Craig Erickson

Growing up in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, blues/funk guitarist Craig Erickson developed his technique while employed at his father’s record shop. At age 13 he assembled his debut group and began performing locally. In the early 1990s he secured a deal with Blues Bureau Intl., issuing Roadhouse Stomp! in 1992 and Retro Blues Express the next year. Although John Onder handled bass and Atma Anur handled drums on those releases, Erickson’s longstanding ensemble—bassist Al Robinson and drummer Kerri Collings—has backed such blues figures as Koko Taylor, Little Ed & the Blues Imperials, Elvin Bishop, and Lonnie Brooks. For 1995 he completed Two Sides of the Blues, then delivered Force Majeure twelve months afterward. He also contributed to the Stevie Ray Vaughan and Albert King tribute projects Hats Off to Stevie Ray and Fit for a King, and co-wrote and performed on Blues, the solo outing from Glenn Hughes of Deep Purple and Trapeze.