Don Carr
Guitarist

Don’s insatiable appetite for guitar started at age 12 and hasn’t stopped! Right out of Belmont College, he began playing guitar professionally in Nashville, recording and travelling 150+ days per year with the Oak Ridge Boys for 23 years. Along the way, he had the opportunity to record or perform with a lot of other great artists — some famous and some not-so-famous — including Marie Osmond, Tim McGraw, Earl Thomas Conley, Merle Haggard, Mark Chesnutt, Marty Stuart, Tommy Tutone, and James Brown.

His extensive background in a variety of musical styles, his ability to analyze and listen objectively to music, and his skills in turning an artist’s or producer’s ideas into music have made him an invaluable asset to the Sweetwater Studios team. For Don, the best part of the job is when the client’s entire musical vision comes together in the completed work. “It’s fulfilling for me to help someone achieve their musical goals, especially when my ideas are part of the success.”

The album that had the most impact on Don as a guitarist? Van Halen 1. “I was just starting to become proficient on guitar when EVH redefined what rock guitar was. Pyrotechnics aside, his sense of melody, harmony, groove, tone, and arrangement spoke profoundly to me.”