“A friend of mine told me about an open audition for a new artist named Cyndi…”: From his education with Cyndi Lauper and giving Alice Cooper a killer Poison intro, to co-writing with Julian Lennon, John McCurry shares the stories behind his biggest hits

John McCurry performs in the '80s with dark wayfarer sunglasses and an Olympic White Stratocaster.

John McCurry has spent his career as a session ace for artists such as Cyndi Lauper, Billy Joel, Julian Lennon, and Alice Cooper. His passion for guitar is as wide-ranging as his skillset, which kicked off as a youngster. “I was in love with the guitar while I was an accordion player as a child,” McCurry tells Guitar World.

McCurry recalls wanting to switch to guitar, but his father wasn’t for it. “It wasn’t until I was 19 that I finally started to learn guitar,” he says. “I learned very quickly, thankfully.”