Stereo Embers The Podcast 0153: Tommy Emmanuel (Dragon, John Farnham)

“It Takes A Lifetime To Be Comfortable With Who You Are” Those are sage words from a rather sagacious fellow named Tommy Emmanuel. One of the greatest guitar players on the planet, Emmanuel talks to Alex about a lifetime of being a professional musician. And when we say lifetime, we really mean it—Emmanuel went pro at the age of 6 and his CV is so packed with accomplishments, it would take a separate podcast to list them all. In this conversation Tommy discusses Golden Boy Syndrome, why it’s important to be a good listener, and his love of George Benson. They also talk about what it was like for Tommy to hear Dire Straits for the first time, how it feels to be watched on stage and how he bounced back from a gruesome finger dislocation. The Australian-born Emmanuel is now a U.S. citizen and the release of his new album The Best of Tommysongs is a reimagining of songs from his winning back catalog. A guitarist of tremendous finesse and precision, Emmanuel is as elegant of an interview as he is as a player.