It was 1995, Krissy was 3 years old and his father invited him on stage to play along to Pretty Woman by Roy Orbison.
This is when the story started for British Norwegian Krissy Matthews.
Now at 34 years old, he has gained a reputation as being one of the most unique guitarists the 21st century has seen, and has gained a wealth of experience that only most musicians could dream of.
At 12 years old, Krissy was invited by John Mayall himself to perform 2 songs together, two nights running at Notodden Blues Festival, Norway. The opening act was Peter Green & Friends. Krissy even shared amps with the Fleetwooc Mac legend!
A few years later, Krissy became the last person to perform live on stage together with the late great Mr Jeff Healey in the UK, shortly after receiving industry advice from the King of the Blues, Mr BB King.
Not a bad beginning for someone so young!
Since then he has appeared on national Norwegian breakfast TV 3 times, recorded a live session for BBC Radio 2 Paul Jones Blues Show at Maida Vale Studios (London) and been featured on Nicky Horne’s Friday Night Rock Show for Vintage TV. He has recorded and released multiple records and paid his dues constantly performing and touring in clubs, festivals, schools and old people’s homes across the world!
In 2015, Krissy joined the iconic German outfit Hamburg Blues Band as a permanent featured member where he is still to this day backing legendary artists such as Chris Farlowe, Arthur Brown and Maggie Bell every night. Previous guitar players whom he replaced were Clem Clempson (Humble Pie / Colosseum) and Miller Anderson (Keef Hartley / Spencer Davis).
He has performed thousands of concerts across UK, China, Russia and Europe.
Iconic venues such as Museumsplatz (Bonn, DE), Tanzbrunnen (Cologne, DE), Freak Valley (Siegen, DE), Ronnie Scotts (London, UK), The Cavern (Liverpool, UK), Loreley Amthitheater (Loreley, DE), Zwarte Cross (Lichtenvoorde, NL), Festa Avante (Lisbon, PO) and headlining one of Germany’s most famous festivals Burg Herzberg in 2018 to 20,000 people together with The Herzberg Blues All Stars are just some of the highlights.
In March 2019, he was invited to grace the stage with his trio at the very well known “Rockpalast Festival” for national German TV company WDR.
An accolade and a dream for any musician!
This was released as a live CD/DVD package in Spring 2023 via MIG Music.
Krissy and his band have previously shared the billing with monster names such as Toto, Gregg Allman, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Joe Bonamassa, Joe Satriani, Beth Hart, Jimmie Vaughan, Steven Seagal, Clawfinger and Los Lobos.
In March 2019, Krissy released a studio album entitled “Monster in Me” via MIG Music.
This was produced by Baard Torstensen from Clawfinger and co-written with Baard and Pete Brown.
The man once known as “the unofficial fourth member of Cream”.
Pete is the poet behind timeless songs such as Sunshine of Your Love, White Room & Politician and was the writing partner of Krissy from 2013 until his death in 2023.
A brand new Krissy Matthews studio record was finished during the pandemic in October 2020 and Krissy signed a great new deal with the legendary German label Ruf Records.
This includes 9 songs all written during and about the world Lockdown, and how this personally affected him.
This was released on August 27 2021 and has the name "Pizza Man Blues".
May 10 2024 saw the critically acclaimed release "Krissy Matthews & Friends", which, after "Pizza Man Blues" was his second album released with Ruf Records.
It is a monster album which unites the who's who of the modern blues and rock scene and took Krissy one year to produce!
Friends on the album include rap metal giants Clawfinger, the god of hellfire Arthur Brown, the voice Chris Farlowe, Germany's soul queen Inga Rumpf, legendary singer songwriter Stoppok, the iconic Hamburg Blues Band, elite drummers Dennis Chambers & Curt Cress, Blues singing dynamite Big Daddy Wilson and many more.
The album includes 24 songs and is almost 3 hours long with a mix of Krissy's original material and his favourite cover songs. "It was a long time in the making and I managed to get it done. I started the pre-production in November 2022 and went in the studio to begin the meat and potatoes process in January 2023. I wanted to get all my favourite musicians together that I have met on the road in my career. They are not all here by any means, but a good handful are! I did not want this album to have a box, so there are many different genres from metal to blues and jazz to rock'n'roll. But in the end, it is a Krissy Matthews record."
July 2023, Krissy formed his Norwegian blues band Krissy Matthews and the Vikings and they released their debut album "Rock and Roll Soldier" on Ruf Records in April 2026 to critical acclaim.
May 2026, Krissy put together his biggest tour to date. GUITARMANIA! This was a 2 week tour with 6 of his favourite guitar players in the world joining him on stage every night. This was a major success and will return bigger and better in 2027!
Krissy continues to endlessly tour with Hamburg Blues Band and his own solo career which includes rock outfit Krissy Matthews Band, Norwegian blues band Krissy Matthews and the Vikings and many other projects.
Krissy Matthews Band consists of Slawek Semeniuk (Bass) and Gerry Reynders (Drums).
The Vikings consist of Trond Hansen (Bass) and Kare Amundsen (Drums).
2026 is a busy year, and 2027 will be the year of Krissy Matthews! Watch out and catch a show.
They are always magical and breathtaking. Krissy is one of the most unique guitarists alive today and always delivers a beautiful show in whichever setting he is in.
He sounds like Krissy Matthews with those licks, not a copy cat.
Blues and Soul
One of the best British blues guitarists around at the moment.
Metal Discovery
A gifted and uber-creative guitarist.
Music Republic
He writes, sings and plays guitar like a man possessed.
Classic Rock
All the elements to become a great exponent of white blues rock music.
Americana
Matthews has delivered a varied and truly intoxicating take on the blues.
Rhythm and Booze
If you want to hear the blues played with plenty of youthful swagger, then you’ve definitely come to the right place.
Rock ‘n’ Reel
Blazing and powerful blues/rock. A real pleasure!
inHard
Matthews is a man with a fantastic guitar tone.
Real Gone Rocks
Monster In Me is a beautiful record by an excellent musician.
Concert Monkey
He is rightly considered one of Brtitains best blues guitarists.
Plattenladen
Krissy Matthews has made a masterpiece.
Eclipsed
The more you listen to it, the more the songs and their content get in your ears.
Nordevents 9/10
The fantastic and fuzzy guitar work of Matthews touches you down to the smallest fibres of your body..
Concert Monkey 8/10
Pizza Man Blues has been delivered on time, it is fresh, steaming with positive vibes, and the gratuity dispensed with, for it is an album that has to be heard to be fully loved.
Liverpool Sound & Vision 8.5/10
Mayday is how you know Krissy Matthews and that's why you love him for his long-lasting blues rock. Flexible in the arrangement, detailed in the chorus, with a great guitar solo, the emergency call hits the listener so to speak. Thumbs up!
Rocktimes.info
A wonderful album full of blues and lots of quality songs...need I say more?
Bluesdoodles
When he goes electric and releases an urgent solo, he really displays his talent on the guitar. Equally melodic is Matthews' smooth, clear vocal which sounds effortless..
Americana UK
These are songs that defy genre at every turn.
Keys and Chords.