Kenny Olson Cartel

Let the words of his peers tell you just how accomplished this multi-platinum guitarist is:

"Kenny Olson is one of the best rock guitarists on the scene..." -- Keith Richards

"I love listening to Kenny play. He's got a real voice with his guitar, which is a rare talent." -- Paul Rodgers.

"Kenny is and always will be considered part of the Metallica family. As for his guitar playing - that simply speaks for itself and needs no further comment." --- Metallica

You get the point. Olson has chops, sure, but he matches that with instinct and passion, grit and originality. All of that is heard on KENNY OLSON CARTEL, the Nashville-based axeman's first full-scale solo album on an eye-popping resume that includes a founding tenure in Kid Rock's Twisted Brown Trucker Band as well numerous appearances on the Experience Hendrix Tour and live or recording collaborations with the likes of Metallica, Aerosmith, Billy Gibbons, Buddy Guy, Run-DMC, Chaka Khan, Sheryl Crow, Faith Evans, Les Paul and the all-star group 7daybinge and more.

The world has heard a lot from Kenny Olson over the years, but this is the Kenny Olson the world has been waiting to hear.

"It's just time for me to do this," Olson explains. "I've been blessed. I’ve gotten to do pretty much everything one could dream of doing and work with some amazing people and explore a lot of different elements with my music. I'm always growing as a guitar player, and I have a lot of different influences from all genres. The Cartel lets me put it all out there in one fell swoop."

The Kenny Olson Cartel is the product of a life lived in music from the time Olson was young. Born and raised primarily in Detroit, Olson recalls that "there was always a guitar around my house" belonging to his father or uncles, who also instilled in the fledgling musician a love of blues and rock classics — including Howlin' Wolf, the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zepplin and Miles Davis. From Seventies R&B, Motown and Funk to Iggy and the Stooges, Olson was soaking it in and rooting himself.

Olson started playing in earnest when he was 10, and it was indeed love at first riff.

"I heard Jimi and it was all over," Olson remembers. By the age of 14, he was hitting the stage as a serious six-string gunslinger, and as a Detroit teenage rocker, Olson says, "It was all about driving around Woodward in muscle cars, listening to the Stooges, Bob Seger and Black Sabbath."

Out of high school, Olson's raw talent and band were discovered by Roger Probert (signed AC/DC to Atlantic). He was New York bound to gig around town and record an album with Probert. By his early twenties, the band dissolved and Olson got that itch to hit the LA scene. He spent his time bouncing between LA, Detroit and New York working live and in the studio on numerous solo and band projects (Dragonfly, Filtheater, Enemy Squad, Big Chief). Olson worked with many Detroit legends including Scott Asheton of The Stooges, Scott Morgan of The Rationals, members of the Funk Brothers and even George Clinton who appeared as a guest on Olson's early recordings. Olson opened for numerous national acts including appearances at Lollapalooza, but when the '94 earthquake destroyed his LA apartment, he saw it as a sign to head back to his roots in Detroit.

Olson's claim to fame came when he joined forces with Kid Rock the following year, making an indelible contribution on stage and in the studio. Kenny and Kid wanted to experiment with new song structures and rock sonics, taking the evolving rock-rap blend to a new level. As founding axeman of The Twisted Brown Trucker Band and co-writer, Olson performed on major albums, all of which reached platinum status, several or many times over: Devil Without A Cause (1998); Cocky (2001); Kid Rock (2003); Live Trucker (2006). He also appeared on various releases from History of Rock and other albums.

From the soulful guitar work in "Only God Knows Why" and the guitar antics on "Cowboy"...