Steve Hackett is one of the busiest guitarists around, regularly issuing new studio and live albums. His latest, Live Magic at Trading Boundaries, focuses on his classical/acoustic compositions. Included are solo guitar pieces and group performances featuring music from his time in Genesis during its beloved ’70s “progressive” era.
Trading Boundaries is an intimate venue in Sussex where you often perform during the holidays. How far back do the recordings for this album go?
It might be as much as 10 years. Most of it is newer, but I didn’t want to itemize. I’m happy to cherry pick across things that worked best with what grew into a five-piece team from a three- or four-piece band when we started. It includes my brother, John (flute), Roger King (keyboards), Rob Townsend (flute/saxophone), and Amanda Lehmann (guitar/vocals).
For years, recording acoustic music was a guilty pleasure for me. There were howls of protest from Charisma Records, so my first acoustic record, Bay of Kings, instead got signed to Lamborghini Records, which was in the music business for about five minutes. Having been told that this sort of stuff only sells 5,000 copies, the nice thing was that it sold in excess of 20,000. It gives you an idea of the power of acoustic music.
I try not to fall into the trap of doing music that’s too proficiency-based. My concern is that yes, you’re showing your dexterity, you’ve learned your lessons, and you might be the fastest gun in the West. But it might be a big-willy contest! In my long-winded way, what I’m trying to say – and I don’t want to sound too much like Batman lecturing Robin here – it’s the idea of composition versus mere virtuosity.
Do you try to get in a specific mindset to write classical music versus when you’re working on songs for a rock record?
I think so, yeah. I tend to have an acoustic guitar at hand and an electric guitar or two. What I’m finding is that I’ve got a tuning for nylon guitar that I’m particularly fond of. Of course, the nails have got to be right and conditions have got to be right. Your hands have got to be warm. The guitar’s got to be warm.
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Genesis’ The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, there’s a new box set with a concert and demos. What do you think about the album now?
I’ve got a different take on it. Other than Peter (Gabriel), most of the guys in the band disparage it and tell you everything that’s wrong with it. I think it’s very good and has a tremendous amount of merit. What you do have to contend with is the fact we were a band in turmoil putting that together. There was an obvious contest between keyboards and vocals apart from anything else, leaving very little room to do anything but join one side or the other, or “Okay, I’ll join the bass line.” How is there room to do a counterpoint melody?
I did do a counterpoint melody on the fast arpeggios that accompany “Carpet Crawlers.” I had the idea of the guitar as a distant violin. It was so quiet on the original mix that it’s practically inaudible, so you think, “Something’s going on in there.” I’ve recorded a lot of versions of it myself, and I make the guitar audible, but very distant. That’s because there was a Yardbirds track called “Turn into Earth” on Roger the Engineer with a guitar part that Jeff Beck did that sounded practically inaudible, like a distant violin. It had tremendous mystique and majesty. For me, it was absolutely magic.
Which guitars do you play on Live Magic at Trading Boundaries?
There’s a Yamaha for some of it, which has an onboard reverb and chorus that are rather nice. But my favorite is a Yairi and I’ve been playing those for years. They tried very hard to copy the Ramírez sound, and did a very good job. The Yairi is a cutaway that you can plug straight in; I go through a Fishman Aura acoustic modeling simulator and a mic, as well. We make it as authentically acoustic as possible. – Bret Adams
This article originally appeared in VG’s March 2025 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.
