Though he may be best known as a major player in the folk and country blues revival of the 1960s, Stefan Grossman is being honored for the films he has made available through his Guitar Workshop series. Grossman began to acquire concert footage of the old blues and country artists who had been rediscovered in the 1960s and had often made TV appearances. This became the basis for Vestapol Videos, which edited and reissued the footage. It was a breakthrough for younger guitarists to be able to watch Big Bill Broonzy, Lightnin’ Hopkins, Rev. Gary Davis, and many others long after those players had died. Vestapol DVDs rapidly expanded to include concert footage of living artists, too. Today the Vestapol and Guitar Workshop instructional catalog numbers well over 200 DVDs, with many archival films presenting legends of the genre up close and personal. Guitar Workshop mails worldwide from its bases in New Jersey and Yorkshire.
