Phil Keaggy - Phil Keaggy (1998)

Phil Keaggy (born March 23, 1951 in Youngstown, Ohio, USA) is an American acoustic and electric guitarist and vocalist who has released more than 50 albums and contributed to many more recordings in both the contemporary Christian music and mainstream markets. He is a seven-time recipient of the GMA Dove Award for Instrumental Album of the Year, and was twice nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Gospel Album. Keaggy was raised in a small farmhouse in Hubbard, Ohio with nine brothers and sisters, and began playing guitar at age ten on a Sears Silvertone guitar. He went to high school in Austintown, Ohio graduating in 1970. He is missing half of the middle finger on his right hand due to a childhood accident at age 4 involving a water pump. He has frequently been listed as one of the world's top-3 "fingerstyle" as well as "fingerpicking" guitarists by Guitar Player Magazine readers' polls.