Guitar – Wichita’s Instrument,” which included, among several other incredible items, Charlie Christian’s original ES250 guitar that vintage guitar collector Lyn Wheelwright owned. Lynn allowed me to play C.C.’s guitar when I first met him back in Minneapolis a year before. We did a filmed documentary about it at the recording studio of  Stray Cats rockabilly guitarist Brian Setzer, who was also interested in that legendary guitar. I think Pat Metheny owns that guitar now.

Back in Wichita, I gave a thorough lecture about Charlie Christian and his style of playing to commemorate the exhibit, and the guitar was on display until June 5, 2016. However, Jerry and I had our jam session in late January, and that’s where the YouTube video came from. I’d actually totally forgotten about that! His playing is so inspirational when you sit next to him, it makes you want to do your best to be able to hang with him and deliver the same quality goodies that he’s sending to you when he plays.

JGL: Nice! Now…it’s obvious that you have been featured in a variety of musical settings and I am wondering if there is a particular musical situation that you enjoy the most and if so, why? Have you gone the solo route?

WG: I don’t usually do any solo guitar performances or arrangements—I guess I’ve always preferred to be in the company of others when I play. I like the chemistry between players. I love playing in combos, whether its trios, quartets, or more. Obviously I LOVE being in a big band where I get to fill the role of the guitarist in that big machine. I’m also proud to say I have a regular gig every Sunday in Manhattan at the Bluestem Bistro in Aggieville area where I play a jazz guitar duo with Rick Smith, a former guitar student who has matured into a really great player—he plays a 7-string Ibanez model and he’s a wonderful musician—we do all kinds of music, not just jazz classics—we turn any tune into anything we want it to be, just as long as it’s still swingin’.

JGL: At one time you had started your own record label called Little Apple Records and had released six albums over the years under that label if I’m not mistaken: Chronicles of Carmela, West Coast Swing, Standard Fare, Smokin’ at The Oak Bar, Bluesin’ With The B3 and Home…Cookin! What was your first release as a leader and had you done any recordings as a sideman? Also, is Little Apple Records still around and if so, do you have any other acts on its roster?

WG: Before I started my own record label I recorded more than twenty albums for Ichiban Records in Atlanta, where I was a regular studio musician for several artists on that label’s roster. I very much enjoyed that and one of the reasons I left Boston was to have an opportunity to see my name on an album cover, and also to tour Europe with a performing group. Both of those things did happen, and I toured with Ichiban artists as a sideman and Music Director for a couple of years until I left Atlanta to move to Tallahassee and start my PhD program at FSU.

West Coast Swing was my first solo album, which was recorded before I left Atlanta. I had Gary Motley on piano, the great Rodney Jordan on bass and John Lewis on drums, who also served as recording engineer. I do have a couple of other artists on my roster – I produced Rick Smith’s album in 2012 called Last Call – and I also produced another former student of mine, Kelly McCarty, who had been studying 8-string guitar with Charlie Hunter. So we did a trio album, Common Anomaly in 2006, which featured Kelly in this vein. For the most part the label has been mainly for me and any pet projects I find that might need a safe place to get support without the constraints that usually come with the big labels.

JGL: One thing that sets your CV apart from others is your creative output as a researcher and author. To date I believe you have published five books: Blues All Day Long: The Jimmy Rogers Story, A Biography of Charlie Christian: Jazz Guitar’s King of Swing, The Jazz Band Director’s Handbook: A Guide to Success, Emotional Response to Music: Pat Metheny’s Secret Story and The Wise Improviser “…a college textbook for all levels of jazz improvisation.”

WG: Yes, I really do love to write. I also really do love to learn, and one of the ways to expand my knowledge base is to just jump in knee-deep on a given subject and not turn it loose until it’s all shaken out. I have a pretty good reputation for doing that. My house looks like both a Iibrary and museum, filled with artifacts: books, albums, CDs, DVDS, instruments, etc. Pretty much every room except the kitchen. I have an obsession with learning, and I think I’m pretty rich in that area. I don’t see it slowing down any time soon, either, and I have my wife to thank for her understanding and support and patience in this endeavor—it would probably drive most other people crazy, but she knows how serious I am about this life’s work. I’m trying to build something here and to leave a legacy my colleagues, friends, parents, brothers, sisters, children and grandchildren and entire Goins name can respect and be proud of when my lucky streak ends.

JGL: Well you’re definitely on the road to achieving that goal. In fact, I believe you are also currently working on “Maestro, the definitive biography on legendary blues musician Taj Mahal for the University of Illinois Press.” And of course this is not to mention the many, many articles you have written for publications – both online and off – like Jazz Guitar Today, Positive Feedback, Jazz Ambassador magazine, Living Blues magazine and the greatly missed Jazz Improv magazine. My first question is…when do you sleep!!??…LOL… Secondly, what got you into the research/writing phase of your career? Were you always this inquisitive?

WG: I steal sleep whenever—and sometimes wherever—I can find it. It’s usually not too bad, but most nights I wake up when an idea hits me at 2 or 3 in the morning and it’s like something tapping me on the shoulder saying, ‘wake up, you gotta write this down!’ I’ve learned to trust that voice that speaks to me—the muse isn’t patient if it feels she’s being ignored or rebuffed. Those ideas usually don’t wait ‘til the morning comes—sometimes they’re gone forever and you feel regret and maybe even shame that you didn’t pay heed. I’ve learned to listen to myself in this manner.

What got me into this writing obsession was when I went to FSU and fell in love with my computer and writing long articles for my thesis papers and doctoral dissertation chapters. I suddenly realized that, unlike being constantly labelled as the only “musically talented” one in my family, I was actually smart too. And my capacity to focus on the artistry and craft of playing with words was a hidden gift that I didn’t really realize I had. I guess I was always this inquisitive, but I never had the space to explore and expand my passion and watch it grow until I studied with Clifford K Madsen, who I still view as the greatest academic influence I have ever had. He – and others faculty members there like Jayne Standley, Dianne Gregory, Judy Bowers and Michael Bakan – believed in me and gave me room to run. I thank them all here and now.

JGL: Nice! You have obviously found your stride in this business as an artist, educator and author and seem to be doing quite well. How difficult did/do you find it making a living as a jazz guitar player and are there any “tips or tricks” you can lay on those interested in doing the same?

WG: The difficulty only comes when you lose focus on the purpose at hand, which, for me, was to simply stay alive and stay in the game. It sounds simple, but there is good strategy and keeping things simple when the world around you constantly throws complicated obstacles in your path. Basically, my entire strategy was then, and is now, “the harder I work, the luckier I get.” My other mantra is, “advance your ideals and dreams as far and as high as you can—as long as you hurt no one in the process.”

JGL: Almost every musician, no matter their level and professional stature has their own insecurities to deal with when it comes to the music and playing their instrument. What, if any, insecurities do you/did you face on your instrument and how do you/ did you work at getting over them? 

WG: It’s been a long time ago since I thought about being worried about being the best “fill-in-the-blank” style guitarist or best this-or-that. I learned from Miles Davis that you have to walk in other people’s shoes for a long time before you can finally sound like yourself. More importantly, though, I figured out many years ago that of all the greatest guitarists I admire, they can’t do me better than me; it was then that it dawned on me: the reason I admire the ones that I do so much is that they also figured that same thing out before I did. So in that way, we are all on the same plane—we’re all just trying to become better versions of ourselves.

JGL: Amen brother! So…how do you handle the other side of being a working musician – the business side?

WG: I just try to charge a fair wage for my services, pay my sidemen more than they’d get anywhere else, and always try to keep them working. I just try to treat people the way I’d like to be treated, while never forgetting how unclean and unfair the “business” side of music can be at times. I’ve seen enough of the good and bad in people that very little surprises me anymore. But I’m always pleased when civility and fairness rules the day—it makes the music so much easier to play.

JGL: A great attitude to have and one that I am sure is greatly appreciated by others. Tell me, have you ever had second thoughts about your choice to have music as a career and if so, what other career path do you think you would have followed had you not been a guitar player/educator?

WG: Never! No, never! I’m blessed to have been able to make a living for myself and my loved ones doing what I do for most of my entire life. It’s somewhat of a charmed existence at this point in my career. I literally play for a living. I play with notes on guitar. I play with great musicians. I play with words on paper. I play with my grandson.

JGL: Sweet! Which brings me to the next question, when you’re not on the band-stand, in the recording studio, or walking around the hallowed halls of academia, what do you like to do to unwind?

WG: I love doing deep-dive searches on documentary films on musicians. I love reading biographies of artists of all styles of music. I love studying the artistry of great writers like Eric Nisenson, Joan Didion, Peter Guralnick, Joyce Maynard, Suzanna Kaysen, and Nora Ephron, to name a few.

JGL: Nice! Any advice for the young folk getting into Jazz?

WG: If it rewards you in the ways that you hoped for, don’t stop—there’s more goodness waiting just around the corner. If you decide at some point it’s not for you, don’t let anyone make you feel bad about choosing a different path—it’s okay.

JGL: What does the future hold for Wayne Goins?

WG: Hopefully just more good health, happiness and even opportunities to do some good in the very small way I have been lucky enough to contribute in the vast and ever-expanding world of music and writing. It really feels good when I get it right.

JGL: Thank you Dr. Goins for taking the time to chat with Jazz Guitar Life. I wish you much success in all your endeavours!

WG: This has been an incredible journey that you have taken me on, Lyle! Thanks for the opportunity to reflect on all this. Usually I’m on the other side of the camera, so this was a really different experience, and I enjoyed it!

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