A Study of Albert Järvinen's Playing Style on Get On by Hurriganes

A short biography

Pekka "Albert" Järvinen was born on the 25th of october 1950 in the city of Lahti. After few months his family moved to the Helsinki, where he lived the rest of his life. Järvinen got his first guitar in the age of 8. He studied two years under Ivan Putilin, who conducted the most important classical guitar school in Finland in those days. At the age of thirteen, a friend lent Pekka a home made electric guitar: that was the beginning of his rock'n roll career. Järvinen's skills developed by playing in various kinds of bands. In 1971 he was invited to play the solo guitar on Eddie Boyd's european tour where he could feel, for the first time, the taste of success.

In 1972, Järvinen joined Hurriganes, which was become the most successful band in the history of the Finnish rock music.The first two Hurriganes albums, Rock'n Roll All Night Long (1973) and Roadrunner (1974), together with performances all over Finland and Scandinavia, made Järvinen the most important rock guitarist of the seventies. Järvinen rejoined and quit Hurriganes several times during the band's existence. He left the group in 1975 for the first time soon after his first solo album Ride On (1974) was released and played in other bands without a success as great as Hurriganes. In the 1980's his strong blues based style was regarded already a little bit old-fashioned.

In 1988 Järvinen made a comeback. His second solo album was not an economical success but showed that Järvinen still was a noteable guitarist.

Järvinens life was like his playing, rock'n roll. In the age on 40, on a private concert trip, Pekka Järvinen's heart stopped in a hotelroom in London on the 24th of May 1991.

Analysis