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An accomplished musician as well as an exceptional performer... For the last five decades, the world has embraced the great sounds of one of America's most successful jazz guitarists and vibrant entertainers ...George Benson. Appreciated as both an accomplished musician as well as an exceptional performer, George Benson has earned himself an impeccable reputation as one of music's most enterprising and engaging superstars. Benson's signature musical style is widely recognized by his silky jazz guitar leads combined with his lush soulful vocals. This distinct musical combination gave birth to his now famous scat-soloing, the art of making his guitar and voice sing simultaneously. George Benson was born on March 22, 1943 in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. In 1947, when he was just four years old, he won a singing contest performing as "Little Georgie Benson." This natural talent followed George in his youth as an eager entertainer; singing, dancing and playing ukulele in a local nightclub. By 17, influenced by popular doo-wap music and Smokey Robinson, Benson led a five piece RandB group, in which he sang and played rhythm guitar. Early exposure to records by Charlie Christian, Wes Montgomery and Charlie Parker began his interest in jazz, but few would predict George to reach his striking level of stardom over forty years ago when he began playing the guitar. In the early 60's, Benson began playing straight-ahead jazz with organist Brother Jack McDuff, remaining with him for several years while developing his unique style. The organist's gritty swing provided a fertile ground for George's sly, confident and adventurous guitar lines combined with seductive, rhythm and blues. A lot of the jazz tunes they played together at the time were danceable, which developed George's understanding of what his true audience really enjoyed. Word spread around town as George continued to develop his signature guitar technique. The great Wes Montgomery came across Benson early on, complimenting the young guitarist while urging him to continue his already impressive work. With homage to Montgomery's pinnacle album Boss Guitar, Benson felt he now had both the chops and conviction to follow in the footsteps of his mentor. In 1964, at the age of 21, Benson recorded his first album as a band leader on Prestige Records with Jack McDuff entitled The New Boss Guitar. By the time legendary talent scout John Hammond signed Benson to Columbia, the guitarist's name was bubbling throughout the industry. His key Columbia releases included It's Uptown, Benson Burner and Cookbook featuring Lonnie Smith on organ, Ronnie Cuber on sax, and Jimmy Lovelace on drums. Benson's tone was juicy, and his solos sparkled with a carefully honed logic, showcasing his talent of constructing swinging bebop lines at blistering tempos. In the mid-60's, Benson met Freddy Gambrel, the great blind pianist from San Francisco, who showed him some inventive ways to get in and out of chord changes and meld harmonies together. Having an insatiable appetite for great guitar players and always aspiring to learn more, George's other mentors included Django Reinhardt, Hank Garland and Grant Green. This progressive learning was reflected in his guitar playing, now gaining wider popularity, his musical career seemed boundless and he was now earning an early reputation as a master. In 1967, Miles Davis invited Benson to play guitar on the tune Paraphernalia, which appeared on the Columbia release, Miles in the Sky, featuring Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Wayne Shorter and Tony Williams. Still in his mid-20s, Benson moved over to Verve Records for a string of releases including Blue Benson, Giblet Gravy and Goodies, solidifying his growing reputation as a tremendously fluent and powerful soloist. By 1968, famed record producer Creed Taylor signed Benson to AandM Records signaling the arrival of a true star on the jazz scene. His debut album, Shape of Things To Come, paired Benson with arranger Don Sebesky and engineer Rudy Van Gelder, and featured guest artists Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Richard Davis and Hank Jones. Taylor then brought Benson over to his newly formed CTI Records where he and his stellar production team produced Benson's Beatles' tribute album, The Other Side of Abbey Road, featuring Freddie Hubbard, Sonny Fortune, and Hubert Laws. Benson continued his CTI reign with a series of key jazz guitar releases including Beyond the Blue Horizon, White Rabbit, Body Talk and the classic contemporary jazz album Benson and Farrell. It was around this time George started scat-singing along with his guitar solos while rehearsing new material, but his band mates didn't think it would work. In 1976, on his first album for Warner Brothers, record producer Tommy LiPuma encouraged George to use his scat vocal technique. The first single off his milestone Breezin' album was a soulful update of Leon Russell's This Masquerade, which featured Benson scat singing along with his guitar solo. The song was a crossover smash at radio quickly reaching #1 on the Billboard Pop, Jazz and RandB charts; Breezin' became the first jazz record to attain multi-platinum sales. This blockbuster release led to a string of more hit albums throughout the late 70's and early 80's on Warner Brothers which spawned a slew of smash singles including: On Broadway, The Greatest Love of All, Give Me the Night, Turn Your Love Around and Lady Love Me (One More Time). These singles blended his smooth vocal grooves with his tasty guitar work, proving that RandB was also a natural part of Benson's musical profile. Benson spent the early 1980's continuing to tour the world, cementing his global musical presence, thrilling audiences worldwide. In 1985, Benson collaborated with guitarist Chet Atkins and was back on the smooth jazz charts with Sunrise, one of two new songs from the duo, released on Atkins' Stay Tuned album. 1989, Benson set out to make a pure jazz album again and released the highly acclaimed “Tenderly” with an all-star band including McCoy Tyner and Ron Carter. By the nineties, Benson followed Tommy LiPuma to GRP Records, their long association had proven artistically and commercially fertile, and both wanted to sustain it. Together they recorded the 1996 GRP release That's Right, offering a modern version of contemporary jazz while reminding listeners that Benson continued to be one of the genre's masters. The track Song For My Brother was nominated for a 1998 Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance. Benson followed that up with 1998's Standing Together, once again striking a smooth jazz balance between pop grooves, accessible vocal numbers and his signature guitar work. In 2000, his 3rd GRP release Absolute Benson marked a return to his beginnings with focus on his noteworthy guitar virtuosity in a modernized acoustic quartet setting. And in 2006, Benson joined the great jazz vocalist Al Jarreau and released Givin' It Up earning 3 Grammy nominations and two wins on his current label, Concord Music Group. Over the years, George Benson's illustrious career has produced 10 Grammy Awards in multiple musical categories including jazz, pop and RandB. It has also earned him a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, inclusion in Guitar Player Magazine's Hall of Fame, and an honorary professorship and Ph.D. at Morris Brown College and the Berklee School of Music. Today, George Benson remains one of music's top entertainers as he continues to travel the world touring. He's built his amazing artistry and reputation on knowing just what people enjoy hearing, and just what he enjoys playing for them. More information on George Benson can be found at: www.georgebenson.com |
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Jody Fisher has played virtually every style of music... Jody Fisher was born in South Bend, Indiana and spent most of his childhood years moving throughout the country. His father, a successful radio broadcasting figure, and his mother, an actress, provided the creative environment that allowed him to pursue his avid interest in both music and the guitar. By age eleven, Jody was taking lessons in the Chicago area. During this time, he also studied with his uncle, jazz guitarist Sid Fisher, who had spent many years as an RCA recording artist. After moving to the West Coast as a teenager, Jody continued taking lessons with some of the top players living in the Los Angeles area, including Herb Ellis, John Collins, and Louis Speigner. It was during these years that he also attended The Stan Kenton Music Clinics. Jody eventually began studying with guitarist/bassist, George Stanley, who started bringing him to gigs and introducing him to other players. From this point on, Jody made a steady living playing the guitar. As a professional performer, Jody has played virtually every style of music. He has played many important venues such as the Hollywood Bowl and Universal Amphitheater. Today, he is primarily known as a jazz artist living in the Southern California area but he has worked all over the United States, Canada, England and Germany. His newest CD, Impromptu, has received critical acclaim. Jody has published over twenty instructional books about jazz guitar with National Guitar Workshop Publications/Alfred and Mel Bay Publications. His best-selling titles include Beginning Jazz Guitar, The Guitar Mode Encyclopedia and 30-Day Guitar Workout. Four of his books have appeared in the Smithsonian Institute's Folkways Exhibition in Washington, DC. In addition, Jody has written for most of the major guitar magazines including Guitar Player, Just Jazz Guitar and Finger Style Guitar. He has also worked in National Guitar Workshop/Alfred videos with jazz legends Tal Farlow (An Evening with Tal Farlow) and John Abercrombie (An Evening with John Abercrombie). As an educator, Jody has held the positions of Professor of Jazz and Studio Guitar at the University of Redlands, in Redlands, CA, the University of La Verne, in La Verne, CA, and the Idyllwild School of Music and the Arts (ISOMATA), in Idyllwild, CA. In addition, he has also served as Associate Director of the National Guitar Workshop as well as Director of the Workshop's Jazz Summit in the early years of that program. Jody continues to conduct seminars and clinics all over the country. back |
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