JAM: April/May 2000: Storyville

MASTERS OF JAZZ GUITAR
The Story of the Players and Their Music

Edited by Charles Alexander; published 1999 by Miller Freeman Books, USA/Balafon Books, UK; 192 pp; $39.95; 216 color photos; ISBN: 0-87930-592-4

For those who desire to go beyond the information found in the New Grove Dictionary of Jazz and explore the world of jazz guitar much more in-depth, this is the book for you. This handsome and revealing study honors the lives, music and influences of virtuoso jazz guitarists past and present. A colorful, large-format hardcover book, it is filled with expert essays and profiles written by world-class jazz authorities, complimented by evocative photographs of the players.

Edited by Charles Alexander, Masters of Jazz Guitar begins with the instrument's role in the music of the early 1900s and progresses through the orchestras and big bands of the 1930s and '40s. It follows the evolution of jazz guitar music in the hands of beboppers and hardboppers of the '30s and '40s, interpreters of fusion (and beyond) of the '60s through the '80s, and the new mainstream players of the '90s.

The book unveils the artistry and the vibrant stories of remarkable players throughout the years, including Charlie Byrd, Barney Kessel, Tal Farlow, Grant Green, Les Paul, Larry Coryell, John McLaughlin, George Benson, Emily Remler, John Scofield, Al DiMeola, Paco De Lucia, and many others.

Also, important innovators are examined, such as Django Reinhardt, Charlie Christian, Wes Montgomery, and Kansas City's own Pat Metheny. Fans will find the six-page section on Metheny especially interesting. It not only examines Metheny's early influences, such as Ornette Coleman, but it also gives an extensive account of both his traditional and mainstream projects. Metheny comments on how Coleman's music influenced his own after a recording project in which the two collaborated: "I never saw the project with Ornette, for example, as being all that different from what I usually do, just a little bit more out. When I first listened to Ornette's band as a kid, it seemed to me that they were just playing the music they felt strongest about, and playing it with incredible love and joy... That has always been the feeling I have tried to capture in my playing."

This book would make an excellent addition to any fine jazz library.

And yes, it also fits quite nicely on the coffee table.

--Kevin Rabas

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© Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors 1996-2001. All rights reserved.






	Search our site:		MASTERS OF JAZZ GUITAR The Story of the Players and Their Music Edited by Charles Alexander; published 1999 by Miller Freeman Books, USA/Balafon Books, UK; 192 pp; $39.95; 216 color photos; ISBN: 0-87930-592-4 For those who desire to go beyond the information found in the New Grove Dictionary of Jazz and explore the world of jazz guitar much more in-depth, this is the book for you. This handsome and revealing study honors the lives, music and influences of virtuoso jazz guitarists past and present. A colorful, large-format hardcover book, it is filled with expert essays and profiles written by world-class jazz authorities, complimented by evocative photographs of the players. Edited by Charles Alexander, Masters of Jazz Guitar begins with the instrument's role in the music of the early 1900s and progresses through the orchestras and big bands of the 1930s and '40s. It follows the evolution of jazz guitar music in the hands of beboppers and hardboppers of the '30s and '40s, interpreters of fusion (and beyond) of the '60s through the '80s, and the new mainstream players of the '90s. The book unveils the artistry and the vibrant stories of remarkable players throughout the years, including Charlie Byrd, Barney Kessel, Tal Farlow, Grant Green, Les Paul, Larry Coryell, John McLaughlin, George Benson, Emily Remler, John Scofield, Al DiMeola, Paco De Lucia, and many others. Also, important innovators are examined, such as Django Reinhardt, Charlie Christian, Wes Montgomery, and Kansas City's own Pat Metheny. Fans will find the six-page section on Metheny especially interesting. It not only examines Metheny's early influences, such as Ornette Coleman, but it also gives an extensive account of both his traditional and mainstream projects. Metheny comments on how Coleman's music influenced his own after a recording project in which the two collaborated: "I never saw the project with Ornette, for example, as being all that different from what I usually do, just a little bit more out. When I first listened to Ornette's band as a kid, it seemed to me that they were just playing the music they felt strongest about, and playing it with incredible love and joy... That has always been the feeling I have tried to capture in my playing." This book would make an excellent addition to any fine jazz library. And yes, it also fits quite nicely on the coffee table. --Kevin Rabas RETURN TO APRIL 2000 MAIN INDEX ------------------------------------------------------------------------ © Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors 1996-2001. All rights reserved.