Tag Archives: jazz

Danny Gatton – The Greatest Guitarist You Never Heard Of

Been waiting to write this post all year.  September 4th was the birthday of the late Danny Gatton – the best guitarist the world never heard of and one of the best guitarists of all time, period.  Nicknamed “The Humbler”, Gatton combined dazzling technique with his own creative fusion of rockabilly, blues, jazz, country and a bit of everything else.

He grew up in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. and spent much of his life playing close to home. His aversion to touring may have been a major factor in his lack of commercial success, but he was a musician’s musician. Legend and innovator Les Paul said of Gatton, “He could do anything the other guy could do … and do it better”.

“Funhouse” from his 1993 album “Cruisin’ Deuces” shows Gatton’s massive technique delivering tasty solos that don’t easily fit into any genre.

Gatton’s closest brush with mainstream fame may have been his Grammy nomination for the track “Elmira Street Boogie” which showed off his bluesy, rockabilly side.

For those who got to see Danny play live, a favorite stage trick was his slide work with a beer bottle. His solo starts around 4:20 in this video, and don’t worry about the beer dripping from the fretboard of his Fender Telecaster – at around 5:30 he cleans it up!

Another Legend Lost – George Duke Did It All!

On August 6th, just a few weeks after the release of his latest album “Dreamweaver”, keyboard legend George Duke passed away.  Duke’s career spanned four decades, and few artists contributed to a broader range of musical genres.  He began his career working with jazz fusion pioneers including Jean-Luc Ponty and Franz Zappa, collaborated with a variety of other jazz greats including Miles Davis, played on Michael Jackson’s breakthrough album “Off the Wall”, and produced songs for Smokey Robinson, Gladys Night, and Natalie Cole.

The brief interview in the clip below includes a few snippets from tunes on “Dreamweaver”, and it gives you an idea of what a lovely man Duke was.   Listen to full tracks from “Dreamweaver” at George’s Website

Sample Duke’s jazz fusion chops in this live performance from the Montreux Jazz Festival in 1976 with Billy Cobham on drums, John Schofield on Guitar and Alphonso Johnson on Bass (thanks for the link Rainer!). Duke gets his solo 3:45 into the track.

And finally here’s the highest charting single of Duke’s career, 1981’s “Sweet Baby”.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZkV-Sp3In8

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What Do Martin Taylor, Joe Pass, Fred and Ginger, and Brian Wilson Have in Common?

Artists across generations and musical styles can always be united by great songs.  And no American songs have shown longer lasting and broader appeal than those of George and Ira Gershwin.

Last week’s post on Tommy Emmanuel also featured British jazz guitar virtuoso Martin Taylor. A quick search on YouTube uncovers Taylor’s version of the Gershwin brothers’ standard “They Can’t Take That Away From Me”. If you’d like to skip over the interview, the performance starts at 3:12.

One of Taylor’s influences is the late Joe Pass, icon of the chord/melody style of jazz guitar that Martin plays.  Enjoy Pass’ version of the same song from a 1992 performance.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0SSfVhbDdzc

The song was introduced in the 1937 movie “Shall We Dance” starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rodgers. The clip below is a real treat.  It starts with Fred singing the song to Ginger in “Shall We Dance” and ends with them dancing to the song a dozen years later in their last movie together “The Barkleys of Broadway”.

A recent cover of this classic can be found on “Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin” released in 2010.

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Tommy Emmanuel – Guitar Legend from Down Under

Last week’s post Courtesy of Other Bloggers featured Scott McKeon, one of a half-dozen “Guitar Legends” featured on the blog  Proguitartricks.  Inspired by the guitar legend theme, for any of you not already familiar with him, meet Tommy Emmanuel.  The Australian acoustic guitar legend is known for his blistering speed but is capable of pretty much anything.

This somewhat grainy video has over 10 million YouTube views – see why.

Staples of his concert performances are Beatles medleys – no small task on solo acoustic guitar unless you’ve got Emmanuel’s chops.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOw6gCPDEQ8

Tommy can use his abilities in quiet and subtle ways too, as displayed in this performance of the jazz standard “The Nearness of You” with Martin Taylor. Emmanuel and Taylor have just released an album together featuring this tune.

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Great Music in Any Language

People around the world listen to music with English lyrics whether or not they understand the language.  Great music comes through regardless. The links below will likely challenge your language skills, but the great music certainly comes through regardless.

Japan is chock full of great rock bands, and one we’d love to see tour the U.S. is Asian Kung-Fu Generation.   AKG wrote lyrics in English for their first EP in 2000, but most of their catalog is in their native language.  The track translated “Blue Train”, performed live in the clip below, was a hit single from “Fan Club”.  It shows off their nifty rhythms and song structures.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B88pR8zkEng

Thandiswa Mazwai is a South African singer/songwriter who wins music awards regularly in her home country, and who also performs internationally.  The track below appeared on “Zabalaza”.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HACpBsSCMpg

“Buena Vista Social Club” was a worldwide sensation when it was released in 1997.   American guitarist and musicologist Ry Cooder brought together many of Cuba’s greatest musicians to record what would become the biggest selling Cuban album of all time.   The first track, “Chan Chan”, was written by Compay Segundo.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnFfKbxIHD0

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