Pat Karwan

Pat Karwan is an artist whose commitment to rocking the Jersey Shore has been longstanding, and
whose love of music goes back even further.

In fact, the very first time Karwan heard a guitar, he knew he wanted to play one. “When I was six years old, I was watching a chain gang movie and an old black man was playing the blues. I didn’t know what the blues was but I liked the way his guitar sounded,” he says.

For Karwan, the guitar is still magical to this day, more than half a century later.

“When I play, I want the guitar to sound like a guitar, like the instrument I first loved,” he says. “I
wanted to play because I loved how it sounded, not because I wanted to have lots of cars and girls and a big home.
The guitar remains sacred to me. It’s artistic.”

This love of the instrument comes across in Karwan’s playing, which he does in the unconventional
fingerstyle. In this method of guitar playing, the player uses his fingertips rather than a guitar pick, and will often play entire arrangements of songs, including the bass line, chords and melody, all at once.

The result is a sound that is rarely heard from an acoustic performer, especially in bars and clubs at
the Jersey Shore. While there aren’t many clubs up by Karwan’s Toms River where audiences are
interested in this intricate style of music, he says LBI crowds have been more receptive.

“Philly is very well known for its jazz guitarists and rhythm & blues community, and LBI draws the
Philly crowd,”Karwan says. “Elsewhere, people want more pop music. But there are enough people that can play that. I don’t really need to add to that.”
Rather, Karwan’s sets, whether he is playing originals or covers, are an amalgamation of the variety
of styles that have influenced his playing over the years.

“I can do a full evening of originals or a full evening of covers,” says Karwan, who estimates he knows
300 songs from memory. A night of covers could include anything from Duke Ellington to Randy Newman, Tom Waits to Bonnie Raitt.
“I do whatever I like. I don’t really have a category, which can be a double-edged sword because
sometimes people don’t really know where to put me,” Karwan says.

Karwan finds his original music equally difficult to categorize.
“I would say it’s ‘American,’” he says. “It’s a potpourri of so many different styles that I like. I love as
much the country guys as I love the jazz guys as I love the folky guys.”

He has collected his originals on three recordings — one solo and two with a full band comprised of
musicians that have worked with well-known names such as Blood Sweat & Tears and the Blues
Brothers.

Whether he’s on stage or in the studio, it’s fair to say that Karwan is a musician’s musician.

“I don’t own a TV and I don’t get the newspaper, so I practice a lot. Music is pretty much everything,”
Karwan says. “I play true to my heart, and I think that comes across.”

Karwan brings his fingerstyle guitar to the Surf City Hotel this Friday.


- Asbury Park Press

"...an original group whose style combines R&B, soul, blues, Texas swing, ect. Fans of Bonnie Raitt, B.B. King, Boz Scaggs, and Little Feat will enjoy their sound." - The Newark Star Ledger

"...an original group whose style combines R&B, soul, blues, Texas swing, ect. Fans of Bonnie Raitt, B.B. King, Boz Scaggs, and Little Feat will enjoy their sound." - The Newark Star Ledger

"It's wonderful to be here (Crossroads Bar and Grille, Asbury Park) again and hear such comprehensive stuff..." - Big Danny Gallagher - Asbury Park, NJ

"It's wonderful to be here (Crossroads Bar and Grille, Asbury Park) again and hear such comprehensive stuff..." - Big Danny Gallagher - Asbury Park, NJ

Pat Karwan of The Karwin Patrix Band will host a guitar workshop at The Osborneville Protestant Church in Brick on January 26, 2006. Pat has an extensive history of teaching guitar and performing in various clubs in the northeast region. He returns by popular demand to give tips on guitar in various styles of music. - Asbury Park Press

Pat Karwan
Guitarist Extraordinaire,
Singer, Songwriter, Teacher


Quite possibly one of the world’s greatest unknown singer/songwriter finger style guitarist and the Northeast’s best kept secret, Pat Karwan’s style is somewhere between Lenny Breau and Chet Atkins with the ghost of Robert Johnson sitting on his shoulder.

His musical gumbo is a tasty mix of Jazz, Blues and Country with a dash of New Orleans and a pinch of Cajun. Pat’s quest for musical “Nirvana” is exemplified in his hero, Tommy Emmanuel and in Pat’s daily regimen of playing 10 hours a day to achieve his vision.

Pat’s artistry reflects the depth and understanding that only 50 years of performing and hard living can sculpt into one’s soul. This collection of songs showcases the pinnacle of what one voice and one guitar can “flesh” out. Playing with a thumb pick and three fingers, the arrangements sound like a bassist and two guitars.

I encourage you to spend sometime with Pat’s “Wood, Flesh & Steel” and feed your soul with the healing power of authentic American Music. For aspiring finger stylists this will be an enjoyable master class.

Feel the tranquility and the passion!
Bob Leibner
Colts Neck Custom Shop
Friend and Fan
- Acoustic Musician Guild Newsletter

Pat Karwan of The Karwin Patrix Band will host a guitar workshop at The Osborneville Protestant Church in Brick on January 26, 2006. Pat has an extensive history of teaching guitar and performing in various clubs in the northeast region. He returns by popular demand to give tips on guitar in various styles of music. - Asbury Park Press