American Hot Club Band False Prophets CD Single

Based in Maryland, The American Hot Club Band is a four-piece guitar-oriented band that follows the pop/rock musical legacy of 60's bands like the Byrds and the Beatles. Many of their originals have that soulful Bryds/Tom Petty feel with the close vocals and jangly guitars. The band features veteran guitarist and singer Dave Sharp, who is also a fan of 50's rock 'n' roll artists like Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, Carl Perkins, Eddy Cochran and the Everly Brothers."If an artist was inspired by the Beatles or the Byrds," Sharp explained, "then on a creative level, you can't simply imitate their sounds. You have to learn the music that inspired them to create those beautiful sounds in the first place. That was Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, Buddy Holly, and on and on. If you think of rock 'n' roll and pop music as a tree, then these 50's artists are the trunk, and the Beatles, the Byrds and artists like myself are branches connected to that trunk."Sharp cites other musical influences as guitarists Eric Clapton, Duane Allman, Jimmy Page and Jeff Beck. In fact, his first major accomplishment as a rock guitarist was learning note-for-note Clapton's renowned guitar solos in Robert Johnson's "Crossroads," which Clapton recorded live with Cream at the Fillmore in the late Sixties.Besides rock music, Sharp has also studied jazz guitarists Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian, two renowned musicians from the 30s and 40s who inspired a broad range of guitarists such as Chuck Berry, Jimi Hendrix, Willie Nelson and Wes Montgomery, to name a few. Sharp's approach to learning jazz was to copy and memorize solos note-for-note by jazz greats like guitarist, Django Reinhardt; saxophonist, Charlie Parker; guitarist, Charlie Christian; guitarist, Wes Montgomery and more.The American Hot Club Band formed in May 2005 when Sharp began jamming with local musicians at weekly open mics in the vicinity of Rockville, Maryland. The jam sessions quickly evolved into bona fide gigs as musicians recognized Sharp's talent and joined his evolving rock ensemble.Over the past year, the band underwent personnel changes but maintains a nucleus of top-notch musicians. Besides Sharp, regular players include Stoney Johnstone (bass) Mike Lessin (guitar) and Jay Dennis (drums).Sharp was inspired to write an anti-war song, False Prophets, recently released as a maxi single by the American Hot Club Band. False Prophets follows the musical tradition of the Byrds, with a dominant 12-string electric guitar throughout. Lyrically, the song is a statement of opposition to the United States' invasion of Iraq. Sharp wrote the music, but the lyrics are an adaptation of the words of Jesus of Nazareth extracted from the Gospel of Matthew. The message is to judge people by their deeds, not by their words, and not to be misled by people of influence simply because they tell us what we want to hear. Sharp says the song was inspired by people who claim to be Christians, but endorse virtually any war launched by the government under which they live, for virtually any reason."The electric 12-string guitar really fits this type of song," Sharp explained. "I like it because it's soothing but has an edgy sound. When I think of songs about peace, I always hear a Rickenbacker 12-string in my head."Regarding the Christian message, Sharp had this to say. "I admire the teachings of Jesus, but I'm not a Christian in the traditional sense. I prefer the Jefferson Bible (written by Thomas Jefferson) which tells of the life and teachings of Jesus without the miracles. The lyrics to the song False Prophets are, for the most part, direct quotes from Jesus per the Gospel of Matthew. Judge people by their actions, not by their words. That's the message of the song. That is one of Jesus's teachings that is often overlooked, but is one of the most powerful, in my opinion. If every Senator and Congressperson on Capitol Hill would have followed that rule in the fall of 2002, when they gave President Bush authority t