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George Benson
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Mark
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Joined: 26 Feb 2007
Posts: 479
Location: Portland, OR

PostPosted: Tue May 27, 2008 7:43 am    Post subject: George Benson Reply with quote

Guitarist/vocalist George Benson is one of my main mentors, having transcribed a great deal of his recorded material (mainly from the 60's and 70's) then assimilating and teaching it for so many years. As a result, GB's had a profound effect on my work, and in turn that of my students.

Understandably, my thoughts regarding George are pretty extensive, but I'm curious to hear your comments regarding him? His playing in general? His affinity for blues and rhythmic creativity? Whether any of you are transcribing his work? Your favorite GB recordings and videos?

- Mark
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Bob Parsons



Joined: 28 Apr 2007
Posts: 27
Location: Anchorage, AK

PostPosted: Tue May 27, 2008 5:10 pm    Post subject: GB Reply with quote

Mark if I was stranded on a desert isle (with batteries and an mp3 player of course) I could probably live the rest of my life listening to just Body Talk. That tune is the zenith bluesy jazz guitar.
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Dave Illig



Joined: 31 Mar 2007
Posts: 67
Location: Houston, TX

PostPosted: Tue May 27, 2008 5:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ode to Kudo from Weekend in LA. To me, this song is a masterpiece of all the elements of Jazz that I like. The tasteful start to the ripping end. I still get goosebumps when I listen to it.

George turned me on to jazz with the Breezin. After Breezin I got into his earlier stuff and was blown away.

When I first starting stealing his licks I was shocked to learn that I knew some of what he was doing! He was playing blues licks that I had played but they sounded totaly different. That put me on the quest to master phrasing, something I will work on the rest of my life. George can play the same blues lick several times and make it sound different each time with his awesome phrasing.
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Don MacArthur



Joined: 10 Apr 2008
Posts: 50

PostPosted: Tue May 27, 2008 6:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I first heard GB when he came out with his version of "This Masquerade" which is on the same CD as "Affirmation" and "Breezin'." Later on I discovered earlier GB recordings. My favorite eariler GB CD is titled George Benson Talkin" Verve. Talk about some funky phrasing. Check out Giblet Gravy.

Don
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John G



Joined: 21 Apr 2007
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PostPosted: Tue May 27, 2008 9:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Don MacArthur wrote:
I first heard GB when he came out with his version of "This Masquerade" which is on the same CD as "Affirmation" and "Breezin'." Later on I discovered earlier GB recordings. My favorite eariler GB CD is titled George Benson Talkin" Verve. Talk about some funky phrasing. Check out Giblet Gravy.

Don


Talkin' Verve was the first Benson album that I got. I immediately sat down and started transcribing "Giblet Gravy," it was one of those things I just had to learn (I later got the album by the same name, as Talkin' Verve is just a compilation CD). I love all the songs on that album, and I also really enjoy his singing on "Lucky Old Sun."
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Dean



Joined: 19 Apr 2007
Posts: 287
Location: California

PostPosted: Wed May 28, 2008 4:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Well,as you know,I got to meet him at NAMM and he played On Broadway,I have always loved that song.I plan on listening to more of his work.I just want to add ,what a great inspiration this site is to me.All of you great players,you too Dave,sharing yourself and knowledge.Thank you !!!
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Mark
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PostPosted: Wed May 28, 2008 8:16 pm    Post subject: Re: "Giblet Gravy" Reply with quote

John G wrote:
Talkin' Verve was the first Benson album that I got. I immediately sat down and started transcribing "Giblet Gravy," it was one of those things I just had to learn (I later got the album by the same name, as Talkin' Verve is just a compilation CD). I love all the songs on that album, and I also really enjoy his singing on "Lucky Old Sun."


John,

I've been chasing the "Giblet Gravy Dream" since I first heard that tune in the late 60's. I was jamming with a buddy and we took a break and turned on the radio. It was an FM station doing an hour of R&B and on comes this track that just blew us away. The DJ never announced who it was, but we finally caught up with her and after describing the tune and playing, she said, "Hmm... that might have been George Benson."

Well, that was the first time I'd ever heard him play, and to this day I've never heard a funkier blues than the title track of that Verve album. I ended up transcribing the solo some ten years later and have been digesting/teaching the licks and concepts ever since. There is SO much going on in that solo, because it's not just GB's harmonic content and his phrasing, but the many unique and guitar-specific inventions from a creative player who was constantly learning and tinkering. His maturity and growth during that four-year span with McDuff ('64) through that release is simply remarkable.

Btw, the other half of the compilation is from the out-of-print "Goodies" record, done shortly after. I have two LP copies of GG but have only seen one of the other in a used record shop in SF. Naturally, I snatched that one right up. Wink

Great posts, guys! I have lots of additional comments on this tune, Body Talk, Ode to a Kudo, Masquerade, Broadway, and many others. Time permitting, I'll try to get some audio clips and notation posted. Stay tuned and keep things rolling along. All for now...

- Mark
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corky4strings



Joined: 21 May 2008
Posts: 109
Location: plain, pa.

PostPosted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 2:20 am    Post subject: absolutely live Reply with quote

i was watching the dvd absolutley live today and noticed that the f holes on gb guitar were covered over with a clear tape. does anyone have any idea why he covered the f holes?
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corky




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Mark
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 2:37 am    Post subject: Re: Absolutely Live Reply with quote

corky4strings wrote:
i was watching the dvd absolutley live today and noticed that the f holes on gb guitar were covered over with a clear tape. does anyone have any idea why he covered the f holes?


Corky,

That's a common practice to reduce feedback on an archtop guitar. All for now...

- Mark
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Urs Helfenstein



Joined: 15 May 2008
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Location: Lucerne, Switzerland

PostPosted: Sat Jun 28, 2008 1:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

For me, there are lots of reasons to adore George Bensons playing: His bluesy, funky approach to play Jazz Guitar, his way to build a solo, his great double-stops, his sound…
And there is his way to play behind a soloist. That’s an aspect of his playing that makes me stop and listen all the time a Benson record is on. As an example: I’m talking about the way he plays behind Jack McDuff on “Will you still be mine” (recorded May 1#, 1964). It’s not the “classical” Jazz Guitar-comping, because I hear a lot of the Blues and R&B rhythm guitar-work in it, enriched with the Wes Montgomerys approach of comping and the funkiness of the Hardbop-era. I don’t know anybody who played rhythm in this way before GB. If he hadn’t done anything else in his life, it would be enough to call him a great player…

Urs
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Mark
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PostPosted: Sat Jun 28, 2008 6:39 pm    Post subject: Re: GB's Rhythm Work Reply with quote

Urs Helfenstein wrote:
It’s not the “classical” Jazz Guitar-comping, because I hear a lot of the Blues and R&B rhythm guitar-work in it, enriched with the Wes Montgomerys approach of comping and the funkiness of the Hardbop-era. I don’t know anybody who played rhythm in this way before GB. If he hadn’t done anything else in his life, it would be enough to call him a great player…


Urs,

That's a very astute observation regarding Benson's comping, my friend. And it's one that most tend to overlook. No guitarist in history has blended R&B with jazz quite like GB, and what has always appealed to me is his percussiveness, like Wes but with much more of a funky blues edge to it.

- Mark
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Urs Helfenstein



Joined: 15 May 2008
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Location: Lucerne, Switzerland

PostPosted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 6:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Mark,
thank you for the compliment! What's about George's way to play octaves? I once read about a further development of the Montgomery way to play octaves by adding the fifth. Is this true? And if it's true: Do you have suggestions records where George features this technique to study it?
Urs
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Mark
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PostPosted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:44 pm    Post subject: Re: GB's Octaves Reply with quote

Urs Helfenstein wrote:
What's about George's way to play octaves? I once read about a further development of the Montgomery way to play octaves by adding the fifth. Is this true? And if it's true: Do you have suggestions records where George features this technique to study it?
Urs


Urs,

Yes, I believe it was during his CTI (pre-Breezin') days in the early 70's that GB started using the "octaves plus" concept that you describe, usually done in combination with chromatic slides and funky phrasing in many of his groove recordings. He added 4ths or 5ths, depending on the octave within a given key.

For instance, if you're in the key of A minor and are harmonizing the E octave (strings 1 & 3), try adding the A (4th) on the B string at the 10th fret. While you can strum the three tones a la Wes, try plucking with the thumb and fingers to get the effect that GB is noted for. In addition, slide into that figure from a fret below. Two quick slides into it and you've got something that is unmistakably right out of the Benson playbook.

But wait... that's not all. After the initial slide, create what I like to call a "flutter trill" by going rapidly between the thumb on the G string and the other two fingers on the remaining strings. This simulates the classic piano approach used by Oscar Peterson and many others, but the great thing is that on guitar it adds sustain at the same time. Wes did this with standard octaves, too, but with more of a "rustle" effect by strumming quickly down and up.

To see how the added 5th works into the equation, try playing an A octave on strings 2 and 4 (10th and 7th frets), then add the E on the G string (9th fret). Works well on this string set, because it's easy to slide into it.

I read an interview many years ago with George, and he cited an obscure guitarist in the midwest who was doing the "octave plus" routine, which he claimed was the source for what he ended up doing with it. Benson is the ultimate sponge when it comes to infusing different elements from a wide variety of sources into his work. Finally, "Good King Bad" is one of his recordings during that time period where he was all over this approach, but he was using it quite often on other releases as well. All for now...

- Mark
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nylenny



Joined: 31 Mar 2007
Posts: 291

PostPosted: Sat Nov 22, 2008 10:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yes, I've definitely heard that sound. Also, it sounds like he sometimes adds a sixth. For example, if you play a g on the first and fourth string and add an e on the second.
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Mark
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PostPosted: Sun Nov 23, 2008 12:08 am    Post subject: Re: Octaves Plus Reply with quote

nylenny wrote:
Yes, I've definitely heard that sound. Also, it sounds like he sometimes adds a sixth. For example, if you play a g on the first and fourth string and add an e on the second.


Len,

When I play tunes like "All Blues" (Miles), "Breezin'" (Benson), "Blue Monk" (Thelonius) or "Little Sunflower" (Hubbard), I use the octaves with a sixth combination. There are others for sure, but those are the first tunes that come to mind.

George was really using the octaves/plus and the flutter trill a LOT when he recorded "Good King Bad" many years ago. I use it for effect here and there. Check out this octave clip from my "Love Beyond Measure" original. It's right after the last part of the head and at the start of the fade solo. Key of D and two quick slides into the high octave A with the D on the B string, then a third slide followed by the flutter trill using my RH thumb, middle, and ring fingers. The pick is tucked away in the first joint of the index finger.

- Mark
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