| In 1985, Carl became lead guitarist for the British rock group Supertramp, replacing the departing guitarist Roger Hodgson. The band played stadium shows all across the U.S. and Canada. In 1986, the group toured Europe, selling out huge arenas in eight countries. This tour finished with a command performance for Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
After those tours, Carl slipped into the enviable position of being one of L.A's first call studio guitarists. He has played on over 200 different television shows, as far back as "Happy Days" and "Laverne and Shirley" and including "Cheers", "Suddenly Susan" and "L.A. Law". Soon Carl's CD collection became full of the movie soundtracks he was doing like "Stand and Deliver","Moscow on the Hudson","L.A. Story," "Dusk til Dawn", "Mr. Wrong" and the Oscar winner "The Milagro Beanfield Wars". Due to the anonymous nature of studio work, not a day goes by when you don't hear Carl on one thing or another: in the movie theaters, on TV, or over the radio.
But studio work alone wasn't enough for this artistic soloist. In 1988 Carl released his first album entitled "No Borders" Over the years it has obtained"cult classic" status and still sells consistently, in part due to the collaboration with guitarist Allan Holdsworth. In January of 1992, Carl's recording of "The Big Shuffle" was included in a compilation CD entitled "Guitar on the Edge'. This underground recording of the hottest new talent was released in music stores as well as record stores. Two more editions of "Guitar on the Edge". Volumes 3 and 5 were released containing more of Carl's live performances.
Later in 1992 Carl was asked to make an instructional video for REH/Warner Bros. Titled "Intervallic Rock Guitar", the video has been available in music stores everywhere. In early 1993, G-Vox, the innovative computer-guitar interface company, commissioned Carl to write three interactive libraries along with Steve Morse and Adrian Legg. Available since spring 1993, these interactive computer guitar lessons provide insight into the Verheyen style. Before long Carl became internationally known as a unique improvising voice on the scene. Guitar magazines began asking him to detail his innovative style. Quite a departure from the typical guitar sound, it interests people as far away as Japan, Finland and Spain (where there is a Carl Verheyen fan club in Madrid!)
In May of 1994, Carl's second CD "Garage Sale" was released. Reviews in many popular music publications were unanimous: "Carl is a great unsung guitar hero!"(H. Gray, Jazztimes). The July 1995 issue of Guitar Techniques, a "how -to" magazine from England, included a transcription of the title song, an article and an audio CD with Carl's explanation of fingerings and concepts.
In fact, critical acclaim of Carl's music has always been very enthusiastic. In June of 1990, Guitar Player magazine did the first of many articles on Carl, a 12 page feature with 2 pages of musical examples and a detailed interview. Since then there have been features in magazines such as Guitar World, Rhythm, Vintage Guitar, Gig, and Guitar Shop, and reviews in many others like Musician, Jazztimes and Jazziz. The May '95 issue of the French publication Guitar & Bass included a lengthy interview with Carl, and a glowing review of "Garage Sale". The Finnish magazine Fuzz, the Italian magazines Chitarre and Axe, the German Guitar and Bass and the Spanish Guitar Player have also done interviews and stories with the latter devoting the cover to Carl's feature interview. And Japan has recently chimed in with interviews in Young Guitar, Ad Lib, and Guitar for the Practicing Musician.
The April 1996 edition of Guitar magazine voted Carl one of the "Top 10 Undiscovered Guitar Players in the World" In the Fall of that year the LA Music Awards voted Carl "Best Guitarist of Los Angeles". This recognition came one year after the April 1995 issue of Guitar Shop magazine had a full page schematic of Carl's live rig, describing a few of the many sounds he wrings out of a Fender Stratocaster. In June 1996 they had a twelve-page pictorial of his various recording and live rigs and his extensive guitar collection. May '96 saw the debut of a monthly column in Guitar magazine by Carl. Entitled "Studio City", it was an ongoing account of his experiences in the L.A. studio scene, with an emphasis on the skills required and the gear used. And at the end of that year Carl received the Best Studio Guitarist award from Guitar Player magazine's reader's poll. And in September 1998 Carl made the cover of Guitar Techniques with his long time idol BB King.
In the mid-90s Carl continued to work consistently in the LA studios, playing on such interesting records as Chad Wackerman's "The View" with Allan Holdsworth and Jimmy Johnson, and Steve Bailey's "Evolution" with Greg Bissonette, T. Lavitz and Yes vocalist Jon Anderson. He played on 3 of trumpeter Rick Braun's top selling jazz CDs and "Free Zone", an album featuring Alphonso Johnson, Ralph Humphrey, Larry Steelman and Ernie Watts. Carl worked on the number one soundtrack album (Billboard charts) from the movie "The Crow", and the edgy, dark 1995 film "StrangeDays". Further soundtrack work has included "Crow II", "City of Angels", "Endless Summer II", and 1998's "The Negotiator". And this years hit "Blow".
May 1996 saw the release of Carl's third CD. Entitled "Slang Justice". This blues oriented project prompted the best reviews ever. Guitar Magazine wrote, "Slang Justice establishes Verheyen as one of the top modern virtuoso blues interpreters of our day". This record also marks the first time Carl's music is available worldwide, with record companies in Europe and Japan.
Later in 1996, while working an average of eight to ten recording sessions a week, Carl still found the time to teach (CCR guitarist/vocalist) John Fogerty guitar lessons. In the fall of that year Rick Davies reunited Supertramp and Carl was asked to rejoin the legendary band. They recorded another classic Tramp album entitled "Some Things Never Change", which went gold or platinum in many countries all over the world. During that period Carl played on the BeeGees hit record called "Still Waters" and placed a few of his songs in the movies "The Usual Suspects" and "Apt Pupil".
On the educational front Carl continues to be a presence. Besides the video and G-Vox libraries, Fender Musical Instruments commissioned him to be the on-screen player for their first instructional CD-Rom entitled "Guitar 101". The disc, a basic learning aid for the computer, is included with student model guitars Fender sells all over the world! Carl is in demand as a guest lecturer at the University of Southern California and at the Musician's Institute in LA. In April of 1995, he was the headliner of Guitar Week at Berklee College of Music in Boston. In July 1998 and again in 1999, he performed and lectured at Guitar Camp at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Berklee College's west coast music camp, and the National Guitar Summer Workshop in the LA area.
In February 1997 the Carl Verheyen Band did their first overseas tour, playing sold out shows all over Europe. Immediately following that, Carl embarked on an extensive world tour with Supertramp, playing in 17 countries. This was followed by more touring with the Verheyen Band, and another huge Supertramp tour which resulted in a live CD ("It Was the Best of Times") being recorded during a 5 night stand at the Royal Albert Hall in London, 11 years after first performing there in 1986.
Early in 1998 Carl began recording "Slingshot", his fourth CD. This record was entirely conceived and written during the backstage downtime in the various stadiums and arenas of the '97 Supertramp World Tour. Following in the blues-rock tradition of "Slang Justice", the focus is on serious guitar playing and soulful vocals. The result is a masterful take on a timeless art form. Augmented with Chad Wackerman on drums, the band embarked on another European tour in the spring of that year, playing to sell out crowds in Germany, Holland, Belgium and Denmark. Following that tour Carl returned to Europe to headline a prestigious music festival in Vienna, Austria in September.
In the new millennium Carl continues to be on the forefront of the modern day guitar scene. In January of 2000 he recorded an instrumental CD with European jazz guitarist Karl Ratzer. That recording will be released in the summer of 2001. While continuing to tour in the USA and headline festivals in Europe, he still does a fair amount of studio work in LA and Master Classes at various Universities and music stores.
Two books have been written on recording the guitar and both feature Carl extensively. One is entitled The "Essential Studio Guitarist" by Chris Standring and the other is called "The Recording Guitarist" by Jon Chappell. Both are available on Hal Leonard Books. Released in June of 2001 will be an anthology book with all of Carl's Studio City guitar columns compiled and there are plans for a method book as well.
In early 2000 sessions began for the next record from the Carl Verheyen Band, titled "Atlas Overload". This latest group recording features the touring band of Cliff Hugo on bass and Steve DiStanislao on drums. Essentially a live in the studio recording, the CD captures the intense energy the band puts out on stage. All the sounds were created by the trio, with as few overdubs or fixes as possible. Carl has once again proven himself a great songwriter and masterfully pulled off the challenge of trio playing.
Later in 2000 he began work on an acoustic solo CD. Called "Solo Guitar Improvisations" it was released in early May 2001 to outstanding critical acclaim. Carl was only home from a month long European tour 3 weeks before beginning a series of solo shows in Southern California. Now active on both the band and solo fronts, expect to see Carl sometime this year.......
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