Pat Wictor (born 1966, Caripito, Venezuela) is an American blues and folk musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, and recording artist.
In 2010 Wictor co-founded the folk trio Brother Sun, with singer-songwriters Joe Jencks and Greg Greenway, and the band has since released two full albums and toured extensively.
The band's focus and strength lies not in its vocals, but in the sound of Wictor's and Ypsilantis's guitars blending together, weaving in and out, dancing about like Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.
On March 23, 2003, Wictor released his debut solo album Temporary Stay on his own independent label RiskyDisc Records.
The CD featured original songs mixed with distinctively arranged covers of artists such as Mississippi Fred McDowell, Rev.
4 on the Folk-DJ Charts,[3] In a 2007 review for Heaven Is So High by Acoustic Music, Wictor was described as "a monster lap steel, resonator guitar and dobro player...He plays blues and folk like he was born to them."
[3][10] He has also been named "Most Wanted" at the Falcon Ridge Emerging Artist Showcase, and was a nominee for Best Gospel Song with his track "Love Is the Water" at the Independent Music Awards.
This time on the track, he was joined by Red Molly, a band from New York then consisting of Abbie Gardner, Laurie MacAllister and Carolann Sollebello.
[11] Songs like "Eventide" feature Wictor on laptop steel guitar, with vocal harmony from the duo of Joe Jencks and Helena Nash, and accompaniment from Jon Carroll on organ, Cheryl Prashker on drums, and Don Porterfield on bass.
This is Absolutely Real: Visions and Versions of Phil Ochs, reached #2 on the Folk-DJ charts and was nominated for Best Tribute Album by the Independent Music Awards.
Wictor’s latest recording, FLARE, was called “brilliant” by WFUV’s John Platt, and reached #1 on the Folk-DJ charts in last fall.
[3] He has contributed slide guitar and vocals to a number of releases, including ones by Sloan Wainwright, Joe Crookston, Jon Vezner, Tom Prasada-Rao, and Buskin & Batteau.
[14] Most of the band's songs are written by individual members, then arranged as a group, with the style typically incorporating folk, blues, and gospel.
[14] Over a dozen radio stations, including WUMB (Boston), WFUV (NYC), and WFMT's The Midnight Special (Chicago), put the band on their "Best of 2011" and "Best of 2012" lists.
According to Rich Warren of Chicago station WFMT, "More polished than Brother Sun's initial effort, Some Part of Truth blends expressively riveting male harmonies with precise, equally sensitive guitar and keyboard talent into three personal journeys from deep within.
[3] His style has also been classified as Americana,[10] with Dirty Linen stating that the clear quality of his voice makes for an "interesting juxtaposition" alongside his musicianship.
[3] About his songwriting style, The Country Blues wrote, "He manages to infuse an almost playful, yet tasteful, improvisation while maintaining a beautiful sense of melody."
The review also praised his skill with fingerstyle and lap steel guitar," positively comparing him to Harry Manx and Kelly Joe Phelps.
"[3] He is also a co-founder and board member of The Reading Odyssey, an organization dedicated to helping adults "re-ignite their curiosity and learning, mostly through exploring classic literature together.