KING of the ROW

With more than 700 albums to his credit - including his Dean DeLeo project, Trip the Witch Nashville session ace Tom Bukovac is one of the world's busiest guitarists. Here he shares the guitars behind Music Row's biggest records.

-  JOE BOSSO

SINCE ARRIVING IN  Nashville in the early '90s, guitarist Tom Bukovac has performed on more than 700 albums by a veritable who's who of the music industry's upper elite. Just a cursory glance at his credits reveals names like Taylor Swift, Stevie Nicks, Vince Gill, Sheryl Crow, Don Henley, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Faith Hill, Reba McEntire and Blake Shelton. And that doesn't even take into account the numerous jingles TV and film vehicles, and various other projects he's performed on.

"It kind of boggles my mind," Bukovac admits. "The sessions I get called for are so wide-ranging. In a two-day period, I could go from playing heavy rock to '70s L.A. studio jazz. I love the variety of music that's coming out of this town. One minute I'm playing some nasty gut-bucket blues, and then I'm doing something crazy and spacey. For a guy like me who loves to play lots of different genres of music, it's a never-ending source of inspiration."

For five years straight, from 2005 to 2009, Bukovac won MusicRow magazine's Session Guitarist of the Year Award, and he's been the recipient of multiple Top Guitarist nominations from the Academy of Country Music, winning three times. Asked if he can point to one reason for his success, he lets out a laugh. "I wish I knew," he offers. "Maybe it's because I don't have just one card to play." Which is another way of saying he's no one-trick pony. Rather, he's a complete guitarist, able to suss out in minutes just what a track needs to shine. Ask him to burn a free-form rock solo, and he'll turn in a stone-cold, melodic gem bursting with hooks, heart, and individuality. But he's just as comfortable laying back and luxuriating in a rhythm pocket like he's just another member of the band.