“As far as Les Pauls go, it’s pretty light, which is a good feature for me,” he says. His favorite is a Deluxe LP, one of 200 made. Sizemore had seven guitars on the road with Aldean, but prefers mostly Les Paul-style axes. Jack Sizemore says he and his co-guitar comrade, Kurt Allison, are “masters of Craigslist,” trying to out-deal each other by scouting deals in each location they travel to. While Sizemore is a Les Paul die-hard and Kennedy swears by Sadowsky, Allison’s gear is a little less predictable for a country player-the guitarist rocks out with EVH gear and a special hollowbody he says is unmatched in tone. Go to for more information.PG’s Tessa Jeffers chats with members of the backing band for country act Jason Aldean, including guitarists Kurt Allison and Jack Sizemore, as well as bassist Tully Kennedy. The show at the Wellmont starts at 8 p.m. It's affirming to see someone of his ilk and talents achieve the level of success he has with the Gin Blossoms,' Ehlis said. He has a genuine positive energy and he is very easy to be around. “Scott, besides being a very good guitarist is incredibly humble about his talents. “Our kids went to dance school together.”Ĭooper runs a fundraiser every year called The Solid Rock Foundation with which Johnson is also involved. He said he runs into Cooper at the local Walgreens, Legendary shock rocker Alice Cooper is a friend of Johnson’s as they both live in the Phoenix area. A big kind of looming guy, he wore cowboy boots… I am 5 foot six.” “It was hard because I thought he was going to kick my ass. Back then Johnson stepped in, as lead guitarist, and Hopkins had to leave. Hopkins suffered from depression and alcoholism. “I was in the band for a year and a half before he committed suicide,” said Johnson. Lead guitarist, Doug Hopkins, who played for the Gin Blossoms prior to Johnson, committed suicide. He said, “We’ve always been kind of a pop band, in my mind. When asked if classic referred to how long they’ve been in business, Johnson laughed, saying that in the 90s there was more labeling of styles than there is today. The Blossoms were previously categorized as an alternative rock band and now are sometimes referred to as classic rockers. “I probably do a lot of guitar styling stuff because of George Harrison.” Although not citing him as an influence he added, “Now I listen to Bob Marley.

He reminisced about the Beatles saying, “I remember when John Lennon’s 'Shaved Fish' came out on a Tuesday, we all went out to the record store to get it.” Johnson reported liking George Harrison and Keith Richards. When asked about his musical influences, Johnson cited Sly and the Family Stone and The Rolling Stones. It was not a particularly popular model, nor color – so that became a real double take moment, and then we became friends rather quickly.

Ehlis said, “What a surprise to walk in the room and see someone else holding your same guitar. The Times reached out to Ehlis to ask him if he remembered the matching guitars. We actually had matching guitars – red Gibson ES330s. Johnson said, “John and I liked Joe Pass – I was into jazz when I was younger.” He recalled, “We would sit around and play jazz songs. Local resident Ehlis is a guitarist, mandolinist, multi-instrumentalist composer and bandleader. Scotty Johnson, lead guitarist, told the Montclair Times that he was excited to come into town to play at the Wellmont and that he would also be catching up with his old college mate, John Ehlis. 'Hey Jealousy', 'Allison Road' and 'Follow You Down' were some of their widely acclaimed hits. However, the audience for this show may be mostly interested in the old songs. They have a new album coming out, probably this fall. The American rock band formed in 1987 and has an alternative pop rock, jangly and layered sound under country guitar with battered and beautiful vocals. The Gin Blossoms will take the stage at the Wellmont Theater in Montclair on Feb. 25.

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