Tommy Guerrero: A Man of Many Talents

by Rowan R

Tommy Guerrero’s new album Amber of Memory released in late 2023 to widespread acclaim, but a new listener, drawn in by the poetic titles and relaxed, downtempo rhythms, might be surprised to know that Guerrero’s career began not with music but on a skateboard. Born in the late 60s, Guerrero grew up in the primordial soup of creativity and multitudinous cultural influences which is San Francisco, and was influenced greatly by the musical styles of his childhood in the city, primarily Latin music and rock. Despite playing music from a young age, beginning his illustrious career by starting a band with his brother Tony Guerrero, Tommy Guerrero’s fame originated in his skateboarding career. This began even earlier, at the age of nine, when his friend lent him a Black Knight skateboard, and he immediately became enamoured with the sport. After this, he recalls how he begged his mother constantly for a proper skateboard, and she soon realised that her son had an incredible talent.

As a teen, Guerrero often found school a difficult environment, struggling to fit in, although his unique outlook on the world served him well in his creative endeavours. He was very independent from a young age, and driven by his passion for skateboarding, which he says is “still saving [his life]” even to this day, and, in fact, this passion went on to earn him international recognition as a professional street skater. Guerrero, along with other famous names such as Tony Hawk, Lance Mountain, Steve Caballero and Rodney Mullen, were the original members of the famous skateboarding team the Bones Brigade. This team was created by the equally famous Powell Peralta, the company which invented urethane wheels for skateboards and revolutionised skateboarding during the 1980s, just as skateboarding was beginning to gain credibility as a sport. Along with the Bones Brigade, Guerrero spurred new developments in skateboarding like the kickflip, boardslide and 900, all of which are ubiquitous in modern-day skateboarding. He later went on to create the skateboard brand Real after the Bones Brigade’s disbanding in 1990, which became a part of the skateboarding company Deluxe Distribution which Guerrero still works for today. 

Despite his burgeoning fame as a skateboarder, Tommy Guerrero still felt the need to continue playing music throughout his career - in fact, he spent the first cheque he received after becoming a professional skater on a drum machine and a four track recorder. This abiding passion became a career when Guerrero started a punk band with his brother at the age of fifteen called Free Beer. Although Free Beer was not quite as successful a pursuit as skating for Guerrero, he continued to pursue his love of music, later creating the post-rock group Jet Black Crayon as an outlet for his musical creativity. His twin passions for music and skating do not intertwine as much as one might expect, although one interesting example is his song Organism, from the album which kickstarted his music career, Soul Food Taqueria, being included in the soundtrack to the video game Tony Hawk’s American Wasteland, alongside several other compositions of his being featured in the game Skate.

His first solo album, Loose Grooves & Bastard Blues, demonstrates the incipiency of what was to become the set of characteristic influences defining Guerrero’s musical output. Focusing heavily on drums and bass with a relaxed yet engaging rhythm, Guerrero has not diverted much from this formula since, but has honed it to perfection. His music has gained a kind of emotional depth and beauty apparent in the almost ambient and immersive sound he utilises, as well as the poetic titles of the songs - Floating in Shadows, Under the Pink Light and Holding the Ocean to name a few. Despite the songs being entirely instrumental, described by Bite My Wire as “Latin-soul-jazz-folk-funk-rock instrumentalism” they seem to convey a sense of a story being told, as if his albums are soundtracks to imaginary films. All of Guerrero’s thirteen albums are worth listening to, but his most recent release Amber of Memory is a real gem, representing the current height of his musical ability.

Overall, Tommy Guerrero is a man of many talents, spanning both the worlds of music and skateboarding with ease. Despite his name being so intrinsically associated with the beginning of skateboarding’s rise to popularity, his music, with its unique and arresting style, is certainly worth checking out.