The first thing people say when they hear Bruce's music is: "Boy, can that guy play guitar." His two CDs are filled to the brim with meaty instrumentals and clever, feel-good and heart tugging songs, wrapped in his fresh, Kansas perspective.
He's also an award winning songwriter. “Acoustical Romance” won an award at the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield. Another of Bruce's songs, "My Father's Son", was a winner at the 2007 PrairieFest Music Festival. That just seems appropriate. You see, Bruce Huss is in love with guitars and songwriting.
His live shows are hard to categorize. He comfortably slides from folk to pop-rock, from blues to new-age, and from a classical sounding piece, to “almost country” and back again.
His first CD, View From the Top, and now his new CD, Patience, are all original and all impressive, especially for anyone who appreciates a good guitarist. Here are a few reviews:
PatienceView From the Top“Acoustic guitar master Bruce Huss returns…" "...stunning, imaginative and unique"
"Got New Shoes hoots and hollers with speed and flare."“Joscelyn’s Wedding glides across the air with graceful accuracy and emotional intelligence.”
"Traces of masters past leak in--there's a nod or two to Leo Kotke and Stephen Stills in the opening titular cut and a dash of Pierre Bensusan and Micheal Hedges here and there--but Huss maintains his unique and singular voice throughout." -Wichita City Paper
“When you listen to this CD, be ready to smile, tap your foot, and start thinking about how much music means to you.”
“Absolutely stunning. Sitting Ovation is probably my favorite track on the CD. I didn’t want this song to end.”
“…I knew he was good, but man, I wasn’t prepared for what my ears heard.”--KS Acoustic Arts Assoc.
“Talents such as Bruce Huss don't just fall from walnut trees, and View From The Top finds the guitarist/vocalist in fine form…”.
“...the instrumental compositions here couldn't shine brighter or seep deeper into your soul — in fact Mahogany and Scruffbucket will leave you as breathless on the fifteenth listen as on the first.”
-F5 Magazine
“With cover art taken from a Colorado Mt. Top, he must have picked up some lightning in his fingers on the way up.”--KS Acoustic Arts Assoc.
His name will sound familiar to the locals. That's because he worked 13 years as an award winning news reporter/photographer at Wichita’s KSNW TV, where he crafted over 1,000 feature stories in a special segment called “Huss & Company.”
“I think writing a good news story is much like writing a good song, except the news had to be factual, and I can lie as much as I want to in a song,” joked Bruce.
You’ll hear a good number of guitar instrumentals in his shows, and while many are original, he’ll also throw in pieces by Tommy Emmanuel, Pat Kirtley, Stephen Bennett, Chet Atkins and Martin Taylor…sacred names in the acoustic guitar world.
Go see Bruce Huss perform, or buy a CD or singles from CDBaby or iTunes....and just enjoy.
I'm sure I've been influenced by: Stephen Bennett, Brooks Williams, Tommy Emmanuel, Laurence Juber, Preston Reed, Phil Keaggy, Leo Kottke, Jim Earp, Don Ross, Pete Hutlinger, Bill Mize, Michael Hedges, Bruce Cockburn, J.J. Cale, Lucinda Williams, James Taylor, Lucy Kaplansky, Mark Knopfller, Nick Drake, Richard Thompson, John Mayer, Steve Earle, The Beatles, Shawn Colvin....oh no, where do I stop?