Allen Hinds

Origin: Auburn, Alabama (Based in Los Angeles, California)

Role: Guitarist, Composer, Session Musician, Educator

Genres: Jazz Fusion, Blues, R&B / Soul, Smooth Jazz, Instrumental Rock

Biography

Allen Hinds is an American fusion, blues, and R&B guitarist, composer, and longtime educator at the Musicians Institute (GIT) in Hollywood, California. Raised in Auburn, Alabama, Hinds grew up immersed in Southern blues, soul, and R&B before honing his harmonic vocabulary at Berklee College of Music in Boston and relocating to Los Angeles in the late 1980s.

Celebrated for his vocal-like phrasing, warm Stratocaster and Xotic guitar tones, subtle bottleneck slide accents, and seamless blending of jazz harmony with gritty Southern soul, Hinds has become one of Los Angeles's most respected session and touring guitarists. Over his career, he has recorded and performed with an eclectic roster of acclaimed artists—including Patti Austin, Natalie Cole, Roberta Flack, Randy Crawford, James Ingram, The Crusaders, Bobby Caldwell, Gino Vannelli, Boney James, Marc Antoine, and BeBe & CeCe Winans—while releasing a critically acclaimed catalog of instrumental solo albums.

Bands, Ensembles & Frequent Collaborators

Allen Hinds Band / Trio: Features rotating premier Los Angeles fusion and studio rhythm sections, frequently including Jimmy Johnson or Hadrien Feraud (bass), Gary Novak or Joel Taylor (drums), and Jeff Babko or Mitchel Forman (keyboards).
Hiroshima: Longtime touring and recording guitarist with the Grammy-nominated Asian-American jazz-fusion ensemble.
Gino Vannelli: Featured live and studio guitarist.
The Crusaders / Randy Crawford / Boney James: Touring and session guitarist.