Jeff “Skunk” Baxter - Lead Guitar/Vocals

Musician/Producer/ Songwriter/Vocalist

 

Unquestionably one of the rock/pop world's leading guitarists, Jeff "Skunk" Baxter also has a life story so unusual it recalls the title of Alton Delmore's autobiography, “Truth is Stranger Than Publicity.” Born in Washington D.C., but raised partly in Mexico, a Connecticut prep school and, in the late 1960s, Boston, Baxter was delivering amps to a session when the guitarist didn't arrive. He grabbed a guitar then and thus, at age 13, began a recording career that is still relevant today. After stints with Tim Buckley, The Holy Modal Rounders and Ultimate Spinach, in 1972 he attracted his first taste of fame as a founding member of Steely Dan, delivering scintillating and sizzling guitar licks to such legendary tracks as "Do It Again", "My Old School" and "Rikki, Don't Lose That Number". He joined the Doobie Brothers in 1974, later bringing Michael McDonald to the band and helping that group craft such enduring treasures as "Takin' It To The Streets", "It Keeps You Runnin'" and "What A Fool Believes". During the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s he continued his high level session work, contributing key guitar lines to projects by Ringo Starr, Joni Mitchell, Bryan Adams, Freddie Hubbard, John Cougar Mellencamp, Cher, Rod Stewart, Roy Orbison, Dolly Parton, Julio Iglesias, Barbara Streisand, Gene Simmons, Carly Simon, Donna Summer, The Ventures and Edgar Winter and most recently on the Beach Boy’s 50th Anniversary album, “That’s Why God Made The Radio,” as well as producing albums for Carl Wilson, Nazareth and the Stray Cats while earning numerous Gold and Platinum albums and two Grammy Awards in the process. He was also involved with AKAI Digital as their Senior Technical Advisor, has been with Roland Corp. for over 35 years in on-going design work on the Guitar Synthesizer, with Gibson and Epiphone Guitars, and now with Bedell Guitars, with a signature model.