Tom Mowrey
Sykesville, Pennsylvania, United States
Music
Press
"Tom Mowrey has recorded a diverse CD of jazz, rock, acoustic, inspirational and celtic sounds. Never alone is a fine guitar album with a tasty range of musical moves." - Robert Silverstein
"Tom Mowrey shows off his skills as a composer, guitarist, arranger, and producer on his "tour de force" Never Alone cd. Lots of gaelic charm abounds in the music which was composed by Mowrey. Tom gets a nice assist from a couple of "fair pickers" in their own right. The sensational Phil Keaggy and yours truly Joe Negri lend smooth support on several of the cuts. Also helping out are some fine back-up musicians who help give this cd a strong professional quality. All in all Never Alone is a strong showing for the multi-talented Mowrey."
-- Joe Negri
- Joe Negri
“I want to tell you how much I enjoyed your cd. It was most enjoyable! Great production, tunes, and your playing sounded just great! Don’t ever lose that spirit in your playing. I’m really proud of you and proud to be your friend!” - Robert Conti
The CD, "Never Alone", is a fourteen track amazing bit of guitar mastery. Hidden to the listener, but not to Mowrey, are the religious inspirations that support Mowrey's life and artistic efforts. With eastern flavors reminiscent of Harrison's guitar and sitar discoveries of the early 70's, "Unto the Hills", explores a pedaling D with swelling percussion and octaved single line exploration. A steel string Ackerman Hedges journey begins with "Destiny" that combines acoustic prowess with classical techniques in a composition that gently moves from technique to technique like a Sierra stream. Mowrey gives us a taste of Beck inspired and Hendrix reversed electric love in "Be Thou My Vision". The tune is unique in that is contains both the raw and edgy rock tone that inspires head banging AC/DC angst, along with a transition to a Johnson/Morse orchestrated half-time-child-laughter-narrated unassuming and melodic passage. One cannot say enough about the talent of Mowrey, the most diverse and multi-talented guitarist we have on the site, amazing stuff - but equally amazing and even more demanding are the supportive players that make it happen - following effortlessly into musical directions that vary, instrumentally, as severely as can be steered. Our favorite track is "Winterburn" - a kinetic insane acoustic piece that has been captured with sincerity and beauty, while maintaining what seems to be a schizophrenic need by Mowrey to be both gentle and severely deranged. Great guitarist, great recording. Buy it now.
-- Earbuzz
- www.earbuzz.com
Discography
In 2001, I released my debut cd titled "Destiny of a Pilgrim" and just recently in October 2005, I released my 2nd cd titled "Never Alone". My tracks can be heard on cdbaby.com, amazon.com, and my website, www.tommowrey.com.
Photos
Bio
Pennsylvania-based fingerstyle guitarist Tom Mowrey is a musician who takes his inspiration seriously. His instrumental debut album, Destiny of a Pilgrim, was inspired by Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy while his new album, Never Alone, is inspired by Tom's spirituality and his belief in the ability of music to speak directly to people's hearts.
Tom picked up the guitar at the age of 15 and fell in love with it. He spent countless hours practicing and composing his own songs. His debut album, Destiny of a Pilgrim was released in 2001 and in an interview with the DuBois Courier-Express, Tom spoke of the inspiration behind his debut: "I think my music paints a picture. I try to think like an artist would, painting on a blank canvas. I really want to let people know that there is a God and he really does love them. That's where my inspiration comes from....Sometimes you can say more without words."
"When I sit down and compose a song, I don't really write in terms of style. I write more from inspiration. I don't think of the nuts and bolts of music when I write. The four big words are phrasing, theme, feel and form. I don't really go past that. I really feel that music is the finest thing on this earth. It has such a great power to it. It can heal people, bring people together, tear down walls, and touch people in their deepest places. If I can accomplish any of those things with my music I would be very happy."
Following the debut's release Tom toured and performed in various venues, including theatres, festivals, art galleries, colleges, coffeehouses and restaurants. His diversity appealed to a wide variety of listeners. Tom went into the studio again to work on his second album, "Never Alone", which is an eclectic mix of instrumental guitar music, "jazz, rock, solo acoustic, celtic, inspirational" and features Christian recording artist and world renowned guitarist Phil Keaggy, legendary jazz guitarist Joe Negri and Glass Harp drummer John Sferra. Also helping out on his second cd are some very fine back-up musicians. Songs like Be Thou My Vision and Lightfoot showcase Tom's musical growth and his ever-evolving set of influences with his inclusion of Gaelic, Spanish and jazz underpinnings. His song Unto the Hills has been described as being "reminiscent of George Harrison's guitar and sitar discoveries of the early 70's," and Winterburn as "a kinetic insane acoustic piece that has been captured with sincerity and beauty, while maintaining what seems to be a schizophrenic need by Mowrey to be both gentle and severely deranged."
Tom was reviewed in the March 2006 issue of 20th Century Guitar magazine:
"Tom Mowrey has recorded a diverse CD of jazz, rock, acoustic, inspirational and Celtic sounds. Never Alone is a fine guitar album with a tasty range of musical moves."
Robert Conti, jazz guitarist, Las Vegas, Nevada:
“I want to tell you how much I enjoyed your cd. It was most enjoyable! Great production, tunes, and your playing sounded just great! Don’t ever lose that spirit in your playing. I’m really proud of you and proud to be your friend.
Tom is now in the studio working on his third album and continues to perform in various venues.
Links
