Reviews of Scott in concert:
His guitar playing is so technically perfect, his feel for the Delta Blues so vivid, that I sat through his set with a dumb smile on my face...I would have happily gone on listening to Ainslie until Sunday breakfast!" [Arden Kelsey. The Spectator ]
Durham resident Scott Ainslie led the way, accompanied by his trusty National Steel guitar and a heart full of the best of Robert Johnson, Blind Boy Fuller and Blind Blake. His set was a combination of extremely well-played blues and brief sorties into the history of the music, the musicians and even his guitar.
"The most gratifying thing about Ainslie's performance was that while he talked blues like a historian, he played them like a bluesman. He lives in the groove, and he hears the passion and even the fear in the music. He treats the blues right, and he always takes care to catch up the crowd in what he's doing. Saturday's audience was no exception. They were into it, marveled at his work on the fret board, and brought him back for an encore." [Philip Van Vleck, The Spectator ]
Last, but definitely not least, was Scott Ainslie, a virtuoso of Delta blues slide guitar. When he walked on stage, his 1931 National steel guitar shone like a polished silver chalice and he played it as if it were sacred. Scott has spent a great deal of time learning from the traditional blues players of Eastern North Carolina and has played with John Lee Hooker. He is an expert on Robert Johnson and has written a book about him, "Robert Johnson/At The Crossroads."
"Ainslie has tremendous skill coupled with an awesome love for the music. His voice is at times soft and keening and at other times booms out to match the intensity and power of his guitar. There is no doubt in my mind that Scott Ainslie feels the blues the way the rest of us feel an electric shock; it courses through him like a current." [Ellen Arthur, The Spectator ]