With all due respect to classical purists, we’ve decided to bring the funk this week, with this version of Stevie Wonder’s immortal Number One smash “Superstition,” from his groundbreaking 1972 album, Talking Book. Though Muriel Anderson has a very strong background in classical guitar, of course, she is no stranger to exciting arrangements of pop songs, either, and this tune gives her quite a workout! Nor is she is the first guitarist to take on Wonder’s iconic, keyboard-heavy funk outing—electric guitar slingers such as Jeff Beck and the late Stevie Ray Vaughan tackled it, too, as has acoustic guitar master Adam Rafferty. But it’s safe to say that what Anderson does with the tune solo on a nylon-string guitar is something unique. Roland Dyens would approve! (She also has an “easy trio” sheet music version for sale on her site.)
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Look for an interview with Anderson—who is also known for playing a 20-string harp guitar—in the Spring 2017 issue of Classical Guitar, out in February.