John Thomas Blues and Ragtime Fingerstyle Guitarist

I am a fingerstyle guitar player living in Hamden, in southern Connecticut, and play instrumental acoustic music, mainly blues and ragtime. My influences range from the blues greats of the 1920s and 1930s to Merle Travis, Chet Atkins, and Jerry Reed. My guitar playing is deeply steeped in American roots music of the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Blues, Rags & Beyond...

Playing solo, acoustic music for more than 40 years, my live performances and recordings feature music that ranges from the compositions of classic blues guitarists like Blind Lemon Jefferson and Rev. Gary Davis, to the classic ragtime tunes of Scott Joplin, to the Nashville playing of Chet Atkins and Jerry Reed, and to my original compositions that echo these influences. For many of the blues tunes and rags in my repertoire I have created original arrangements, including adapting ragtime piano pieces to the guitar.

My book, "Kalamazoo Gals," is now a short documentary film:

Watch the trailer here.

David Massar’s and my 16-minute “Kalamazoo Gals” short documentary experienced its world premiere at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre as part of the Golden State Film Festival in Hollywood on February 14th, 2025, Valentine’s Day, at high noon. Check this site's calendar for film festival screenings.

Click here to learn about the book that inspired the documentary, "Kalamazoo Gals: A Story of Extraordinary Women and Gibson's 'Banner' Guitars of WWII."

I'm also Field Editor and frequent contributor to my favorite magazine, Fretboard Journal.  In addition to contributing to the quarterly print edition, I have a blog on which I post on time-sensitive topics like concert reviews.

Finally, I do, indeed, have a day job as a law professor at Quinnipiac University School of Law.

content ©2025 John Thomas