Adam Rafferty was born and raised in Harlem. He was mugged in front of his building when he was 10. He played in a hard rock band at 12, got ripped off by a club owner on his first gig at 15, and by 18 he was a rapper on a gold record in overseas.
By 19 he was playing guitar professionally and at 20 he was playing an after hours joint in Harlem on 137 street and Adam Clayton Boulevard where the bandleader would drink himself into to oblivion and regularly threaten customers with a 10 inch kitchen knife.
Adam has played the New York City subways, street corners - and played the most upscale music rooms New York has to offer such as Birdland and The Jazz Standard. He's led his own band through Europe, produced his own albums, and never doubted for one minute his sole purpose in life - to play the guitar.
He is best known for his highly rhythmic and energetic arrangements of classic pop songs by Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson and The Beatles as well as his use of "human beat box" (hip-hop mouth percussion) in coordination with complex, contrapuntal solo guitar playing.
www.adamrafferty.com
By 19 he was playing guitar professionally and at 20 he was playing an after hours joint in Harlem on 137 street and Adam Clayton Boulevard where the bandleader would drink himself into to oblivion and regularly threaten customers with a 10 inch kitchen knife.
Adam has played the New York City subways, street corners - and played the most upscale music rooms New York has to offer such as Birdland and The Jazz Standard. He's led his own band through Europe, produced his own albums, and never doubted for one minute his sole purpose in life - to play the guitar.
He is best known for his highly rhythmic and energetic arrangements of classic pop songs by Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson and The Beatles as well as his use of "human beat box" (hip-hop mouth percussion) in coordination with complex, contrapuntal solo guitar playing.
www.adamrafferty.com
