HE is hailed worldwide as one of the greatest guitar players of his generation and he is heading for the South coast.

Legendary blues guitarist Joe Bonamassa is set to play the BIC on October 28 as part of an eight-date UK arena tour.

It follows the release of his live DVD, Blu-ray and album, Muddy Wolf at Red Rocks, and his critically acclaimed 2014 studio album Different Shades of Blue.

His new live album Radio City Music Hall will be released on October 2 via provogue records/ mascot label group.

Bonamassa will perform songs from his classic albums including Sloe Gin, Dust Bowl, The Ballad of John Henry, Driving Towards The Daylight (the latter reached #2 in the Official UK Album Chart 2012), and his critically acclaimed 2014 album Different Shades of Blue.

He may be in his 26th year as a professional musician but Bonamassa is blazing a versatile artistic trail, and amassing an authentic, innovative and soulful body of work.

His career began onstage opening for B.B. King in 1989, when he was only 12 years old. The song-writer has since released 16 solo albums in the last 14 years, all on his own label, J&R Adventures. Bonamassa’s tour schedule consistently hovers at around 100 shows worldwide each year.

In addition he founded and oversees the non-profit Keeping The Blues Alive Foundation to promote the heritage of the blues to the next generation, fund music scholarships, and supplement the loss of music education in public schools.

The recently released CD, DVD and Blu-ray Muddy Wolf at Red Rocks is a tribute to Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf that was filmed last summer to a sold-out 9,000 crowd at Red Rocks Amphitheater. Glide Magazine called it “one of the best live blues albums released in the last decade.”

Last Autumn the much-anticipated solo studio album, Different Shades Of Blue, was released featuring all-new, all-original material recorded in Nashville. It debuted at #8 on Billboard’s Top 200, Bonamassas’s highest charting album and first top 10.

According to Billboard it is "the highest-ranking blues album in almost two years."

*THE Daily Echo is offering readers the chance to win some great Joe Bonamassa prizes:

4 winners will each receive

• 1 x CD/ DVD version of Joe Bonamassa’s upcoming live release “Radio City Music Hall”

• 1 x pair of tickets to the BIC concert (mid tier seating)

Simply answer the following question: How old was Joe when he became a professional musician?

Send your answer and your name, postal and email address and telephone number to Hilary Porter, Features Dept, Southern Daily Echo, Newspaper House, Test Lane, Redbridge, Southampton SO16 9JX. Or, email all these details to hilary.porter@dailyecho.co.uk

Answers to reach us by midnight on Friday October 9.

Joe Bonamassa plays the Bournemouth International Centre on Wednesday October 28.

Tickets are available from www.eventim.co.uk or the 24-hour box office: 0844 493 6666

Book Tickets Online: bhlivetickets.com

BIC Box Office: 0844 576 3000

www.bic.co.uk

visit www.jbonamassa.com for more info

PLEASE INCLUDE THESE LINKS

Joe Bonamassa - ‘Trouble Town’ - http://youtu.be/-CrtB7iUy1A

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