Dean Phelps, Versailles, KY
Part blues and part old school country with a sprinkling of gospel, Kentucky-born guitarist Dean Phelps combines the rhythmic beat of thumbpick guitar with a soulful vocal style. He stirs his guitar and voice into a repertoire of songs from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, creating a style that is reminiscent of performers like Merle Travis and Doc Watson.
Dean has earned both local and national recognition for his guitar playing, winning the National Thumbpicking Guitar Contest at the Ozark Folk Center in Mountain View, Ark., and being named thumbpick guitar champion at the Indiana Picking and Fiddling Championship.
Dean has appeared as the featured artist on Red Barn Radio and has performed at Denver area venues like the Oriental Theater and Swallow Hill.
Dean's most recent solo CD, Picking the Faith, marries the toe-tapping guitar beat of the thumbpicking style with traditional hymns and gospel music that he learned in his youth. His other CD titles include Give Us a Song, which continues to receive radio airplay across the U.S. and Europe.
