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Jazz Guitar Hero: George Benson
Twelve exemplary recorded performances from one of the greatest legends of the jazz guitar.
Any discussion concerning the most important guitarists in jazz must include George Benson. He along with fellow six-stringer, Pat Martino, were the pillars of jazz on the instrument in the 1970s, before trends changed, and focus turned to more additives and categorical obfuscations.
My attraction to Benson was what ignited my life’s work. As a fifteen year old I thought, “If I can one day make the exhilaration and full range of emotion that I feel from listening to him, that’s what I want to do!”
Today, Benson has continued to practice, evolve and excel in his musical gifts. However, I’m not sure that he is sufficiently appreciated by modern-day jazz guitarists and students. As an answer to that and as a listening aid and primer for aspiring jazz guitarists, I’m republishing this article that I was asked to write in 2011. It originally appeared on a now defunct website by a very well respected jazz journalist. It includes my commentary of a dozen of George’s recorded performances that I feel offer important glimpses into his style during different periods throughout his career. These are just some of my favorites, and by no means should be thought of as a “best of” list. I could easily pick twelve more cuts and wax on with equal enthusiasm. With that said, please read, listen and most of all enjoy!
Track 1: Eternally
CD: It’s Uptown (Columbia 9183)
On this latin-esque, minor blues tune from his 1965 debut album It’s Uptown, George unleashes the controlled urgency and masterful fluidity that would become his signature in the 1970s. Although the tune is presented in a rhythmic style that suggests the laid-back cool of a 1960’s pool party, Benson comes out of the gate on fire, making nothing but exacting melodic and rhythmic musical statements with not one extraneous note throughout his five solo choruses. Here, his playing style although perhaps not fully developed, is quite apparent and clearly distinguishable from its influences (Wes Montgomery, Grant Green and Hank Garland are a few that come to mind). The elements that make up is singular style: an urban-blues consciousness, blistering technique, rhythmic freedom and melodic and harmonic sophistication, are all on display in this riveting two minutes of improvisation.
Track 2: Ready and Able
CD: The George Benson Cookbook (Columbia 9184)
After the crisp execution of this Jimmy Smith Penned melody on the chords of I Got Rhythm, the thing that is just as exciting for me is to hear Benson’s comping behind Ronnie Cuber’s baritone solo. It’s a lesson in taste and subtlety as well as an indication of why a musician’s rhythmic feel is so important. Although George’s chordal ideas are voluminous, they are most properly placed (in both rhythm and octave range) to excite and propel the music and seemingly, always relevant in those same ways to the drama of the soloist’s phrases.
Benson’s solo on this tune takes the excitement level up even more, which is quite a feat considering the superb solo that he follows. I’m particularly fond of his harmonic vision in this solo, which makes what and how he plays on these changes seem particularly unique and personal to him. As always, his command of the jazz idiom and syntax, and how he is choosing to fuse these with blues and R&B leanings to form a distinctive and influential jazz guitar style is apparent in this solo. A much more obvious observation though, is that his technique here is simply mind-boggling. The thing that makes this solo so breathtaking isn’t how fast or lengthy his lines are, as much as how he is able to think and ‘hear ahead’ in order to shape finely crafted melodic ideas through the chord progressions. The component that completes his stunning technique is his quicksilver response and coordination that allows him to execute so flawlessly. This solo is true jazz improvisation!
Track 3: Shape of Things That Are and Were
CD: Shape of Things to Come (Verve 000967402)
On this tune, a blues head by Benson from his 1968 A&M Records debut, he both gives a nod to his predecessor Wes Montgomery, then breaks the mold. The setting of this recording was actually Montgomery’s old turf (same record label, producer, arranger, musicians) as George was offered a new recording contract in order to replace Wes just after his untimely death.
Benson’s playing here is the perfect example of a jazz musician who has fully realized his own voice on their instrument. His approach, rhythmic and otherwise, has the inherent essence of a decade or more of R&B and soul music that he adds to the jazz mix. In his block-chord soloing he freely employs one of the techniques that was integral to Wes’ style without ever sounding like a mimic. Actually, Benson takes Wes up a notch and in his single-line playing especially, states that this is the next level for jazz guitar playing. He shows off two new techniques that are jaw dropping: a risqué sweep picking and an ability to play in flurries that are removed from the strictures of the meter. The thing that makes all this dazzle most amazing for me though, is that it is so controlled and tempered by a spirit of extreme musicality. It never sounds like he’s just showing off… even though he might be!
Track 4: The Gentle Rain
CD: Beyond the Blue Horizon (Mosaic Contemporary)
From my perspective, this tune represents a period of exploitation, experimentation and growth for George Benson during his days on CTI Records (1971 – 1976). This jazz-bossa standard is treated more freely rhythmically and at times suggests more urban, New-Yorican, latin rhythms and double-time backbeat thanks to the polyrhythms of Jack DeJonnette. Benson uses this active backdrop as a springboard for his own rhythmically aggressive playing on the solo vamp. I also like how he employs the use of Ron Carter on cello to create sound painting melodies and smears as a supplement to the organ, drums, and percussion rhythm section. He even looks to the cello for melodic interaction as he begins his solo.
These abstractions create a mood that’s a perfect foil for what could possibly be go nowhere I chord to V chord blowing. George uses his fierce technique to build this solo to a frenzy, while organically using his favorite elements: the blues, a probing harmonic awareness to inform his single-line ideas, block chords, a keen melodic and rhythmic sense, and a controlled abandon. He takes chances here that only those who know and trust that elusive musical spirit can. Whether it’s by leaps, steps, spins, lulls, cries or shouts, his ideas are always delivered with grace and are musically sound and emotionally moving.
Track 5: Plum
CD: Body Talk (Columbia ZK-45222)
This track contains some of the most exciting and articulate jazz guitar phrasing I’ve ever heard. On his original composition, chock-full of moving chords, George shows us his artist nature by taking liberties with the how he chooses to build the track to create a total performance and presentation.
He uses the intro – an easy, loping, two-chord vamp – as a precursor, soloing sparsely as a suggestion of where he’ll be heading later on. In this AABA tune he states the A section melody only once and then proceeds to improvise through the entire remainder of the form, repeating an additional A section melody again as a kind of recap. I’m fortunate to know the actual melody of the complete tune from working with Stanley Turrentine (George’s label-mate on CTI) who, many years later, had this tune in his repertoire. However, prior to that experience I had no clue that there was a B section melody! Regardless, this track proceeds from section to section so seamlessly and is so perfectly spellbinding that I never questioned it. And actually, the A section melody is a complete musical statement unto itself.
Benson is now at the top of his game as a guitarist and jazz musician and can seemingly do whatever he pleases and is making all the right moves. His solo over the 2nd A, B and final A sections of the melody form transcends the guitar and is in the realm of the highest level in jazz. The rhythmic, melodic and harmonic freedom and command with which he navigates these progressions, coupled with his technical mastery of his instrument, should have him realized in the pantheon of the greatest jazz musicians of all time – the same group of musicians that I use as my reference point in making the statement (which may seem bold to some). After he devours the chord changes on the form, he breaks to restate the A melody again (a palate cleanse), before indulging in the two chord vamp like a vacationer at an ocean-liner dessert bar. The funk, blues and jazz smorgasbord of ideas and technique seems never-ending as the track fades.
Track 6: Summer Wishes Winter Dreams
CD: Bad Benson (Sony/BMG 724211)
Many might find this pick way too schmaltzy, but I can’t help including this movie theme ballad, super-sweetly orchestrated by Don Sebesky, because it highlights a side of George Benson, the musician, that deserves consideration.
Here we find Benson in the setting made successful by Wes Montgomery on A&M Records almost a decade before – jazz guitar accompanied by full orchestra. I believe that it takes nothing less than an instrumental master with star quality to carry an arrangement such as this – which winds up wrapping itself around Benson’s beautifully lush tone, voice-like phrasing, and perfectly controlled pace. His embellishments of the melody show a musical depth that transcends jazz as a category and breaks through to just being plain good music. I love the gorgeous chord melody playing and the brilliant mini cadenza just before the end.
Track 7: Sky Dive
CD: George Benson in Concert – Carnegie Hall (CBS Associated 6009)
Every Set needs a burnout tune and this was it at this 1975 Carnegie Hall concert. Benson takes this Freddie Hubbard tune to the stratosphere!
He states the melody as though he wrote it himself using both single notes and chords; and I’m amazed every time I hear the knuckle-busting fills he twists between the phrases of the melody in the 2nd and 3rd A sections. His solo is nothing but masterful. He uses all of the tools available to him – single lines, double-stops, octaves, octaves with an added note (which would soon become his own trademark) and block chords – to most dramatically powerful effect. The feeling of excitement that he’s able to evoke via his instrument is incredible. It’s tantamount to the spiritual heights that he reaches in this solo that near its end he wails repeatedly on bent notes, in effect crying out. He had played everything else, there was no place left to go.
In jazz, I don’t think that there is any other guitarist that has shown us the emotional range and depth that is accessible on the instrument. Because of the inherent characteristics of the classic jazz guitar sound, i.e. sans effects, at its best it’s a satisfyingly warm, mellow and beautiful listening experience. But when it’s time to burn or get down, often guitarists turn to effects to bolster them against the clean-toned guitar’s physical challenges in that realm. This tune is a perfect example of the soaring heights that Benson could reach without the use of effects, via his superior talent, singular vision, musicianship and style.
Track 8: Affirmation
CD: Breezin’ (Warner Bros 75369)
A backbeat has never disqualified melody or harmony to my ears, so when I listen to this cut I hear George Benson, jazz musician, at the height of his improvisational and creative abilities. The Breezin’ album, where this tune appears, was the breakthrough for George, making him a major crossover artist. But what pleased me so at the time was that there were plenty of juicy and lengthy guitar solos for me to wrap my brain around. There are also a fairly even blend of harmonic motion and modal vamps over which the solos occur throughout the record, allowing him to express himself fully.
This tune represents classic Benson in a few different ways. During the 1970s it had become pretty standard practice for him as an improviser to first deal with moving chord progressions during his solos and then tackle modal vamps, and that is the case with Affirmation. His solo on this tune contains the usual devices in his arsenal, except the octave with additional note technique (he does use regular octaves). In place of that however, rather than the strummed octave, he plucks them simultaneously using his thumb and index finger creating a more stinging effect. This as a matter of fact, is another technical variation (in addition to the octave with added note) that he made a part of his trademark style. Otherwise, the singing melodicism, cascading single notes, bluesy funk and gritty, flurrying double-stops are all there.
I also have to note the transcendent nature of George Benson’s language as a jazz improviser, which is realized on this album and is perfectly evident on this particular piece. Rather than rely upon tried and true melody lines from the jazz idiom, he (in true jazz musician form) draws from these melodies with measured precision, realizing them as a portion of the total information in his melodic palette. Combining these with the melodies of the blues culture and American folk and popular cultures, Benson creates solos that represent the best in jazz in their idiomatic and rhythmic integrity, as well as their inclusive nature and expansive scope.
Track 9: Soulful Strut
CD: Livin’ Inside Your Love (Warner Bros 2-3277)
Back in 1968 this tune was an instrumental pop/soul radio hit. George and company’s feeling must have been: ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’, as were rollin’ along just fine and seemed to be enjoying the ride since they had found the formula for success. Even the Claus Ogerman’s strings’ in the opening statement give more than a nod to the intro of one of their hits from a previous album or two. But I guess that’s human nature even for jazz musicians – work what works (at least until it becomes stale).
Benson and his group are all settled in and cozyily familiar with their own sound and feel. Everything is fitting here – from the blend of the instruments’ sounds and the parts they play in this feel-good arrangement, to the overall sound of the production – for George’s guitar to stand out front and carry the track home. And he does it with polish, energy and in his unmistakable style. The backbeat, clavinet and strings may have led some jazz fans to turn away concluding that his jazz days were over. But the sense of authority and sure-footed pacing he’s playing with at this point in his career, coupled with the knowledge, energy and excitement of his jazz mentality and his even more accurate ridiculous technique, leads me to say: they don’t know what they’re missing.
Track 10: We All Remember Wes
CD: Weekend in L.A. (Warner Bros 75370)
True jazz lovers and jazz guitar geeks should rejoice when they hear this one! It’s a song written in tribute to the one and only Wes Montgomery by the other one and only Stevie Wonder. And although the song’s rhythm is a pseudo-disco beat, it’s got a rock solid, head bobbing groove and carries some meaty chord changes.
Here is George at his improvisational best. Not a note is wasted as he makes his way through these changes, one second like a heavyweight boxing champ and the next a balance beam gymnast. There are countless causes for oohs and ahhs here, but never so much as the slightest stumble. His time-feel here is off the chart. It feels like he’s so at one with this groove that he’s both inside of it and riding on top of it at the same time.
This is Benson in the zone. And master that he is, he knows that this one chorus is plenty.
Track 11: Being with You
CD: In Your Eyes (Collectibles 7731)
By 1983 when this record was released Benson was a pop star facing all of the responsibilities to meet continuing success at the very least. And because of the changes that would begin to take place for the next twenty-plus years in the music business and the sound of music, we’re hearing George in a jewelry shop here rather than a chicken shack.
But on this tune (written by my childhood friend, drummer Omar Hakim), George channels his jazz guitar persona. His guitar sings this melody and I believe every word, along with every amazing in between the melody fill! On his solo he exploits all his powers and by the melody out it should be clear that although he’s moved on, we should welcome him every time he wants to visit.
Track 12: Poquito Spanish, Poquito Funk
CD: Standing Together (GRP 99252)
I hadn’t received a visit from George in quite some time and I must admit, I kinda missed him. Then one night in the late 90s while I was driving home from a gig he paid me visit via the radio station playing a new tune he’d just released. I visited with him a while and then found myself pulling over to the side of the road so I could give him my full attention.
On this guiro-burnished, nouveau-latin, funk piece, the production quality is one that will probably never sound dated in any bad way. Both the production and the groove are to die for. George plays the vocal role of some ‘urban’ characters in the intro before he graces us with the melody in octaves first, then finally adding his unison voice to his guitar, the last of his stylistic trademarks. His voice accompanies the first part of the solo, perfectly following his moves from octaves to double-stops and back. In part two of the solo he features his single-line playing, at first with the pick, but quickly switching to the thumb. His ideas are as compelling as ever harmonically, but with more of a thoughtful probing and emotional depth. I like the fact that he plays his most interesting stuff jazz-wise without the pick. He’s havin’ a good ol’ time with having nothing to prove really. As one of his alter egos say to him during the track, he’s still the baddest.
May 29th – Bobby Broom LIVE Masterclass: Webinar + Q&A
Join us live on May 29th 2021 from 2:00PM-3:30PM EST (11:00AM-12:30PM PST) as we host a LIVE masterclass with world-renowned guitarist Bobby Broom. Not only will you be able to ask questions and interact with Bobby in this 90 minute webinar, but you will also receive the produced/edited version of this masterclass video for free!
Bobby Broom: Giants of Jazz Guitar – “Jazz Tracks” with Michael Tanner on KSQD
Tonight (Apr. 29) I will be a doing my 7th spotlight feature on “Giants of Jazz Guitar!”
Tonight’s spotlight will showcase jazz guitar icon, Bobby Broom
7-10pm (Pacific Time), on the radio show “Jazz Tracks” with Michael Tanner on KSQD, Santa Cruz.
You can listen live and/or go to the archives at www.ksqd.org to check out the show anywhere in the world!
During these spotlights I will be discussing guitarists playing styles, technique, giving a bit of historical context, and providing 2 tunes to showcase the brilliance and artistry of each musician! I’m spotlighting guitarists from the 1920s up to the present.
AUDIO ARCHIVE: https://ksqd.org/two-week-archive/
Sessions from Studio A – The Reggie Thomas Quartet
Jazz returns to Sessions from Studio A this week with The Reggie Thomas Quartet, featuring acclaimed pianist and current head of Jazz Studios at Northern Illinois University, Reggie Thomas, along with guitarist Bobby Broom, drummer George Fludas, and bassist Dennis Carroll. The quartet gives us a passionate performance in Studio A, and we’ll also hear a conversation with band members about their jazz backgrounds and their thoughts on the social justice protests of the past year.
The accomplishments of these four players are far too many to list right here, so in the words of Bobby Broom on this week’s episode: “…let the playing do the talking.” Enjoy!
You can follow Reggie Thomas on social media and here on his website. Find Bobby Broom on facebook and bobbybroom.com, George Fludas at georgefludas.com, and fnd more from Dennis Carroll here.
The Reggie Thomas Quartet performs “Soft Winds” live in WNIJ’s Studio A
The Reggie Thomas Quartet performs “Everything I Love” live in WNIJ’s Studio A
The Reggie Thomas Quartet performs “Mo'” live in WNIJ’s Studio A
Jazz Guitar Today: Bobby Broom Explores New Directions
Jazz Guitar Today talks to the legendary jazz guitarist Bobby Broom about his journey, and about the ‘new direction’ of his current project.
Bobby Broom has done it all. He’s earned the respect of players all over the world. He’s earned his place in academia and is a renowned educator. But Bobby is not content with that and his drive and passion keep pushing him in new directions. Bobby is working on a project with a new sonic landscape for which we at JGT applaud. In this interview, we salute Bobby. His accomplishments and new directions to expand his palette of self-expression. Enjoy our salute to Bobby Broom.
Bob Bakert, JGT editor: We discussed ‘new directions’, what can you tell us about your new project?
Bobby Broom: The new record I’m working on is a bit of a turn from my past recordings, meaning, the trio-based, jazz records with a traditional slant. My last record (“Soul Fingers”) was a bit of a step away from that, in that I added additional sounds – horns, strings, percussion – to supplement various tunes. This record, however, is totally different. First of all, it’s electronic-based. We (drummer/producer/composer, Poogie Bell and me) are using sampled sounds and loops as the basis for composition and often the rhythm of the music. Those sounds are then being enhanced by real musicians and instruments– drums, bass, piano, keyboards and a variety of instrumental soloists.
As far as the musical style(s) involved, I assume that jazz-heads (of which I’m one), will question if this is Jazz. The answer is probably yes, but not your grandfather’s Jazz. The title of the record, “Bloodlines,” refers to the undercurrent, or strain that can be found in all musical styles rooted in the African American diaspora. Many of our jazz greats, Duke Ellington, Max Roach, Miles Davis, Nicholas Payton, etc. have bemoaned that word, Jazz. I’m not trying to start a debate, but I do understand the issue(s). But I’m not ready to release that title’s musical association because of the devotion of all of the lives that were involved in making for the creation of the music and to develop, evolve and preserve its integrity. So much hardship went into it, so to call it something else now, after all that, seems like giving up way too much. I also agree though, that clarity needs to be established around what jazz is, or maybe more importantly, what it isn’t. Who decides that is really closer to the real issue, I believe. Many of us musicians who are playing it don’t really need to call it anything in particular, we’re just playing what we feel. It can take on different guises, as long as it contains certain elements and features, and can still be considered Jazz as far as we’re concerned. But I suspect that certain people, critics, certain types of musicians (professionals or amateurs on group threads), need the name for their own reasons. Those same people may be turned off by my new music because of the various beats, the blues and frankly just how Black the music is. That is, if they even care to pay attention to it at all. I’ve encountered my fair share of that in my career as well. LOL
Because I came up in the 70s, I was fortunate to benefit from hearing top 40 radio which was not segregated or compartmentalized at that time. So a hit song could be in country, soul or R&B, soft rock, hard rock, jazzy big band, doo-wop, bubble-gum, or whatever style. Melody was still very important, as was an artist’s performance – meaning how they sold the song with their interpretation, the attractiveness of their musical voice, etc. Songwriting was still substantive – not that it isn’t anymore, but that’s not what’s being marketed as Pop music anymore – there was still song form and harmonic movement. The great American songbook or Tin Pan Alley style of songwriting was still influential in popular music in the 70s. Saying that to say that I heard a lot of music. Melodies, harmony, hooks, bass lines, instrumental sections and ornamental embellishments… I was paying close attention to all of it, so by the time I heard jazz, all those melodies that they were playing over the chords made some kind of innate sense to me immediately. Of course, I had to get the specific language together and understand everything from a jazz music perspective… and learn how to play my guitar… LOL. But that’s why I play a lot of those pop songs. Because of what they meant and mean in my life.
What I like about the new record is that I’m getting to do something else that I really want to do and I hope some people like it. Hell, I recorded “Monday, Monday” by the Mamas and Papas! So obviously I’m okay with taking chances. So now I’m playing and paying homage to certain other stylistic feelings that influenced my musical aesthetic. We’ve got a song on there that sounds borderline disco, or like it could be played for roller-skaters. Really it’s more like a steppers tune, like – for the sake of reference – an R. Kelly type thing. But folks are going to hear it the way they hear it (or not at all) and say whatever they want to say about it. The other cool thing is that I’m trying to use many of the active and important voices that I’ve connected with in one way or another during my time in Chicago. So, this music links Jazz to its roots and all of its various offshoots through a jazz guitar voice that has absorbed or borrowed from all of it and realizes the significance of those connections. For all those reasons I thought Bloodlines was a good title.
Because I did different things and went in different directions during my career – like choosing to play “jazz-funk” (with GRP Records, Tom Browne, Omar Hakim, Marcus Miller, Victor Bailey, etc.) rather than joining Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers for example, or by making my own debut record for GRP, moving from NYC to Chicago, or playing with Dr. John, Hugh Masekela… or on the track for one of R. Kelly’s hits – when I finally had the opportunity to try to establish myself as the jazz guitarist that I know am and always have been, despite what other work I’d done, I feel that I had to kind of force the issue. I mean that I had to establish a significant body of work with my guitar trio records and my organ trio records. I had to establish my voice by releasing on a regular basis, and thankfully I was getting good air-play with all those records, which meant that the many jazz fans that listen to jazz radio across the nation hear(d) me, liked my sound and what I was doing. Although I’m not a chosen jazz figure, I have been able to hand-craft a respectable reputation as a jazz guitarist because of the relative success of those recordings.
Below are some text excerpts from the JGT interview – for the full interview, check out the video.
On playing with all the incredible musicians over the years…
Yes, I feel very blessed. I feel very blessed to see that list. Sometimes it’s like, Whoa, really That, that happened. I mean, I know it’s there, but man… I remember practicing as a kid in my room in New York. I had a bunch of records by then and I was hell-bent on being one of those guys. This is what I wanted to do. And then one day it dawned on me, I was in my room practicing and the thought hit me. Dude, you’re not going to do that because these guys are already adults and they’re doing it. And you’re 15. You’re not, you were born too late. Not knowing really about how the music works and the mentoring and apprenticeship that’s involved – and how the music is passed through generations. I didn’t, I wasn’t thinking of all that. I was just thinking like a kid, and it was upsetting to me, but then I thought, I don’t care. I’m just gonna do it. I love this music so much. I’m just going to practice. I just want to learn how to play. So if there’s a way or like an imaginary kind of membership to this jazz thing, I want to be eligible! And I don’t care what happens.
Favorite formats to play…
I can’t really say, I know solo guitar is not one of my favorite things. I appreciate it when I do it – and it turns out halfway decent, I enjoy engaging and interacting with other musicians. And, the trio setting has just been something that kind of happened over the years. I wanted to have a guitar trio without another harmonic instrument and that just evolved over time and a bunch of recordings. So that’s that, so the organ thing is kind of in the blood – and in the lineage of jazz guitar.
Pursuing a master’s degree…
When I first started teaching I wasn’t a capitalist. So I didn’t accept the offer from Jackie McLean to head to the Guitar program at the University of Hartford. I was 22 years old, had no degree and had never taught (other than that first year for him). If it wasn’t for my integrity I’d be retired by now! But I continue to teach…
On his position Northern Illinois University…
I arrived at the situation, which is, a blessing. It was honest, it was not calculated. It was just a part of the gift. I’ve been gifted a lot in this life. And this is another one of those situations where it couldn’t have happened at a better institution at a better time. I feel like, I always dreamt that I would find a place. Well, I didn’t know that I would, but I wanted a place where I could be myself. Where I could be a practicing jazz musician and would be supported in that. Like where does that exist? I don’t know of too many…I don’t know of too many institutions in academia where that is actually the case.
Jazz Trio Stuns With Musical Dialogue Masterclass
The saying has been on teacher’s walls, waiting rooms and my childhood refrigerator: “Life is a lot like jazz. It is best when you improvise.” However cliche George Gershwin’s quote may be, it speaks to jazz’s applicability to life as an art form grounded in spontaneity, conversation and connection.
Each of these communal processes were at the forefront of the latest performance by the Schwartz Artist-in-Residence Program. The Schwartz Center Virtual Stage kicked off Emory’s 18th annual Jazz Fest on Feb. 12 with an accomplished trio of touring jazz professionals — guitarist Bobby Broom, bassist Kenny Davis and pianist Gary Motley. Each musician has made their mark in the world of jazz performance, recording and touring with jazz icons like Sonny Rollins, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Fred Anderson and Herbie Hancock in venues from “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” to New York’s Carnegie Hall. But in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, these accomplished artists had to reconfigure their knowledge of live performance to fit a virtual setting.
Rather than performing live on stage, Broom, Davis and Motley created a pre-recorded concert from their respective offices using headphones that allowed them to listen to and layer their instrumental recordings on top of each other. Although these physical limitations inhibited some of the visual communication typically available to jazz improvisers, each piece performed served as a case study in imaginative and thoughtful musical conversation. The evening’s program struck a balance between classic jazz themes reimagined as vessels for modern experimentation and striking original compositions by Broom and Motley, respectively.
The trio’s introductory piece reconfigured the 1931 American hit “Sweet and Lovely” with a cautiously tender guitar melody and harmoniously rich piano interlude. Similarly, their renditions of undying jazz standards like “Jitterbug Waltz” and “Easy Living” demonstrated funky ‘70s-inspired bass lines, cascading vacillations of piano and guitar arpeggios and rhythmically significant lifts.
Motley’s original piece, “Changes,” was one of those songs you couldn’t help but move around to, especially given the freedom of listening at home rather than a watchful concert hall. The debut of his composition “Mandla,” whose title means “power and strength” in Zulu, was similarly engaging. Rhythmically surprising and masterfully conversational, the piece featured a captivating interplay between the piano’s uplifting melody lines and rhythmic punctuations by the bass and guitar. Broom’s 1995 original “No Hype Blues” was nothing short of a modern masterpiece which Broom himself described as his “contribution to blues melodies.” Leading guitar lines soared over masterful piano trills with unison melodies and introspective solos establishing a steady pattern of push and pull that guided the music to a contemplative conclusion.
The evening’s penultimate piece, “Stairway to the Stars,” featured nostalgic ascending chord progressions and sparkling piano flourishes that created an atmosphere of magic, reminding one of the imagination of childhood and hopeful secrets whispered into darkness. The trio closed their concert with a smashing rendition of “Oh, Lady Be Good!,” a 1924 hit previously recorded by artists like Ella Fitzgerald, Fred Astaire and the Benny Goodman Trio. A seminal sound with a captivating lightness and joy, “Oh, Lady Be Good!” paid homage to the history of the piano, guitar and bass trio in jazz music through striking riffs, broad harmonies and a fascinating dialogue between instruments that left the audience wanting more.
A masterclass with the artists followed the concert on the morning of Feb. 13 and featured a discussion between Broom, Davis, Motley and Emory student Sawyer Gray (22C). The musicians discussed the importance of steeping oneself in foundational jazz repertoire to create a soundboard for jazz improvisation. According to Broom, “improvisation is a misnomer,” as jazz musicians rely less on making up music as they go along and more on hearing and rearranging sounds they have already practiced to fit into the piece they are performing. In this way, performing is like speaking — jazz musicians piece together building blocks from a complex language of sound into coherent pieces.
In a pandemic that has been defined by a loss of daily interaction and simple intimacies, the Jazz Fest’s themes of building a common language, connecting with others and allowing room for improvisation seem especially poignant. One thing about the trio’s performance is certain: these musicians were expertly speaking a language of their own.
Bobby Broom featured in DownBeat magazine’s annual reader’s poll
Bobby Broom, assistant professor of jazz guitar and jazz studies in the School of Music was featured, for the second time in five years, in DownBeat magazine’s annual reader’s poll edition. In the December 2020 issue, Broom was chosen as one of the top guitarists in the industry.
The DownBeat readers’ poll is in its 85 year. DownBeat is an American magazine devoted to “jazz, blues and beyond,” the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chicago.
Harlem Born, New York City raised, Bobby Broom has been heralded as “one of the most musical guitarists of our time” by jazz historian and author, Ted Gioia. Playing Carnegie Hall with Sonny Rollins and Donald Byrd at age 16, Broom recorded his debut as a leader, “Clean Sweep,” for GRP Records at age 20. He’s played and /or recorded with Kenny Burrell, Hugh Masakela, Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, Stanley Turrentine, Dave Grusin, Charles Earland, Miles Davis, Kenny Garrett and Dr. John, among others. As a leader he has recorded with the Bobby Broom Trio and the disbanded Deep Blue Organ Trio for the Premonition, Delmark and Origin labels. Bobby’s most recent, 2018 recording is “Soul Fingers” (MRI Entertainment/US, Jazzline/EU), which features his newest organ trio, ‘the Bobby Broom Organi-Sation.’ The album explores his reinterpretations of his childhood radio hits and was produced by the legendary drummer/producer, Steve Jordan.
Broom has released 12 recordings in total as a leader. Many have received airplay resulting in national jazz radio chart positions of #1 to #3, resulting in his being recognized as one of the top guitarists by Down Beat magazine’s annual Reader’s Poll in 2015, as well as their Critics Poll for four years, from 2012-2014 and again in 2017.
A dedicated jazz educator throughout his career, Professor Broom holds a Master of Music degree in Jazz Pedagogy from Northwestern University. His teaching experience began under the direction of NEA Jazz Master, Jackie Mclean, at the University of Hartford’s, Hartt school of Music. Prior to his appointment at NIU, he was a jazz faculty member at North Park, DePaul and Roosevelt Universities and the American Conservatory of Music. He continues to conduct clinics, master classes and lectures worldwide and is a teaching artist/instructor and mentor with the Herbie Hancock Institute and the Ravinia Jazz Mentor Program.
Bobby Broom Interview: High Action Podcast
Guitarist Bobby Broom joins the New West Guitar Group for an interview on the High Action podcast. To hear the full episode please visit and subscribe:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast…
https://newwestguitar.com/highaction
Oct 11 – Bobby Broom and the Chicago Jazz Orchestra @ Chippewa Park – Des Plaines, IL
See the pictures of the baseball diamond and field, that is open space for socially distanced jazz.
IMPORTANT 3 THINGS TO KNOW
The park is lined with private residences, including the home where the stage is set up.
1. Please respect others property, stay within the park and DO NOT TRESPASS onto private property unless invited.
2.We expect jazz fans to know how to act as we all enjoy the day.
MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCING and follow all guidelines. Even though it is an open park, use proper distancing and masks as the COVID protocol.
3. Be kind and loving to each other today. Please be respectful of each other and the musicians. You will hear original music that encourages and lifts us up together. Lets show the world how a community can act responsibly and generously.
Together we celebrate live music today. JAZZ