Guitarist Joe Cefalu was born in quiet suburbia on Long Island, NY. However, at the tender age of 11, his family moved to the mean streets of Brooklyn and into an apartment above a nightclub owned and operated by the mob. Young Joseph witnessed many strange and interesting sights from his second story bedroom window. Bar fights that spilled onto the sidewalk, brazen gun-play and random beatings were all too common. One night, his older sister and mother were accidentally dragged into a street brawl while returning home and Joe awoke to find his father hanging out the front window with a 12 gauge shotgun threatening to "send them all to hell" if the punks didn't lay off his wife and daughter.
Needless to say, the terrified pre-teen became a shut-in! Joe passed endless days, months and years locked in his bedroom where he listened to music, read science fiction and eventually, taught himself to play guitar.
Joe spent his formative years in NYC practicing, playing gigs and hanging around recording studios. His guitar heroes were players like David Gilmour, Jeff Beck, Brian May, Jimmy Page, Neal Schon and Alex Lifeson. After recording a few tunes in his early 20's, Joe was featured in Guitar Player Magazine's Spotlight Column. He's also appeared in Guitar FTPM and Guitar Shop Magazines and was included on a Guitar World compilation CD.
As a guitar instructor, Joe averages about forty students per week. He's also been tapped by various guitar publications to evaluate and review musical gear and he's written guitar transcriptions, interviews, instructional columns and album liner notes.
Now living in the beautiful city of Boise, Idaho, Joe continues to hone his craft as a musician and a guitarist on a daily basis and he feels extremely grateful to be able to earn his living with a guitar in his hands.
To view a free video lesson by Joe, click here:
Hopscotch Guitar Lesson
Latest News!
2 New Cefalu CD's Available!
Click here to buy my CD's.
Joe is featured in the Jan. 2007 issue of Guitar Player Magazine. The GP Staff chose him as a TOP 10 finalist for "Guitar Hero 2006":
I edited my profile with Thomas' Myspace Editor V4.4
