Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow and Charlie Byrd exemplify the breadth of American jazz. These elder statesmen of the instrument have well over a century of combined knowledge and experience, and their styles cover a vast spectrum of the music, from straight-ahead swing, to be-bop, to bossa nova and beyond. Herb Ellis established an impeccable standard for swinging, mainstream jazz guitar through his extensive work in concert and on record with numerous great jazz instrumentalists including Oscar Peterson, Ray Brown, Harry Edison and singer Ella Fitzgerald. Tal Farlow's nimble and innovative playing with the Red Norvo Trio is considered pure genius, and few guitarists have matched his unusual dexterity and sense of harmony. Charlie Byrd pioneered the use of the classical guitar in jazz and introduced America to the beauty of Brazilian bossa nova. Billed as the Great Guitars, the playing of this remarkable group is a short course in the history of jazz guitar.
Charlie Byrd is recognized as a music giant throughout the world. The role of the guitar bridging classical and popular music forms is a matter of history, but the emergence of a guitarist equally at ease in both classical and jazz idioms is an event of singular exception. Born in Chuckatuck, Virginia on September 16, 1925, Byrd learned the basic of guitar from his father and began to perform regularly with local bands. While in Paris during the war, he had occasion to meet and hear the great gypsy guitarist Django Reingardt, one of the founding fathers of the very concept of jazz guitar. That encounter served as the inspiration for Byrd's decision to enroll in the Harnett National Music School in New York to study jazz composition and theory. By the late 1940's, Charlie Byrd had become an established figure in the East Coast jazz scene, but he felt the need for a new direction. He decided to pursue a career as a concert guitarist. In 1950, Byrd moved to the Washington, DC area to begin the study of classical guitar with Thomas Simmons and Sophocles Papas, and subsequently traveled to Italy as the pupil of Andres Segovia. While he did not consciously synthesize his jazz and classical training into a new form of music, the subtleties of both began to have their inevitable effects, with the result that Byrd reached new performance levels and created a new sound-- jazz played on an acoustic (classical) guitar without using a pick or electronics. After a tour of South America sponsored by the United States Department of State, his interest in Latin music intensified. The next year, 1962, along with Stan Getz, Byrd recorded Jazz Samba and, according to Leonard Feather, "the entire bossa nova craze in the United States may be said to have spring directly from this album." Amazon
The tread that binds these radically different players is their debt to Charlie Christian, the first electric jazz guitarist who inspired their lifelong dedication to musical excellence. Billed s the Great Guitas, the playing of this remarkable group is a short course in the history of jazz guitar.
Tracklist :
1. Seven Come Eleven
Composed By – Benny Goodman, Charlie Christian
Guitar – Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow
2. Georgia (On My Mind)
Composed By – Earl K. Brent, Matt Dennis
Guitar – Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow
3. Angel Eyes
Composed By – Earl K. Brent, Matt Dennis
Guitar – Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow
4. Air Mail Special
Composed By – Benny Goodman, Charlie Christian
Guitar – Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow
5. Blue Skies
Composed By – Irving Berlin
Guitar – Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow
6. Deed I Do
Composed By – Fred Rose, Walter Hirsch
Guitar – Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow
7. Embraceable You
Composed By – George & Ira Gershwin
Guitar – Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow
8. Undecided
Composed By – Charlie Shavers, Sid Robin
Guitar – Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow
9. Corcovado
Composed By – Antonio Carlos Jobim
Guitar – Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow
10. Cottontail
Composed By – Duke Ellington
Guitar – Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow
11. So Danco Samba
Composed By – Antonio Carlos Jobim
Guitar – Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow
12. Things Ain't Like They Used To Be
Composed By – Mercer Ellington, Ted Persons
Guitar – Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow
13. Bernie's Tune
Composed By – Bernie Miller, Leiber & Stoller
Guitar – Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow
Notes :
A live jazz performance from Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow, and Charlie Byrd, featuring 13 tracks recorded in Manchester, 1997.
From the back of the DVD box:
Herb Ellis, Tal Farlow and Charlie Byrd exemplify the breadth of American jazz. These elder statesmen of the instrument have well over a century of combined knowledge and experience, and their styles cover a vast spectrum of the music, from straight-ahead swing, to be-bop, to bossa nova and beyond.
Herb Ellis established an impeccable standard for swinging, mainstream jazz guitar through his extensive work in concert and on record with numerous great jazz instrumentalists, including Oscar Peterson, Ray Brown, Harry Edison and singer Ella Fitzgerald. Tal Farlow's nimble and innovative playing with the Red Norvo Trio is considered pure genius, and few guitarists have matched his unusual dexterity and sense of harmony. Charlie Byrd pioneered the use of the classical guitar in jazz and introduced America to the beauty of Brazilian bossa nova.
The thread that binds these radically different players is their debt to Charlie Christian, the first electric jazz guitarist who inspired their lifelong dedication to musical excellence. Billed as the Great Guitars, the playing of this remarkable group is a short course in the history of jazz.
Recorded at the Manchester Craftmen's Guild, 1997. Discogs.com
Running time: 80 minutes. Color.
A 24-page comprehensive booklet featuring biographical material, rare photographs and details on the tunes performed on this DVD can be accessed and downloaded from www.guitarvideos.com/dvd/pdf.htm
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