Lewis Hutcheson was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee on June 17, 1953. He then lived in Connecticut until moving to Dallas at the age of six. Inspired originally by Elvis, he started playing guitar at age eleven.

Playing around Dallas in high school, he emulated the likes of Bugs Henderson, Danny Sanchez, Adam Palmer, Joey Brown, Freddie King, and others that would frequent the Fog, Cellar, and Mother Blues.

In the early 1970s Lewis played with such groups as Diamond Lil and Baked Bears. These groups played Mother Blues, Gertie’s, Abbey Inn, Adobe Flats, and others. This was the time when you could see Stevie Ray, Mike McCullough, Chester Catallo (Spyro Gyra), and many other great players at Adobe Flats.

Music influences through the years have included, among others: Eric Johnson, B.B. King, Johnny Winter, Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, Allan Holdsworth, Mike Stern, John Scofield, John Coltrane, George Benson, Pat Metheny, Pat Martino, and more.

Lewis has a bachelor’s degree in psychology from U.T.D. and a jazz performance bachelor’s degree from Cal State University Northridge. He won Best Overall Musician at the Reno Jazz Festival, also headlining many others including the Santa Barbara Festival.

Lewis toured and recorded with trumpeter Donald Byrd, who recorded extensively with John Coltrane. He also toured with Mary Wells (“My Guy”) and Hollywood Heroes (a collection of members of War, Al Stewart, and Rod Stewart).

Lewis has two CDs: Space and Time, which includes Lenny Castro, Neil Larsen (Al Jarreau’s keyboardist), Kim Stone (Rippingtons bassist), and other sidemen from Lee Ritenour’s group. The other CD is called Saint Lewis Blues with Lou Marini (sax with the Blues Brothers), Andy Timmons, Mike Medina, Dan Wojtkowski, Gary Freeman, and others.

Through the years Lewis has recorded with Cindy Horstman, Tomas Ramirez and the Jazzmanian Devils (Austin), Gregg Bissonette, Creative Opportunity Orchestra (Austin), and numerous sessions in L.A., Dallas, and Austin.

Lewis plays two early model Tom Anderson Strats, a 1970 red 335 Gibson (owned and played exhaustively since 1970), a reissue ’62 Strat, a Gibson 175 (early sixties model), a small Taylor acoustic, and an unknown classical guitar bought in Santa Cruz, California.

Amps include: combo Marshall 40 watt, Fender Deluxe, Peavey Classic 50 (4 ten-inch speakers), Soldano pre-amp with Boogie 50-50 power, and others that come and go.

Presently playing with the Mark Austin group and Brian McFarland R&B Revue in Austin. Plans for a third album release are in the works.

Check out Lewis’s CD at CD Baby