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Post by Gail on Nov 20, 2023 18:52:59 GMT
This will be worth attending. We saw him a couple of years ago and he was fantastic. It’s not all the more mainstream hits he had in the early 80s but it certainly includes them. We heard lovely renditions of Nature Boy and On Broadway besides others. His voice was great, as was his playing. www.royalalberthall.com/tickets/events/2024/george-benson/ |
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Post by MickeyFinn on Nov 21, 2023 11:53:53 GMT
George can pretty much do anything he wants and it will sound good. I saw him at Wembley Arena in 1990 or thereabouts and it was pretty much a greatest hits gig, whereas he's been more adventurous in recent years.
This DVD is well worth bagging - it was recorded in Belfast over 20 years ago and Joe Sample makes a guest appearance on a few tracks. Looks like it was a great night.
During the 80s at the height of his chart fame he played on various straight jazz sessions without much public fanfare. He appears on 2 tracks on Dexter Gordon's 1981 "Gotham City" album:
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Post by Gail on Nov 21, 2023 12:10:49 GMT
Nice info, thanks for posting, Mickey.
I think that this sort of thing is what makes the forum an invaluable resource.
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Post by MickeyFinn on Nov 21, 2023 12:22:00 GMT
Happy to help in return for the loads I get thanks to others' hard work and generosity.
I'm posting this despite the sound quality and the misleading Ron Carter attribution because it shows the album cover. I've always been a trainspotter regarding who plays on records and I've often bought otherwise "blind" on the basis of someone appearing in a backing, side or producer role. I'd never heard of Stanley Turrentine until I picked this up in the mid 80s on the basis of George Benson's input. Not only did I discover probably my favourite tenor sax player, but also Jimmy Smith and Les McCann. Not bad for a fiver back then.
"Plum" is a Benson original previously recorded on his 1973 CTI album "Body Talk" (good album, BTW). This 1985 remake appears on Stan's "Straight Ahead" album, which was part of the relaunch of the Blue Note label:
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Post by MickeyFinn on Nov 21, 2023 12:28:39 GMT
Freddie Hubbard was also part of the Blue Note relaunch and released an album "Life Flight" in 1985 where George appears. However a better collaboration (for me at least) was on Freddie's 1978 album "Super Blue", which was a bit of a return to more acoustic jazz after some fusion style releases, and George pops up on this nice laid back track "To her ladyship":
At one point George Freddie and Stan were all label mates on CTI and then went their separate ways but often collaborated in later years in concert and on record.
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Post by MickeyFinn on Nov 21, 2023 12:36:31 GMT
After all the fusion years which made the whole jazz funk scene so much richer musically there was a turn to more straight ahead acoustic jazz at the beginning of the 80s. Michael Cuscuna, who was head of jazz at Columbia where Dexter Gordon was recording, ended up moving to Elektra where he was put in charge of the short-lived Elektra Musician jazz label, which released mostly straight jazz, including Jimmy Smith's "Off the top" album in 1982, featuring George and Stanley. Here's the title track:
Cuscuna a few years later was in charge of the Blue Note revival ... |
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Post by MickeyFinn on Nov 21, 2023 12:40:14 GMT
For the definition of "effortless", this appearance by George with Harvey Mason in 1977 is hard to beat. Just amazing playing skill over a terrific arrangement, taking the tune to a different but respectful level:
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Post by Gail on Nov 21, 2023 12:44:55 GMT
Keep it coming, Mickey. Thank you so much for sharing.
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Post by MickeyFinn on Nov 21, 2023 12:53:27 GMT
Seeing George's name on the cover of "Soul Survivors" by Hank Crawford and Jimmy McGriff from 1986 introduced me to Jimmy McGriff. Hank was another former CTI label mate of George and here they are on a remake of a Crawford original:
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Post by DaveD on Feb 18, 2024 19:50:53 GMT
The tour is off unfortunately. Not well enough. I don't suppose he'll ever be back. So pleased I saw him in the late 80s with the London Philharmonic Orchestra playing for him.
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Post by Gail on Feb 21, 2024 12:56:35 GMT
That’s a real shame. Glad I got to see him last time.
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