Subj : re: Jazz guitar To : Paul Lawson From : Martin Ridgley Date : Fri Jul 14 2000 11:54 am -=> Paul Lawson wrote to Martin Ridgley <=- MR> innovative players who achieve lasting recognition, even though MR> they might have struggled to reach an audience at the time. PL> Yep, guys like Django Rheinhardt (sp) and Chariel Christiansen PL> come to mind, not that I'm an authority on music history... I PL> think a lot of the problem is that many think the high water PL> mark for jazz was the late '50s early '60s with players like PL> Coltrane, Miles and Montgomery pushing the envelope. True. I'm no authority on music history either, but it seems that for some reason, during that same period, there was a lot of interest in jazz amongst the college and university crowds. Now it seems to be mainly alternative pop/rock. PL> A lot of players are happy playing standards. I think the spirit PL> of jazz is in constant exploration. Miles being the prime example PL> of this. he never stopped re-inventing himself musically. Agreed. MR> So, who would you list among the most innovative jazz guitarists MR> of today? PL> Tough question... As far as true innovation, in the sense of PL> reinventing the instrument or music, the only guys I can think PL> of off-hand is Stanley Jordan (definitley) and John Scofield PL> (arguably). There's many players that I consider distictive and PL> Very influential but not sure I could mount an effective argument PL> for them being truly innovative: Pat Metheny, Mike Stern, PL> Al DiMeola, Alan Holdsworth, John McLaughlin. Hell, most of PL> those guys would be considered "seniors" these days. Sadly, I'm PL> not in touch with the up-to-the-minute state of jazz. How would PL> you answer the question? I'm afraid I'm in much the same boat that you are, Paul. I'm not really up to date with many of the more recent players on the scene. I actually asked the question in the hopes of getting some tips and opinions on some of them from *you*! Let's see... of the players you mentioned above, I've really only listened to Metheny, Holdsworth, and McLaughlin. I do have one album by John Scofield - "Time On My Hands" (1990) - which I quite like. I heard some of Al DiMeola's early work, but his playing didn't do much for me and I haven't paid much attention to him since the '70s. Several people have recommended Stanley Jordan to me, but I have yet to hear him. Care to suggest a good title to start with? Another one who's been recommended recently is Birelli Lagrene. Can anyone here tell me anything about his style, and/or suggest an album? One of the most innovative players I've heard in years is still Lenny Breau, whose best work dates from the mid '70s to early '80s. Sadly, he died in 1984 at the far-too-young age of 43. He was quite a different cup of tea from the other players we've been talking about, though. He had an almost classical style at times, often playing alone (and often on 7-string guitars - either nylon-string acoustic, or electric) and accompanying himself with a truly astonishing mastery of bass lines, chords, and harmonics. He used to say that he approached guitar playing as if it were a piano - always having two things going on at once. He's sometimes compared to Joe Pass in that respect, but they are very different players. Actually, that reminds me ...hang on a sec, I have to find this great quote... Okay, a writer for the Kansas City Star named Terry Teachout had this to say about Lenny Breau: "Breau is one of those musicians who, like Art Tatum, hardly even needs a rhythm section... his warm, almost acoustic sound and rhythmic poise make his only serious peer in the field of solo jazz guitar, Joe Pass, sound hopelessly mechanical." (...from the liner notes to "Mo' Breau" - recorded in 1977/78) Put like that, it sounds kind of amusing, but I have to agree. I'm a fan of Joe Pass too, but I find Lenny Breau's solo playing much more fluid and 'musical', if I can use that rather vague term. Anyway, in recent years not many people in my social circle have been into jazz - one reason why I'm not up on some of the new players on the scene - so it's great to be able to chat with someone about it. Cheers, Martin ~~~~~~~~ ___ MultiMail/MS-DOS v0.36 --- Maximus/2 3.01 * Origin: The Eclectic Lab (1:153/831) .