STRINGS ATTACHED

IN A CAREER that has spanned 55 years and yielded an equal number of albums, José Feliciano feels that the experience of recording is just as exciting as the day he started. “I love making records, and I see no reason why I would ever stop,” he says. “Being in the studio is just as magical as performing onstage. It’s different in that you have no audience, but the idea that I’m creating something that will be on somebody’s radio is incredibly thrilling. I feel lucky and blessed that I get to communicate to people through my music.”

Feliciano’s latest album, Behind This Guitar, is an energetic and soulful eight-song set that ranges from elegant love ballads (“Smoky Places”) to bracing rock (“Love One Another”). While splashes of electric guitar appear throughout the record, its foundation is Feliciano’s distinctive nylon-string flamenco playing. “No matter what kind of guitar I’m playing or what kind of style I’m exploring, it’s always a complete emotional experience for me,” he says. “Playing the guitar is such a personal thing. I have a relationship with the instrument. It talks to me every day. It asks me, ‘José, how are you feeling today? Are you sad or happy?’ And I get to answer it when I play.”

For the new album, Feliciano recorded in Nashville for the first time, working