© 2025 New Hampshire Public Radio

Persons with disabilities who need assistance accessing NHPR's FCC public files, please contact us at publicfile@nhpr.org.
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
‘Leave space’ in your driveway and donate your unwanted vehicle today!

Six-String Creation: The Derek Trucks Band

Trucks plays at NPR's Washington, D.C. studio.
Burke Hunn, NPR
Trucks plays at NPR's Washington, D.C. studio.

Aboriginal legend holds that the world came into existence via songs sung by ancestral creators. The concept wraps together history, family and music in one creation myth.

It's an idea whose appeal seems natural to Derek Trucks, who has performed alongside his uncle in the Allman Brothers Band for six years and has a young son with wife and fellow musician Susan Tedeschi.

Trucks, who began playing guitar as a boy, was tapped at age 20 to take the place of late guitarist Duane Allman in the Allman Brothers Band. Since then, he has built a reputation as "the most awe-inspiring electric slide guitar player performing today," according to a recent assessment by The Wall Street Journal.

Now, he is drawing together influences and players from various corners of the world on his latest studio album. His five-man band, which Trucks has called "a fascinating mix of humanity," incorporates flute, congas and a penchant for expansive live performances.

Songlines' pathways traverse material from Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Toots Hibbert, and Trucks' own compositions. Trucks joins Linda Wertheimer to talk and play songs from the album, the band's first studio recording in four years.

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Tags
Related Content

You make NHPR possible.

NHPR is nonprofit and independent. We rely on readers like you to support the local, national, and international coverage on this website. Your support makes this news available to everyone.

Give today. A monthly donation of $5 makes a real difference.