While Jimi Hendrix was lighting up guitars from Monterey to London, little did he know a young boy in Croatia was listening.
Watch Orsolic perform “Livin’ in a World”
Wesley Orsolic was born in the Eastern European country’s capital city of Zagreb. He discovered guitar by the age 6 through his father. Completely self-taught, he studied American masters such as B.B. King and Wes Montgomery, often practicing up to 10 hours a day.
“Every five years, I sort of reinvent myself and get into other styles of music. You meet so many musicians when you’re involved like that. Everything explodes in front of you.”
–Wesley Orsolic
“I have this analytical part of my brain where I try to understand where everything comes from,” Orsolic says. “I listened to so much American blues. I really loved it and understood that for real.”
At age 14, he played his first major concert for more than 7,000 people on the coast of the Adriatic Sea with three-piece rock combo, HAD. Popular Croatian music magazine Jukebox listed him as one of the top guitarists in the country. He signed with Croatia Records touring Europe and eventually the world.
“It happened to me relatively easy,” he says. “I saw this sea of people and it felt great. My career started and I basically experienced all that rock ‘n’ roll.”
After a decade of playing with some of the best musicians in Europe, Orsolic moved to Boston to attend Berklee College of Music.
“I knew what sounded good, but I was really not sure what I was doing theoretically,” he says. “I thought I was old. I’d already seen so much. Every five years, I sort of reinvent myself and get into other styles of music. You meet so many musicians when you’re involved like that. Everything explodes in front of you.”
Orsolic traveled to Los Angeles where he was offered a recording contract with Motown Records. Because it stipulated the full surrender of his publishing rights, he declined.
“There is an ugly part of this business I really don’t care for,” he says. “I’ve always worked for myself. I was living off of royalties I earned in Europe, so I just didn’t like the deal.”
Orsolic stayed on in the U.S., quickly making friends and collaborating with musicians from Tower of Power, Santana, Blood, Sweat & Tears, Prince, War and Steely Dan to name a few. He started a cover band out of Las Vegas called Raw Nature, which toured the West Coast for years. Regular shows at the now-defunct Turtles club in South Lake Tahoe led Orsolic to move there permanently in 2000.
“The music business has changed so much,” he says. “You can’t live off recordings. And I really don’t want to travel anymore. Right now, nobody can make a living. You get stuck as a musician. It’s really not a reliable business to stay in. You have to love it to stay in it. As long as people like listening to what I do, I’ll keep doing it.”
South Lake’s Six-String Master
A true virtuoso, Orsolic draws on an encyclopedic knowledge of blues, jazz and funk to create a distinctive sound all his own.
“I have to hold back because my brain loves coming up with a zillion ideas on the fly,” he says. “Sometimes I turn things upside-down just to see what can I do with this.”
Listening to him play is like taking a tour through the greatest guitar stylists of all time. One minute he emotes Duane Allman’s Southern rock, the next Mark Knopfler’s flawless fingerstyle, Eric Clapton’s clean precision blues or Jeff Beck’s jazz-infused harmonies.
“It’s not that I wanted to play like somebody else,” says Orsolic. “I would pick and choose and make something that is pretty much my own. Especially nowadays, I just play what I want to play. I don’t want to be a copy machine. It doesn’t make sense to me. Even if I play a cover, I put my heady twist on it.”
Orsolic had more than 50 bookings cancel this summer due to the pandemic. At home, he practices and writes regularly, trying to make the best of a rough situation. He’s hopeful he can get back to performing soon with a local trio featuring drummer Liz Broscoe and keyboardist Todd Holway.
“There are always opportunities to get back and improve your skills,” he says. “I have this creative side and some days I just have to write. Being a musician you can always go back to your instrument and lose yourself for a couple hours working on something. I sure do miss playing for people. You’re basically doing this to share and communicate. It’s speaking to people through music.” | wesleyorsolic.com
