Louis Vig of Old Bridge. New Jersey, has already made his mark as a highly successful and sought-after back-up guitarist for such well-known musical acts as the Manhattans. the Drifters, Chuck Jackson and Melba Moore. The Brooklyn. New York native has toured the United States and Canada and has appeared on many television shows including Good Morning America and the popular 1970's musical show, The Midnight Special. He has also been a regular at the famous Manhattan night spot, The Cotton Club. lending his talents to many jazz and blues greats. Now Vig, who Electron Music describes as a "combination of BB King and Earl Clue put together with his own soulful style." has put together a collection of his own material onto a CD titled "The End of the Beginning." His solo debut recording is a blend of Jazz,Funk and Rhythm and Blues with the touch of soul that Vig loves to incorporate into his music. Vig's interest in playing the guitar began at age 10 when he first heard the hit song Louie. Louie by the Kinks. He says it was the guitar solo on that track that inspired him. It was at the age of 12 that his father bought Vig his first guitar at a pawn shop for ten dollars. A cousin who was an experienced player, saw the young Vig's interest and gave him a Gibson acoustic which was in much better playing condition. Without the financial resources for music lessons,Vig taught himself how to play the instrument and read music. It took him about four months to really get the basics, being able to play chords and know the names of the notes. But by 13 years of age, Vig was showing enough promise to be taken into a group with guys who were much older. The group played all over Brooklyn and Manhattan. Because of his age, Vig was prevented from playing at certain clubs. But the exposure was great experience - even if Vig was more interested in playing the music he loved so much rather than the 1960's AM Radio POP music that the group was playing. By the age of 14, Vig was starting to take notice in the talents of guitarist like Alvin Lee of Ten Years After, Eric Clapton, then of Cream,Johnny Winters, Jimmy Page and Jimmy Hendricks. Then at 17, the Allman Brothers Band arrived on the scene and made a big hit with Vig with their new style of blues. He had always loved R&B artist like James Brown, The Temptations, Aretha Franklin and Sly & The Family Stone. Vig's whole approach to playing guitar came when a friend introduced him to a jazz musician Pat Martino and Kenny Burrell. "It just really blew my mind." says Vig. "That's when everything really changed for me - the whole art of playing guitar. I began listening to guys like John McLaughlin, Larry Coryell,Tarl Farlow, Joe Pass and Wes Montgomery. I even started to get into the art of the old blues players with that finger-picking style. My father used to tell me to try to make your guitar sound like there is more than one which led me to explore styles like Classical and Flamingo." Vig took years of researching and studying the works of various artists to incorporate their styles into his own. He worked hard with books and recordings to learn the art of improvisation. The hard work paid off When George Benson became a hit in 1974,Vig was immediately wowed. Little did he know,that four years later. at the age of 24. he would be performing in a band that would be the opening act for Benson. "That was a great moment for me performing on the same bill as George Benson." says Vig "He actually signed his name on the back of my guitar with a fork. It was the same guitar he himself had designed." Louis Vig has always been recognized as a dynamic and versatile musician, receiving rave reviews by Hollywood Reporter as Melba Moore's guitarist. And while he still gets called to travel with many bands. Vig, has decided to venture out on his own. A preview of his "The End of the Beginning" can be heard on the Internet site of reverbnation.com