Zoe McCulloch

Born on 25 June 1986 in Northumberland, England, the prodigiously gifted guitarist has been hailed as the “Queen of the Stratocaster” in Brazil and has received fervent praise across several other nations while remaining virtually unnoticed at home.

Raised in the former mining community of Stakeford in north-east England, she started classical guitar tuition at nine. Rock ’n’ roll entered her world through the Shadows, and her first public recognition came when she was barely eleven, winning a contest whose panel included the band’s founding member Bruce Welch. Soon after, she joined the European tour of the Youngsters On Guitar revue. At thirteen she issued her first album, the instrumental collection Zoe With Love. In 2000 she released the Guitabba EP, featuring her own guitar settings of Abba songs, and later that year the Instrumental Rock Guitar Hall of Fame named her Best Newcomer. Still a school student, she crossed the Atlantic for American performances; the resulting interest quickly turned into a thriving professional circuit of sold-out shows, radio spots and television appearances. In July 2003 the mayor of Austin, Texas, officially designated three days as Zoe McCulloch Days.