Vidar Busk

Vidar Busk is one of the defining guitarists of the Norwegian blues scene — a player whose career has moved from jump blues and rockabilly through soul into modern blues-rock without ever losing its edge.

Born in Langesund on 19 May 1970, Busk started on bass at eleven before switching to guitar. At fifteen he travelled to the United States to play with the American blues musician Rock Bottom, and spent several years touring Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Mississippi before visa problems forced his return to Norway in 1990.

His True Believers

Back home he joined The B3 Blues Band, then formed his own group, Vidar Busk & His True Believers, in the mid-1990s. Their 1997 debut Stompin' Our Feet With Joy was widely acclaimed and launched his recording career. He has since performed under several monikers, among them Vidar Busk & The Voo Doodz and Vidar Busk & His Bubble of Trouble.

Awards

His honours include the Smugetprisen (1994), the Norwegian blues prize (1997), the Spellemannprisen for Artist of the Year in 1998 for I Came Here To Rock, a second Spellemannprisen in the blues/country category in 2003 for Love Buzz, the Telemark County Culture Award (2004) and the Gammleng Prize in 2016 for his contribution to jazz and blues. He was nominated for a further Spellemannprisen in 2012 for Troublecaster.

Spellemannprisen Artist of the Year 1998; Spellemannprisen Blues/Country 2003; Gammleng Prize 2016; Telemark County Culture Award 2004; Smugetprisen 1994