There is a long list of musicians who have turned my head but among those at the top of that list is certainly Wayne Shorter. Though it may not be apparent at first blush, he has influenced me tremendously as a composer. The almost “Webern-like” compression of his forms and highly efficient use of space and harmony is wonderful and […]
If I had to name my top five Jazz guitar albums it would go something like this: 1) Intercontinental- Joe Pass (1970) 2) Live- Pat Martino (1972) 3) Down Here On the Ground- Wes Montgomery (1968) 4) A Night at the Vanguard- Kenny Burrell (1959) 5) any Django Reinhardt “greatest” collection
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I have been listening a lot to Paul Desmond (born Paul Emil Breitenfeld; November 25, 1924 – May 30, 1977) again lately. I have always admired his skill and phrasing as an improvisor. Guitarist Jim Hall said that he could improvise melodies that were better than the tune he was playing on and I think that is true. He also
I owe a lot to Joe Pass. Outside of Django I have learned more from him than any other guitarist I can think of though you could probably include Pat Martino in that group. I recently felt a “playing” slump which happens to musicians. For me, I can always snap out of by listening to Joe. So I put on
I have been listening again to the two guitar duet albums that Bireli Lagrene and Sylvain Luc recorded (Duet and Summertime). Probably the best acoustic guitar duet recordings I am a aware of. Also, there is a “new” Pat Martino album. Actually, it is a live recording done more than ten years ago but just recently released. It is another
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I have pretty much been in a band of one kind or another since I was twelve years old.That is an absolute fact. Consequently, I have played with many players over the past 50 years. My dreams at night often center around scenes that involve rehearsals or that moment right before performance on stage. In these dreams, I am with