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Kenny Burrell
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Urs Helfenstein



Joined: 15 May 2008
Posts: 22
Location: Lucerne, Switzerland

PostPosted: Thu May 22, 2008 7:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

There are two aspects I would like to talk about in the connection of Kenny Burrell and his playing. First: Some of the forum members have voted their favourite K. Burrell recordings. There are several very early recordings that have been voted to be the best. And I do absolutely agree: The early recordings of Kenny Burrell are great, and it is an amazing thing to me, that even his very first recordings as a leader – as much as I know the Blue Note-Sessions of March 1956 – already show us a young musician who has found his own voice. There are his great lines, his sense how to build a solo, the typical laid-back feeling, the technical skill and when you listen to this recordings you know very fast: That’s nobody else than Kenny. Other guitar players of his generation – for example Jim Hall – did need more time to find their own voice on the instrument. But as far as Kenny is concerned: There was nearly everything here from the very beginning.

This brings me to the second topic: There was nearly everything here from the very beginning. For me, there is one aspect in his playing that I adore which he had to develop in first years of his career. It’s his sound. In his early works, his sound is – that’s my personal opinion – a little bit thin. In his later works, it becomes more and more rounded, warm, rich, maybe not as fat as others, but deeply and full. There are early examples in his work where he has this sound I like so much: On “Guilty”, recorded 1962, or on several tunes of his famous “Midnight Blue”-session. But someday in the late sixties or in the early seventies he reached a point from where on he had always this sound: You can hear it on his “God bless the Child”-record, or on his “Ellington is forever”-works or on his live-records from the Village Vanguard from December 15th in 1978. This sound, related with all the other advantages he always had makes him to a jazz guitar player who is next to unrivalled.
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Mark
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PostPosted: Thu May 22, 2008 8:40 pm    Post subject: Re: Kenny's Tone Reply with quote

Urs Helfenstein wrote:
For me, there is one aspect in his playing that I adore which he had to develop in first years of his career. It’s his sound.


Urs,

Yes, I couldn't agree more. As I said a couple of posts ago, I've had an ongoing quest for KB's rich sound dating back to precisely the period you mentioned, because by the time he recorded "God Bless the Child" his signature fat tone was fully defined and mature. Content may always trump tone and Kenny routinely had something to say, but when you have both you have something special.

My main archtop for 37 years has been a 1970 Gibson Super 400. Why? Kenny Burrell. During the early seventies my main amp was a Fender Twin Reverb. Why? Kenny Burrell. I have so many fond memories of catching him live at clubs in my youth (18-19 years old), and sitting less than ten feet away from him and in awe of what I was hearing and seeing.

Btw, I've posted some KB-related and inspired audio clips in other parts of this forum, so I've been hesitant to re-post them here, although it seems kind of appropriate since this is a topic about Kenny. If anyone wants me to post the links here, just let me know...

- Mark
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Urs Helfenstein



Joined: 15 May 2008
Posts: 22
Location: Lucerne, Switzerland

PostPosted: Fri May 23, 2008 6:57 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thank you for the reply, Mark. And by the way: How did he develop his sound? Was he influenced by the sound of the “newcomers” of the sixties? Wes Montgomery (who become famous in the late fifties, I know, but I think he was the most popular and influential Jazz guitar player of the sixties) George Benson and Pat Martino, all of them had a big fat sound compared to the early Kenny and to the others guys of the fifties like Jimmy Raney.

Urs
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Mark
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PostPosted: Fri May 23, 2008 7:47 pm    Post subject: Re: Burrell's Tone Reply with quote

Urs Helfenstein wrote:
How did he develop his sound? Was he influenced by the sound of the “newcomers” of the sixties? Wes Montgomery (who become famous in the late fifties, I know, but I think he was the most popular and influential Jazz guitar player of the sixties) George Benson and Pat Martino, all of them had a big fat sound compared to the early Kenny and to the others guys of the fifties like Jimmy Raney.


Urs,

I've had many conversations with Wolf (Marshall) on this subject, because not only is he the consummate expert on KB's history, tone, etc, but they are also close friends. Wolf teaches with him weekly in Burrell's jazz program at UCLA.

As you probably know, Kenny was pretty much a bebopper in the fifties, but on the side was doing a lot of East Coast, R&B-influenced session gigs for bands like The Platters, The Inkspots, and many others. This was fairly common for jazz guitarists during that time period and on into the sixties.

It wasn't a coincidence that Burrell's tone started to change in the late fifties ('59), and a lot of it had to do with his quest for a larger sound and his guitar and amplifier of choice. Before then it had been a Gibson ES175 and a Gibson amp, but when he started using a Gibson L7 and an L5 (both with Charlie Christian pickups) and also changed over to the Fender Tweed amps being used by many blues guitarists, his tone changed accordingly.

By the time he recorded "Organ Grinder Swing" (Verve) with organist Jimmy Smith in the mid-sixties, Kenny was mainly using the L5 and also his D'Angelico New Yorker, then moved to the big Super 400 in the late sixties. He commonly used a de Armond pickup on both the S400 and the New Yorker. By the time he recorded "God Bless the Child" his tone was in full bloom.

Another aspect of Kenny's tone that's often overlooked is his soft touch and picking style, plus the fact that even when playing blues he chose to pick over the front pickup, where players like Benson and Martino would move their right-hand much closer to the saddle. I subconsciously modeled myself in the same manner, because I was trying so hard to replicate his tone. All for now...

- Mark
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Urs Helfenstein



Joined: 15 May 2008
Posts: 22
Location: Lucerne, Switzerland

PostPosted: Sun May 25, 2008 4:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Mark
Thank you very much for this profound information. There is only one little left question about Kenny and his sound (or about getting a rich, full, round sound in general): What kind of flatpick would you recommend? I’ve made the experience that the flatpick has a very big influence of the sound!
Btw: I’m also very interested in the opinion of other forum members!
Urs
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Mark
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PostPosted: Sun May 25, 2008 6:38 pm    Post subject: Re: Flatpicks & more... Reply with quote

Urs Helfenstein wrote:
Thank you very much for this profound information. There is only one little left question about Kenny and his sound (or about getting a rich, full, round sound in general): What kind of flatpick would you recommend? I’ve made the experience that the flatpick has a very big influence of the sound!


Urs,

You're welcome and thanks for bringing up the pick issue with regards to KB's tone, something that Wolf and I were just discussing by phone yesterday. Yes, it's not just how you pick and where you pick that affects the tone, but the flatpick itself.

Where some players like Pat Martino get a thick but more "dense" sound, much of it is attributed to a thicker pick, typically around 2.0mm. George and Kenny favor heavy picks but considerably thinner, ranging from 1.25 to 1.5mm. I get tone compliments constantly, and the pick I've used for the past couple of years is a ProPlec 1.5mm, just like Henry Johnson.

Just recently I've gone back to using PickBoys, which I used for over 20 years before getting into the ProPlecs. I needed something as close as possible to the PP's but more in the 1.25mm range. This was directly a result of doing so much right-hand thumb work a la Wes in recent months that I needed to feel something less cumbersome when switching back to the flatpick. It's working out very well, from what my ear tells me. Wink

Anyway, when I spoke with the ProPlec rep at NAMM earlier this year, I learned that they actually run their picks through something similar to a gem tumbler for a couple of days, which accounts for the beveled edges and tone, far superior (IMO) to anything from Fender, Dunlop, etc. I'm not sure if the guys making PB's do the same thing, but the edges are as close to the PP's as anything else I've encountered.

Oh btw... for anyone reading this curious about Marshall's long-awaited book on Kenny, it's been a very trying, frustrating experience for Wolf, as he's now finished his upcoming book on Barney Kessel but had completed the KB book well over a year ago. Third needless "legal delay" and the truth is that it's about about company profit. Crying or Very sad Very sad, because I predict that the Burrell book will be one of their top sellers. All for now...

- Mark
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Don MacArthur



Joined: 10 Apr 2008
Posts: 50

PostPosted: Sun May 25, 2008 9:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Very interesting. I give the PickBoys a try. Hey Mark, Where do you buy yours?

Thanks,
Don
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mel1



Joined: 12 Dec 2007
Posts: 8

PostPosted: Mon May 26, 2008 2:15 am    Post subject: Wolf Marshall's Kenny Burrell Transcriptions Reply with quote

Mark:

Is Wolf still with Hal Leonard? I have a Best of Kenny Burrell under the Recorded versions published by Hal Leonard and transcribed by Peter Billman and Jeff Jacobson The publish date listed in an ad was May 2006. Could it be that they are trying to get more mileage out of this book?

Best of Kenny Burrell
by Hal Leonard Publishing Corporation (Manufactured by)
Paperback

Pub. Date: May 2006
14 favorites from this legendary jazz bop guitarist. Includes: All Night Long * Boy and Soul * Chitlins Con Carne * Freight Trane * Midnight Blue * Now See How You Are * ... More

I will definitely buy Wolf's Marshall's book when it comes out. I hope he adds Lyresto.
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Urs Helfenstein



Joined: 15 May 2008
Posts: 22
Location: Lucerne, Switzerland

PostPosted: Mon May 26, 2008 6:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Mark,
Thanks a lot for the pick recommendations. Now it's my question: How to get them in Switzerland... Laughing
Urs
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Don MacArthur



Joined: 10 Apr 2008
Posts: 50

PostPosted: Sat May 31, 2008 11:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I know we are suppose to be talking about KB here but I just wanted to say that I tried out the thicker picks that Mark recommends and have to say that my tone has improved and I'm able to pick more easily using them instead of the ultra thin pick I had been using.

Don
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Urs Helfenstein



Joined: 15 May 2008
Posts: 22
Location: Lucerne, Switzerland

PostPosted: Mon Oct 06, 2008 8:11 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

There’s a live record by Kenny Burrell, called „A Night at the Vanguard“, recorded Sept. 16 and 17 1959. I read about this record some years ago in the great book “Die Gitarre im Jazz” by Juergen Schwab, a guitarist and university lecturer from Germany. This record was – beside of a very expensive Japan reissue – not available for a long time. In the book I noted above a transcription of “All Night long” is included, so I always was keen on hearing the real music…
But now, the waiting had an end: A reissue by the Verve group is available, and some days ago, my copy arrived. And I must say: This record is absolutely great, it’s even better than I supposed.
I mentioned it in a earlier post: I was always aware of the fact that Kenny Burrell was kind of a quick-starter on his instrument. When you listen to his first record as a leader – as much as I know the Blue Note-Sessions of March 1956 – you already hear a young musician who has found his own voice. Nearly everything is there: His great lines, his sense how to build a solo, the typical laid-back feeling, the technical skill.
Nearly everything because of the following fact: There’s an aspect of his playing which wasn’t there in the very beginning. It’s his full, round, fat sound. But how surprised I was when I listened to “A Night at the Vanguard”. In this live-situation, his sound is much fuller than in all the studio sessions of the fifties and the sixties! There’s nothing of this crispy sound which I know from these sessions, now it’s round and full and rich of dynamical nuances, just like on “A Child was born" and other records from the seventies.
Really great, and the whole record is even more amazing when you think about the fact that the guitar trio (guitar, bass, drums) was a quite new format at this time. I know two Poll Winners-records by Barney Kessel (with Shelly Manne, drums and Ray Brown, bass) which were recorded before Kenny Burrells date at the Vanguard. But for the rest: When a guitarist went to studio without the support of a pianist, he had a second guitarist (like Johnny Smith on “In a Mellow Mood” or Mundell Lowe on “The Mundell Lowe Quartet” or Tal Farlow on many records of this time). But Kenny Burrell is mastering this new situation absolutely. He’s mastering it even much better than Barney Kessel on the first Pool Winner-record – as much as I know the first entire LP in Jazz history recorded by a guitar trio. On this record, Barney Kessel sounds sometimes a little bit jumpy, his playing is a often inexact, the strokes are sometimes too hard. (By the way, the second Pool Winners-album is much better in those aspects.) But Kenny plays relaxed, fluent, and the formal construction of the tunes just makes sense.
Really, listening to “A Night at the Vanguard” shows me things about Kenny Burrell I didn’t know before!

Urs
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Mark
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 08, 2008 8:49 am    Post subject: Re: KB's Impact Reply with quote

Urs Helfenstein wrote:
I mentioned it in a earlier post: I was always aware of the fact that Kenny Burrell was kind of a quick-starter on his instrument. When you listen to his first record as a leader – as much as I know the Blue Note-Sessions of March 1956 – you already hear a young musician who has found his own voice. Nearly everything is there: His great lines, his sense how to build a solo, the typical laid-back feeling, the technical skill.


Urs,

You're preaching to the choir here, my friend Wink. Kenny is the main reason that I got into playing jazz guitar in the first place, and the fact that one of my dearest friends (Wolf Marshall) teaches with him at UCLA makes me want to pinch myself at times. Many behind-the-scenes KB stories that only serve to underline what a great and prolific guitarist he happens to be, and I feel an eternal connection because of our mutual love for the blues. I really enjoyed reading your comments. Thanks for sharing...

- Mark
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DocDosco



Joined: 07 Oct 2008
Posts: 6
Location: LA

PostPosted: Sat Oct 18, 2008 7:50 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi Mark,

My mentor and friend (the late) Esmond Edwards produced one of Kenny Burrell's early albums 'Soulero' circa 1966. An attempt, I think, to make a recording akin to the Wes Montgomery albums that were so popular at the time. Shorter 'commercial' type cuts. Nice CD, even though no one really stretched out on it.

Esmond also produced the first 4 or 5 George Benson albums plus most everyone who was anyone in jazz and blues (Coltrane, BB King included)

Kenny gave him a tweed Fender amp and a Guild guitar in appreciation after the sessions. Nice gift, huh?

Anyway, have been listening to some Kenny Burrell of late. I have about 30 of his CDs. Great stuff, of course. His blues phrasing is impeccable. He does a version of Make Someone Happy that will knock your socks off.
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Mark
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PostPosted: Sat Oct 18, 2008 8:40 pm    Post subject: Re: More KB Reply with quote

DocDosco wrote:
Anyway, have been listening to some Kenny Burrell of late. I have about 30 of his CDs. Great stuff, of course. His blues phrasing is impeccable. He does a version of Make Someone Happy that will knock your socks off.


Doc,

Great info about Esmond Edwards (thanks), and I do have Soulero on LP. Kenny has been SO prolific over the years, and consistently solid dating back to the fifties. Wolf told me a fantastic story that I'll share with you guys:

At a recent get-together involving KB and some top SoCal jazzers, one of the horn players commented to Burrell how impressed he was with his tone and his consistency. At first Kenny joked a bit, but then went on to say that there was a turning-point moment very early in his career that impacted his approach forever. He was gigging one night with Jimmy Smith and just wasn't into it. During a set break a vocalist who had worked and recorded with Burrell approached and chastised the young jazz guitarist, saying "Now I KNOW that you can do better than that, so I never want to see you do that again!" It was Billie Holiday, and KB said that her words changed every performance for him from that day on. Even on days when his chops aren't up to snuff, he makes a concerted effort to dig in and give it his best shot.

Okay, I've got two unreleased tracks to share with all of you, both totally influenced by Kenny:

First is my rendition of "Blues for Del" (Blue Bash w/Jimmy Smith - early 60s). Slow swing tune originally done in Bb, but I recorded my version in G. Kenny wrote it as a tribute to Detroit radio DJ Del Shields. It carries a special meaning for me, because I'll never forget the night when, as an under-aged minor with a phony ID who slipped into the El Matador (SF), I asked KB to play this tune. I also can't forget the smile on his face because he had such a young fan who knew his music. All these years later, I'd like to think that I am now doing justice to my mentor.

"The Soul Factor" is an original funky blues in C, written as a tribute to one of my past local students steeped in the Texas blues tradition. You'll hear Kenny's phrasing impact (along with Benson and others) all over the solo. What makes this recording somewhat unique and special is that the backing track is Burrell's "Chitlins Con Carne" from the still-yet-to-be-released Marshall book/CD on Burrell (Uh, please don't tell Hal Leonard Wink ). On a side note, you'll hear that there's no keyboard player, and I was really pleased to hear how all of the time I've invested in double-stops, octaves, chord punches, and call & response phrasing has paid off in a blues-oriented guitar trio context.

Btw and as my students know, I teach both of these tunes in the Rhythm & Blues Experience wing of the Lessons by Mail program. Hope you enjoyed the story and dig the tracks! All for now...

- Mark
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DocDosco



Joined: 07 Oct 2008
Posts: 6
Location: LA

PostPosted: Sun Oct 19, 2008 12:31 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi Mark,

Thanks for posting these tracks. Very hip. And your rendition of Stella too. I love the retro jazz/blues stuff a lot. Thank God it is back in fashion, huh?

I incorporate a lot of blues (and some retro) elements into my playing. Although I appreciate the Metheny school, (the modern guys like Rosenwinkel, Mike Stern, Schofield, Abercobie, etc. ) I find I rarely listen to them even though I have most of the CDs.

I always grab Montgomery, Kessell, Burrell, Benson, Martino, Pass, Diorio (who I find amazing) and the like to put in my MP3 player when I head out the door (Lenny Breau too!).

I guess I should listen to more of the newer guys, but they don't have the same pull for me. Some are brilliant players, and their music is fabulous, however that 'old black magic' isn't there for me many times.

Maybe (as Jack Benny once said) "I am just an old fuddy duddy"...

I have a couple of 'docified blues' tracks in the spirit of Kenny Burrell. Sweet Louise turned especially nice and has a cool fat sound (if I do say so myself). Peerless Monarch through a tube amp with some reverb. I am not really big on heavy reverb but it sure worked on this track. I kept it simple and purposely avoided long strings 16th note lines in favor of slow tasteful melodies.

http://docdosco.com/Louise.mp3

The other track is dry. A medium up blues. Nothing special, just a cool blues with a few curves here and there.

http://docdosco.com/monk.mp3

I kind of enjoy when people post tracks. It's nice to punctuate the paragraphs on the forum with an MP3 or 2. And then have people explain how and why they used a certain approach, employed a type of phrasing, or went for a certain sound. We all learn (and steal from) from each other. In fact, I stole some nice lines from Royce Campbell last night. He is a very good straight ahead player.

As George Benson said... "If you don't want me to steal it, don't play it'.... haha


;0)
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