Electric Guitar
The Genius of the Electric Guitar
Amazon. comOnce a musician’s influence becomes widespread and absorbed, it’s often a good idea to step back and remember how revolutionary their work was in its day. Charlie Christian’s role as a forefather of the electric guitar was forged not just because he was among the first to use the then-new technology in the late ’30s, but also because of his playing. He understood that an electric guitar is a different creature than an acoustic, and he explored this difference with fearless a. . . More >>
The Genius of the Electric Guitar
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I was blown away by the incredible sound quality of these guitar recordings. And, as a guitar player I appreciated the coolness (matching the music) of the Gibson amplifier packaging. For those of you who where so stupid enough as to NOT GET the vibe of this concept – why not take you Charlie Christian CDs and put them in generic CD cases to match you GENERIC lives. The packaging is hip. You are not. . . -TC
If Charlie Christian played on it, -Buy it! Charlie Christian RULES! Andrew A Honolulu
i agree that columbia box sets come in the worst packaging imaginable, but this is by far the worst. you just have to see it to believe it. the best i could come up with is to take the cds out of the ridiculous foam slots and put them within the pages of the book. i would give it one star for this but the music is incredible and i have yet to be disappointed with anything that has charlie christians name on it. ————-UPDATE—————-believe it or not, this trash is nominated for a grammy for ‘best recording package’. im absolutely serious.
That these records feature Charlie Christian may not be the most important reason for acquiring them. That they represent a high point in capturing a few hours in the most important musical development in the 20th century (jazz) probably is. Getting the feel of live performance in the studio is nororiously difficult. It is managed here. The actual sound quality is superb, and consistently so throughout these four discs. The music represents a high point in the recording of jazz. The participants represent some of the greatest past master bands – Duke Ellington, Fletcher Henderson, Count Basie – and point to the future in Lester Young and Charlie Christian. Morevover some of the musicians are legends on their instruments – particular note must be made of Cootie Williams, Lionel Hampton, Benny Carter, Harry James, Gene Krupa, Dave Tough, Jack Teagarden, and of course Mr Goodman himself. It was a felicitous set of circumstances which led to this music. There was youth of course, foresight and generosity on Mr Goodman’s part, love, innovation and experimentation, and a common dedication. Very important was the inspiration that great musicians provide to each other, how they lift each other. Nor should it be forgotten how Mr Goodman broke down racial barriers when it took real courage to do so. Respect for him from all musicians must be a factor in this music before you. It is worthwhile to listen to this music once just focussing on Mr Hampton. Again focussing on Mr Christian. Again focussing on Mr Goodman. But take AS LONG AS YOU LIVE as an instance, on CD 2 Track 11. It begins with the chalumeau repetition of one note by the leader and an opening solo by Mr Basie on piano followed by Cootie Williams providing a sweetly muted solo on trumpet. There is a brief interlude by Mr Christian on guitar then a solo by Georgie Auld on tenor. The solo by Mr Goodman which follows is enough to bring tears to you eyes in its sweetness and light. The piece closes with chalumeau figure repeated. A lovely performance. This is followed by BENNY’S BUGLE which grooves beyond belief – democratically it is Mr Auld’s moment to provide the main solo. This is a feature of all this music – no one musician hogs the limelight. It is never just a feature for one or the other. This is part of the genius of Mr Goodman. On his instrument, in this music, he has no parallel. Sometimes he gets so fiery he heads into the territory of Edmond Hall, other times his clarinet just smiles. Although I have favourites of Mr Goodman’s such as the trio playing for THE FLETCHER HENDERSON FUND c1953, these four CD’s featuring Mr Christian are now my favourite Goodman records. They are so rich in content, that I can only listen to perhaps half an hour at a time. Nor is there a moment on them I would delete, including false starts, and alternate takes. This is a case where rhythm(or swing) is given some of its most delightful moments in all music taking its rightful place alongside harmony and melody. Of all my music, these four CD’s take there place among my favourites such as KIND OF BLUE, AT THE BLUE NOTE (Keith Jarrett), THE WILDFLOWER SESSIONS, MONK on RIVERSIDE, THE HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION (Coltrane).
Any guitar player must have this, period. This is one of the first electric guitarist, and yet, this is as good as the electric guitar can get. Charlie Christian is a titan, not only for the guitar but for jazz in general. Be-bop? Just listen to this guy and you’ll understand the connection bewteen the old swing jazz and the new thing that was coming. Charlie knew it all along. The alterante takes are also essential, like Bird alternate takes, each one has a different solo and must be heard and compared and studied to get an idea of the genious of this man. The packaging, while beautiful is stupid, you need to take your CDs into jewel cases to prevent damage. But all is forgiven for the amazing sound quality, breathtaking. All stars, five star release!!