ION INDIE MAGAZINE August 2014, Volume 3 | Page 72

Music by FORREST HOWIE MCDONALD “Turnaround Blues” Twelve Bars Stars By J.B. Bridges FORREST HOWIE MCDONALD. You might not recognize the name, but more than likely you have heard his music. Forrest is probably the best guitarist you've never heard of. His guitar solo on BOB SEGER’S “Old Time Rock and Roll” was named “Song of the Decade” by CNN and is the most-played R&R juke box song in history. So good in fact, that STEVE PERRY from JOURNEY sang lead vocals on “It's Over”, on McDonald's debut CD “I Need You”. It's nice to have a superstar vocalist sing on your CD, but to get someone like Perry to sing vocals on a debut CD shows the extreme quality of this seasoned bluesman. But Perry isn't the only famous name he has jammed with. There's also BONNIE BRAMLETT, JOHNNY WINTER, JIMMY REED and BOBBY WOMACK. Forrest was born in Austin, Texas and is the son of a Constitutional scholar, DR. FORREST MCDONALD, another member of the McDonald clan that is highly respected by his peers in his field of expertise. Forrest played his first gig in 1964 on the electric Kent guitar he had gotten for Christmas a week earlier. Forrest was with the Boston Rock Symphony with Blues harmonica legend JAMES MONTGOMERY in 1969. He was the lead guitarist