Young Sicilian guitar virtuoso Matteo Mancuso has a new single out by going by the handle, ‘Paul Position’, that was written in honour of established guitar great Paul Gilbert, founding member of Mr Big.
Talking about the song, Mancuso said, “I wrote it some days after receiving this wonderful Baritone Guitar from Bacci. If you are wondering why it’s called ‘Paul Position’, it’s because I was inspired by one of my favourite players, Mr. Paul Gilbert! You may recognise some of his signature licks in the solo section.”
Mancuso has become a hot property in the music business following the release of his debut album, 2023’s The Journey that featured the singles ‘Samba Party’, that channels the excitement and jubilation of Rio de Janeiro during carnival – but the song itself is anything but samba. Also, ‘Silk Road’, dedicated to his hometown Palermo and his Arab-Norman roots and was the follow-up to the album’s lead single ‘Drop D’’.
The YouTube sensation has already adorned the front cover of magazines such as Guitar Techniques, that called him “The hottest guitarist on the planet “, and Total Guitar hailing him as the “World’s hottest virtuoso.” He has picked up plaudits from some of the world’s most iconic, ground-breaking players who are declaring Matteo as a force to be reckoned with, from Dweezil Zappa to Joe Bonamassa, Steve Vai to Al Di Meola and Tosin Abasi.
In January, he completed a sold-out tour of the US. He has recently opened for the legendary Marcus Miller and performed with Tommy Emmanuel in Palermo. He’s shared the stage with Al Di Meola on classical guitar at the closing night of the Eddie Lang Jazz Festival, played at the Lugano Jazz Festival in Switzerland as a guest with prog-rockers PFM, and given an incredible performance at the New Ross Guitar Festival in Ireland.
New single ‘Paul Position’ also features Stefano India on bass and Giuseppe Bruno on drums. You can check out the video here at RAMzine and stream the single via Players Club/Mascot Label Group on all digital providers.
