VIDEO: Tedeschi Trucks Band Performs ‘Future Soul’ and a Sly & the Family Stone Medley Live on the Stern Show
Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks chat with Howard about their band's new album, playing an $11 million guitar, and more
March 24, 2026
The studio was brimming with talented musicians Tuesday morning as the Tedeschi Trucks Band made its Stern Show debut. The Grammy-winning act stopped by to promote its new album, “Future Soul,” and ongoing Beacon Theatre residency before delivering an epic live performance for Howard and his listeners. Fronted by renowned singer-songwriter Susan Tedeschi and guitar virtuoso Derek Trucks, the 12-piece rock & blues ensemble also chatted with the King of All Media about subjects ranging from their inspirations and all-time favorite musicians to how Derek wound up performing at blues festivals when he was just 9 years old.
“It’s been a wild ride,” Trucks told Howard with a laugh, adding, “My parents made me keep my grades up. I took my SATs on the road after a gig in Asheville.”
His wife Tedeschi, meanwhile, is a prodigy in her own right. She attended the Berklee College of Music and then formed the Susan Tedeschi Band early in her career, which had her playing alongside greats ranging from Buddy Guy to B.B. King. In 1999, she opened for the Allman Brothers Band and met Derek, who was the legendary southern rock act’s guitarist at the time. The two musicians married a few years later and took their union to another level in 2010 when they merged their respective solo bands into the Tedeschi Trucks Band.
“Honestly, I’m lucky to be in a band with everybody here because they all make me better,” Susan told Howard.
The Jacksonville-based group made news last week after Derek took the stage with “Tiger,” an iconic guitar that had once belonged to the Grateful Dead frontman Jerry Garcia and had recently been sold at auction for a reported $11.56 million.
“It’s wild,” Derek said of performing with “Tiger,” which had been purchased by a collector who let him borrow it for last week’s gig. “These things take on a lot of meaning for people. People saw him play that for 10 years and had experiences watching it.”
While Trucks doesn’t own any $11 million dollar guitars himself, he told Howard he did once bid on a saxophone owned by one of history’s most iconic jazz musicians. “I was actually trying to buy John Coltrane’s guitar for like 1/100th of the price [of Jerry’s guitar], but I got blown out of the room early,” Derek said with a laugh.
The price tag isn’t the only thing hefty about Garcia’s guitar, either. Trucks said “Tiger” weighed a whopping 14 pounds — which is double the weight of the guitar he usually plays. “But it’s super articulate,” he explained. “It was very, very Jerry Garcia-sounding. Like, you play it, you know it was his.”
“They also had Frank Zappa’s guitar, which was really fun to play,” Susan added before explaining to Howard that vintage guitars like that all have their own unique sound. “Guitars want to be played, and they want to be played a certain way.”
Of course, the guitars Derek and Susan brought into the studio wanted to be played, too — and the Tedeschi Trucks Band was all too happy to finish out the morning with a live, in-studio concert for the Stern Show and its listeners. The band’s soulful set featured a show-stopping Sly & the Family Stone medley as well as a spirited rendition of their new album’s second single, “Future Soul.”
“It’s the title track, and it’s not A.I.,” Tedeschi told Howard with a smile before kicking off the performance. “This is real. We’re all real musicians.”
Listen to Howard Stern Presents: Tedeschi Trucks Band on Friday at 7 p.m. ET. “Future Soul” is available now. Get more information on the band’s ongoing tour here.
