Gordy Pettipas is gearing up for one of the biggest gigs of his life. The New Hampshire guitarist’s trio MoGuitar Blues will be opening for Eric Gales at Jewel Nightclub in Manchester, New Hampshire on Sunday, October 30th. It’s taken the local musician many years to get to the level of accomplishment he is at. The self-taught Pettipas began an early childhood fascination with guitar when he started teaching himself Stevie Ray Vaughn’s Texas Flood album on cassette.
“I heard that song ‘Lenny’ on there,” Pettipas said. “I really liked the song so I learned the entire song by ear and that lead to the entire album and then after that it lead to his entire collection.” Pettipas had heard B.B. King and other blues artists when he was a kid but he was more focused on martial arts for most of his youth. After earning black belts in Taekwondo and Kenpo, he became more involved with music while still earning black belts.
Pettipas got his start in the music scene in Massachusetts, playing in a band called DV8 before moving onto a New Hampshire band called Plaedo in the 1990s. Plaedo played the Uptown Tavern on Elm Street in Manchester, sitting in frequently with Pat Herlihy’s Big Boy Guitar.
“He was the very first person I ever got on stage with,” Pettipas said. “I sat in with them at a private party in Billerica and they couldn’t believe how good I was for just playing for three months.” Pettipas figured if he was doing that well after three months, he was onto something.
Pettipas and his wife eventually relocated to Goffstown in the late 1990s. Pettipas was soon playing Uptown Tavern, O’Donnell’s and other venues too numerous to recall. In 1999, Pettipas and his wife moved out to Kansas, not returning to New Hampshire until 2015. While in Kansas, Pettipas got to play with Bobby Blue Bland’s guitarist Ray Drew.
“I played with him off and on for about four years or so,” he said. “I also had my own band going on at the time called Red River. We played all over the Midwest. Any where we could book, we’d play.”
Pettipas’s current band, MoGuitar Blues, got the opening slot with Eric Gales through knowing local promoter David Roberge of Transit Music Group and Global Music Initiative. Pettipas gave Roberge the contacts for Gales’ wife.
“As far as how I got the gig, I think they really just liked my original stuff,” Pettipas said.
Pettipas is endorsed by CMG Guitars and Double Cat Amplifiers, both out of Statesboro, Georgia. “I got talked into entering one of the battle of the blues deals in 2013. That’s how I ended up getting the endorsements. I won the endorsements. I won the free guitar, all kinds of stuff,” Pettipas said.
Despite all of his accomplishments though, Pettipas is very much looking forward to opening for Eric Gales. Pettipas is about the same age as Gales and he’s been following him for many years. “He’s one of my influences from when I started playing, and for me it’s very exciting.”
“We’ll be doing original stuff which is a mix of straight blue and blue rock. When we do cover shows we’re doing more straight blues, Albert Collins, Albert King, Freddie King. With my original stuff I do more blues-rock you could definitely say.”
Pettpas and his trio mates may have a keyboardist who works at a studio in Brookline, New Hampshire, but this is not yet confirmed. Pettipas and his wife Diane Pettipas manage and organize the Thirsty Thursday jam and open mic at Auburn Pitts in Auburn.
“Diane pretty much sets up all the players. I play when I’m needed,” he said. “If somebody needs a guitar player, I’ll play. She’s much better at putting together the players than I am. She actually puts them into groups and gets them all set up as a band.”
Pettipas’s MoGuitar Blues band will also be playing the Auburn Pitts on New Year’s Evening. Bass player and Berklee grad Mike Berkowitz and drummer Garrett Cameron, who is also a multi-instrumentalist and has worked on PBS soundtracks, round out Pettipas’s Moguitar Blues,
For those who cannot wait until New Year’s Eve to catch MoGuitar Blues band, local New England blues fans can come check out Pettipas’s MoGuitar Blues trio Sunday, October 30 at Jewel in Manchester.
“Eric’s just a great show,” Pettipas said. “He’s one of the best guitar players in the world. As far as me being able to open up for him, I’m just excited about. It’s something I’ve actually looked forward to for a
while.”
Jewel at 61 Canal Street in Manchester, New Hampshire. Doors open at 6:00 a.m. The show starts at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are $20 day of show and $15 pre-sale.
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