Sound, Music & MIDI Collection 2/SMMVOL2.bin/DEMO/PRG/JAZZGUIT.ZIP/GBIO0.TXT

Text File | 1994-08-04 | 13.4 KB | 297 lines

@001 CHRISTIAN, CHARLIE \ Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@002 REINHARDT, DJANGO \ Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@003 KESSEL, BARNEY \ Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@004 PASS, JOE \ J Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@005 MONTGOMERY, WES \ Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@006 HALL, JIM \ Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@007 McLAUGHLIN, JOHN \ Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@008 METHENY, PAT \  Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@009 BENSON, GEORGE \ George Benson was born in
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on March 23, 1943.

George Benson is known for a very straight-ahead, traditional jazz
guitar sound, as well as fine vocal capabilities. His trademark is his
ability to sing along in perfect unison with his improvised lines. His
guitar style comes from the Grant Green, Wes Montgomery school.
In his early records George played as a sideman with Jack McDuff in
the organ-trio format. This gave him his no-nonsense, bluesy
approach to playing

In 1976  his  record Breezin╒ achieved world-wide sales which
passed the 2,000,000 mark. He was voted by several popular and jazz
polls as the wold╒s number one jazz guitarist.    Although the bulk of
the sales were to a non-jazz audience, purchasing the record for
Benson╒s fine vocal aibility and in guitar sound, there is no doubt
that he opened the ears of many young listeners to his fine jazz
guitar playing and has encouraged this audience to listen to the many
other fine jazz guitarists.

Benson╒s stepfather, Thomas Collier, was a Charlie Christian fan and
he taught George to play the ukulele at an early age.  By the time he
was eight George was already doing nighclub work with his
stepfather, singing, dancing and also playing the ukulele.

In 1954 he began to study the guitar, borrowing guitars at friends╒
houses and then playing an electric guitar made for him by his father.
By the time he was seventeen he was already leading his own Rock
and Roll group.  Listening to records of various jazz artists including
those of Hank Garland, Grant Green, Charlie Parker and in
partucular the late Wes Montgonery, George was encouraged to turn
his musical talent towards jazz. In 1962 Jack McDuff hired George.
This  association lasted for three years giving the young guitarist
valuable playing experience with top jazz artists.

When Wes Montgomery died an early death in 1968,  Benson was
an obvious choice for Creed Taylor, the producer of Wes╒ records.
Taylor hoped that George╒s guitar sound, so similar at the time to
Montgomery╒s jazz style, would achieve the same popular success.

Taylor╒s choice was to prove right, but the huge and popular success
he had hoped for for Benson did not actually happen until 1976
when Benson╒s Warner Brother╒s record Breezin even surpassed all
the record sales that Wes Montgomery had ever ahieved.

George being a talented singer, allows his guitar style to often veer
towards Soul, and Rhythm and Blues music.  Yet it can╒t be denied
that he is still is a very fine swinging jazz guitarist who can produce
wonderful single note improvistions on the guitar.  Although his
popular success may mean that his full jazz potential may be
overshadowed by his vocal recordings for now , he does have the real
ability to play fine jazz guitar.

Selected Records:
New Boss Guitar - Prestige
Benson/McDuff   (two albums) - Prestige
George Benson╒s Cookbook - CBS
The Other Side of Abbey Road - A & M
White Rabbit - Creed Taylor
Breezin╒ - Warner Bros.
Weekend in L. A.   (two albums)  - Warner Bros.
In Concert / Carnegie Hall - CTI

@010 ELLIS, HERB \ Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@011 RITENOUR, LEE \ Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@012 PAUL, LES \ Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@013 ABERCROMBIE, JOHN \ John Abercrombie was born in
Portchester, New York, on December 16, 1944.

John Abercrombie has proved to be one of the most influential jazz
guitarists of the seventies.  He has been closely associated with
musicians such as Billy Cobham, Gato Barbieri, Jack De Johnette
and also most recently with fellow guitarist Ralph Towner.

John first became interested in music and the guitar during his
school years in Greenwich, Conneticut.  Originally influenced by
popular artists such as Bill Haley and the late Elvis Presley, John
decided to take up the guitar and during the late fifties he was
already playing in various rock bands at high school.  It wa at this
time time he heard Barney Kessel, Tal Farlow, Jimmy raney, and
Johnny Smith in particular, caused a deep impression on the young
musician.  The result  being his decision to enter the Berklee College
of Music from 1962-1966 in order to study his chosen instrument
and music in depth.  he was fortunate to be able to study under
teachers such as Jack Peterson and Herb Pomeroy.  The most
important factor of his stay at Berklee was not just the general
musical environment of this excellent school but that John learned
how to better brging out his own musicality.

After leaving Berklee John spent eight years in Boston gaining
experience with various groups.  His first job found him playing
1967-8 with organist Johnny Hammond Smith.  He says that at this
time the guitar style of Jim Hall made a great impression on him.
After Boston John left for New York and played for a short while
with drummer Chico Hamilton╒s group.  After a brief return to
Boston he joined Hamilton in 1971 to play at the Montreux Jazz
Festival in Switzerland.  He was given the opportunity to write for
the group on a regular basis and this no doubt helped broaden his
musical ability.

Like many of the younger jazz players John Abercrombie has been
influenced by Rock music and his style over the last few years has
devloped into one of the most tasteful and fluent of the ever growing
list of jazz/rock musicians. in the U.S.A. today. He also sometimes
teaches at such summer music schools as The Banff School of Fine
Arts in Canada.

John has recorded many albums for the ECM label.  His sound
features a heavy dose of reverb/chorus.  He is always going for
interesting interval combinations both in his improvisation and
composition. He has most recently been touring with an organ/drums
combination.

Selected Records:
Sorcery with Jack De Johnette - Prestige
Timeless - ECM Records
Gateway - ECM Records
Saragossa Sea with Ralph Towner - ECM Records
Gateway 2  - ECM Records
Characters -  ECM Records
New Directions (Jack DeJohnette) - ECM
Cloud Dance - ECM
Abercrombie Quartet - ECM
Dreams - ECM

@014 GREEN, FREDDIE \ Freddie Green was born in Charleston,
South Carolina, on March 31, 1911.


@015 FARLOW, TAL \ Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@016 STEWART, LOUIS \ Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@017 BONFA, LUIZ \ Luiz Bonfa was born in Rio de Janeiro,
Brazil on October 17, 1922

Luiz is one of Brazil╒s most famous composer/guitarists. His
compositions, including in particular his musical score for the film
Black Orpheus (Manha de Carnival, Samba de Orfeu etc. have had
a great impression on the jazz world, but he is also a very fine
guitarist in the traditional Brazilian style, as can be heard on his
many records.

He began to play the guitar at age 12, taught by his father who was
also a guitarist.  He continued to study under Isaias Savio one of
Brazil╒s master classical guitarists, and Bonfa himself became well-
known as a guitarist of high standard in the classical field. After
giving several concert recitals on the classic guitar, he decided, to
decided to shift his focus to  the field of popular music.  In 1946, he
started his professional career in Brazil that made him one of the top
performers both on stage and radio.  At one time he sang and played
the guitar in a group called the Quitandinha Singers . In 1958 he
decided to move to the U.S.A. where luckily his arrival coincided
with the Bossa Nova boom.  Singer Mary Martin was greatly
impressed by Luiz╒ guitar aritstry and he accompanied her for several
concerts in ╘58-╒59.  During this time he became exposed to jazz for
the first time.  He then made several very successful recordings with
tenor saxophonist Stan Getz and also some with his wife, singer
Maria

Today, Luiz Bonfa continues to lead a highly successful career as a
guitar player, singer and composer on the west coast of the States
applying his multi-talents to films, television  and recordings.

Selected Listening:
Le Roi de la Bossa Nova - Fontana
Bossa Nova   Verve
Braziliana - Philips
The brazilian scene- Philips
Jazz Samba/Stan Getz - Verve
Jacaranda - Ranwood
The New Face of Bonfa - RCA

@018 BICKERT, ED \ Ed Bickert was born in Hochfield, Manitoba,
Canada in November 29, 1932.

Ed is a guitarist╒s guitarist. His sound, produced on his old cream-
colored Fender Telecaster emulates the traditional guitar sound
rather than the sound usually produced on such an instument. He is
best heard in the trio format with bass and drums where his
technique produces a very complete sound combining lines and
chords. Ed╒s sound is fairly dry using  little reverb and no other
effects. In some ways, his forte is in his mastery of chords and chord
movement.

Ed Bickert grew up in Vernon, British Columbia, and started playing
the guitar at the age of eight.  Both his parents were musicians
playing in a country music band and Ed sometimes played with them
at dances.

By the time he was twenty Ed Moved to Toronto where he worked
for a local radio station as well as doing studio and jazz work.  He
was often featured with the Moe Koffman Quintet and Rob
McConell╒s Boss Brass.

For many years Ed has played at Toronto Jazz spots such as
Bourbon Street, and George╒s Spagetti House with his own trio and
accompanying top U.S. jazz musicians including Red Norvo, Chet
Baker, Paul Desmond, Frank Rosolino and Milt Jackson.  He also
spends much of his professional time playing in  the television and
recording studios of Toronto as well as Jazz festivals all over the
world.

In the last few years Bickert has recorded several albums with his
own group and with many other jazz artists.  In 1976 he played at the
Monterey Jazz Festival with Paul Desmond.  He is  regarded by
those who know his playing as one of the leading jazz guitarists in
the world.  Ed has developed  a very unique guitar style with smooth,
chordal technique.  This is best demonstrated in a trio setting (bass
and drums.) To this day, he still plays exclusively on his Telecaster.
Any one of his solos is considered by knowledgable guitarists to be
a great lesson in chord voicings. He  currently records for the
Concord Label.

Selected Listening:
Pure Desmond - CTI Records
Paul Desmond Quartet - A & M Horizon
Museum Pieces Moe Koffman Quintet - GRT
I like to recognize the Tune - United Artists
Ed Bickert - P.M. Records
Ed Bickert (with Rob McConnel)
Dance to the Lady (Don Thompson / Ed Bickert) - Sackville
Ed Bickert / Dave McKenna - Concord

 @019 BREAU, LENNY \ Lenny Breau was born in Auburn, Maine,
on August 1941.  He died in California in 1989.

Lenny╒s innovative guitar style was the first to combine melody
playing with simultaneous chordal accompaniment. (Other guitarists
such as Barney Kessel, accompanied their solos chordally but not as
much simultaneously). To accomplish this, Lenny played exclusively
with five fingers in the right hand, using a thumb pick. He would
pick the melody with his third and fourth fingers and simultaneously
or contrapuntally play a three-note voicing with the thumb and first
and second fingers.

Lenny Breau, who lived most of his life in Canada, was discovered
by top country guitarist Chet Atkins in Winnipeg.  He was headlined
as one of great jazz guitar find of the sixties.  Certainly from the
evidence of his  recordings on the RCA label, he was a most versatile
and individual jazz stylist on the guitar.

Lenny started playing the guitar at the age of seven and by the time
he was twelve he was able to join his parents touring group (country
singers Hal Lone Pine and Betty Cody) as a member of the band.

He first became interested in jazz at seventeen.  Lenny listened to,
and was influenced by, most of the leading guitar innovators of the
fifties such as Barney Kessel, Johnny Smith and Tal Farlow.
However, the particular style of guitar playing he developed can be
closely linked to the finger style of Chet Atkins and, in a musical
sense,  the piano approach of Bill Evans.  When Chet Atkins heard
Breau in Winnipeg he immediately recognized the young player╒s
huge talent and signed him to record for RCA Victor.

After the success of this first record Breau spent some time in Los
angeles.  Here he played at drummer Shelley Manne╒s jazz club,
Shelly╒s Manne Hole, as well as several other dates.   In the later
years Lenny lived in semi-retirement in Killaloe, Ontario, Canada,
very rarely giving public performances.  Although, with the
persuasion of Chet Atkins and others, he did spend some time in
Nashville teaching and occasionally playing in the clubs. In 1989, in
Los Angeles, his life was tragically ended at the hand of an unknown
assassin.

Selected Records:
Guitar Sounds from Lenny Breau - RCA
Velvet Touch of Lenny Breau - RCA
Live at Shelly╒s Manne Hole - RCA
Lenny Breau -  Now - Soundhole
Lenny Breau - Direct To Disk Labs
Five O╒clock Bells - Adelphi Jazz Line

@020 REMLER, EMILY \ Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

@021 GANNON, OLIVER \ Biography only available in full Jazz Guitarist

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