KENNY WAYNE SHEPARD: LEDBETTER HEIGHTS 30TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR is Coming to Patchogue Theatre

​Patchogue Theatre for the Performing Arts will present Kenny Wayne Shepherd: Ledbetter Heights 30th Anniversary Tour appearing on Monday, April 5, 2027 at 8:00pm. Tickets will go on sale to the public on Friday, September 18 at 10AM.

 Thirty years ago, a Fender Strat-wielding teenager from Shreveport, Louisiana by the name of Kenny Wayne Shepherd brought the blues back to the mainstream. It was 1995, the era of furrow-browed grungesters, when a sandy-haired guitar prodigy unapologetically celebrated a genre often pushed to the margins.

Still touring, recording, collaborating, and evolving, he's returned to where it all began, Ledbetter Heights. Shepherd's latest is a re-recording of his landmark first album, in honor of its 30th anniversary. In early 2026, he and his band will launch a national tour celebrating the milestone's anniversary.

In a short time, Shepherd rocketed from small clubs to cracking the Top 10 with his debut album. Ledbetter Heights was an unequivocal success, earning critical praise, industry accolades, a highly engaged fanbase that continues to this day, and the respect of blues and rock heavyweights across generations. The album went Gold within months and was certified Platinum by early 1996. That same year, Guitar World ranked Shepherd No. 3 blues artist behind only B.B. King and Eric Clapton

His sophomore album, 1997's Trouble Is…, garnered his first Grammy nomination and went on to become the longest-running album on the Billboard Blues Chart, spending 20 consecutive weeks there. Since then, Shepherd has earned six Grammy nominations; multiple Platinum and Gold-selling CDs; two Billboard Music Awards, two Blues Music Awards, and two Orville H. Gibson awards. He's performed on major late-night shows, headlined worldwide tours, and has toured with legendary acts such as Van Halen, Bob Dylan, Aerosmith, The Rolling Stones, and Lynyrd Skynyrd.

His 12-album oeuvre (plus a pair of albums with his supergroup, The Rides, featuring Stephen Stills and Barry Goldberg) showcases a wildly weaving artistic continuum spanning classic and contemporary sounds. Case in point: His last album was a collaboration with 91-years-old blues icon, Bobby Rush, and before that he released a double album of revved up, genre-busting blues-rock.

That wanderlust was evident on Ledbetter Heights, and Shepherd revisits the 12-song collection with gusto on this faithful re-recording. The perceivable differences between the albums are a refined musicality evident in the arrangements, and the more nuanced and intentional guitar playing, though the fire still rages – check out the bluesy bluster on the opener, “Born with a Broken Heart.” Only one track, “Riverside,” deviates significantly. Slowed down and smokier, it brings a quiet fire vibe not found in the 1995 version.

Another longtime collaborator on the re-record is legendary drummer Chris “Whipper” Layton. Layton was a founding member of Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble, and he has been with Shepherd since the original Ledbetter Heights. “I met him when I was 15, and every night when I turn around and lock eyes with him, I'm reminded of how incredible it is to be playing with him,” Shepherd says.

Shepherd co-produced the project with legendary producer Jerry Harrison (Live, Big Head Todd and The Monsters, Talking Heads), who has produced four KWS-albums including Trouble Is…, and its 25th anniversary re-recording. Guitar nerds will be pleased to know Shepherd re-recorded the tracks with his original 1995 rig.

Signed by legendary executive Irving Azoff at 16, Shepherd recorded his debut while still in high school. While recording the album, Shepherd went to school Monday through Wednesday and then drove to Memphis to track Ledbetter Heights. He squeezed in extra schoolwork between recording sessions and live gigs.

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