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George Benson is well embarked on the third phase of his career, and Absolute Benson, though unfortunately titled (it sounds like a compilation, but is actually an album of new recordings) is another in a series of consistently excellent CDs that characterize it. Benson excited traditional jazz fans in the 1960s and early '70s with his albums of inventive guitar playing on Columbia, A&M, and CTI, records that made him seem the logical successor to Wes Montgomery. Then, in 1976, he moved to Warner Bros. Records and recorded Breezin', featuring the single "This Masquerade," on which he sang, and suddenly he became a million-selling pop vocalist who happened to play guitar, seemingly the logical successor to Nat "King" Cole. That, of course, made him anathema to traditional jazz critics. After a decade, however, his pop success began to diminish, and by the end of the decade he was making another move -- to contemporary jazz. By the 1990s, he was restricting his vocal excursions to a few tracks on each disc, and his albums began to top the contemporary jazz album charts consistently. His move from Warner Bros. to GRP, a label devoted to contemporary jazz, confirmed the transition. Absolute Benson is his third GRP release, and on it he turns in a varied set, accompanied by Joe Sample on keyboards; Carlos Hernandez or Christian McBride on bass; Vidal Davis, Steve Gadd, or Cindy Blackman on drums; and Luis Conte or Luisito Quintero on percussion. Four of the nine tracks feature vocals of one sort or another. On the leadoff track, "The Ghetto," Benson (accompanied by five background vocalists) sings a few words, and on "Come Back Baby," he takes a real lead vocal, while on "El Barrio" and "Medicine Man" he only scats along with his guitar playing in his familiar style. But none of these performances is a conventional pop vocal performance. Similarly, Benson flirts with various pop music styles, covering Donny Hathaway's "The Ghetto," Stevie Wonder's "Lately," and Ray Charles' "Come Back Baby" for elements of R&B and blues, while "El Barrio" has a Latin feel. But he employs these styles as flavorings, the main course of which always remains his melodic guitar playing. His lead work in "Jazzenco" is particularly notable, but throughout the disc he plays with assurance in a manner his fans will recognize and appreciate. If it is difficult to crossover from jazz to pop, crossing back can be just as treacherous. Benson's oldest fans, who later became his detractors, still may not be satisfied with his current approach, but it has deservedly won him a secure place in contemporary jazz.
© William Ruhlmann /TiVo
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Tommy Lipuma, Producer - Donny Hathaway, ComposerLyricist - Leroy Hutson, ComposerLyricist - Vidal Davis, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - JOE SAMPLE, Organ, Synthesizer, AssociatedPerformer - Lisa Fischer, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - George Benson, MainArtist - Jon Fausty, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Roy Ayers, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - India, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Steve Barkan, Mixer, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Luisito Quintero, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer - Carlos Henriquez, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - KENNY "DOPE" GONZALEZ, Producer - "Little" Luis Vega, Producer - Claudia Acuna, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Kayo Teramoto, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Richard Shade, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2000 Verve Label Group, a Division of UMG Recordings, Inc.
BILL SCHNEE, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Tommy Lipuma, Producer - Vidal Davis, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - JOE SAMPLE, Organ, Synthesizer, AssociatedPerformer - Lisa Fischer, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - George Benson, MainArtist, ComposerLyricist - Jon Fausty, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - India, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Steve Barkan, Mixer, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Luisito Quintero, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer - Carlos Henriquez, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - KENNY "DOPE" GONZALEZ, Producer, ComposerLyricist - "Little" Luis Vega, Producer, ComposerLyricist - Claudia Acuna, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Kayo Teramoto, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2000 Verve Label Group, a Division of UMG Recordings, Inc.
Christian McBride, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - BILL SCHNEE, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Tommy Lipuma, Producer - Steve Gadd, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Marc Antoine, Composer - JOE SAMPLE, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - George Benson, MainArtist - Luis Conte, Percussion, Conga, AssociatedPerformer - Al Schmitt, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Koji Egawa, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2000 Verve Label Group, a Division of UMG Recordings, Inc.
Christian McBride, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - BILL SCHNEE, Mixer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Tommy Lipuma, Producer - Steve Gadd, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - JOE SAMPLE, Piano, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - George Benson, MainArtist - Luis Conte, Percussion, Conga, AssociatedPerformer - Al Schmitt, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Koji Egawa, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2000 Verve Label Group, a Division of UMG Recordings, Inc.
Christian McBride, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - BILL SCHNEE, Mixer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Tommy Lipuma, Producer - Steve Gadd, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - JOE SAMPLE, Piano, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - George Benson, MainArtist - Luis Conte, Percussion, Conga, AssociatedPerformer - Al Schmitt, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Koji Egawa, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2000 Verve Label Group, a Division of UMG Recordings, Inc.
Christian McBride, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - BILL SCHNEE, Mixer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Tommy Lipuma, Producer - JOE SAMPLE, Piano, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - George Benson, MainArtist - Luis Conte, Percussion, Conga, AssociatedPerformer - Al Schmitt, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Koji Egawa, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Cindy Blackman, Drums, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2000 Verve Label Group, a Division of UMG Recordings, Inc.
Arif Mardin, String Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Christian McBride, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - BILL SCHNEE, Mixer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Tommy Lipuma, Producer - Steve Gadd, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - JOE SAMPLE, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - George Benson, MainArtist - JAMES FARBER, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Al Schmitt, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Koji Egawa, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Stevland Morris, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2000 Verve Label Group, a Division of UMG Recordings, Inc.
Christian McBride, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - BILL SCHNEE, Mixer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Ray Charles, ComposerLyricist - Tommy Lipuma, Producer - Steve Gadd, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - JOE SAMPLE, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - George Benson, MainArtist - Al Schmitt, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Koji Egawa, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - RICKY PETERSON, Synthesizer, Hammond B3, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2000 Verve Label Group, a Division of UMG Recordings, Inc.
Christian McBride, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - BILL SCHNEE, Mixer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Tommy Lipuma, Producer - JOE SAMPLE, Piano, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - George Benson, MainArtist, ComposerLyricist - Luis Conte, Percussion, Conga, AssociatedPerformer - Al Schmitt, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Koji Egawa, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Cindy Blackman, Drums, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2000 Verve Label Group, a Division of UMG Recordings, Inc.
Albumbeschreibung
George Benson is well embarked on the third phase of his career, and Absolute Benson, though unfortunately titled (it sounds like a compilation, but is actually an album of new recordings) is another in a series of consistently excellent CDs that characterize it. Benson excited traditional jazz fans in the 1960s and early '70s with his albums of inventive guitar playing on Columbia, A&M, and CTI, records that made him seem the logical successor to Wes Montgomery. Then, in 1976, he moved to Warner Bros. Records and recorded Breezin', featuring the single "This Masquerade," on which he sang, and suddenly he became a million-selling pop vocalist who happened to play guitar, seemingly the logical successor to Nat "King" Cole. That, of course, made him anathema to traditional jazz critics. After a decade, however, his pop success began to diminish, and by the end of the decade he was making another move -- to contemporary jazz. By the 1990s, he was restricting his vocal excursions to a few tracks on each disc, and his albums began to top the contemporary jazz album charts consistently. His move from Warner Bros. to GRP, a label devoted to contemporary jazz, confirmed the transition. Absolute Benson is his third GRP release, and on it he turns in a varied set, accompanied by Joe Sample on keyboards; Carlos Hernandez or Christian McBride on bass; Vidal Davis, Steve Gadd, or Cindy Blackman on drums; and Luis Conte or Luisito Quintero on percussion. Four of the nine tracks feature vocals of one sort or another. On the leadoff track, "The Ghetto," Benson (accompanied by five background vocalists) sings a few words, and on "Come Back Baby," he takes a real lead vocal, while on "El Barrio" and "Medicine Man" he only scats along with his guitar playing in his familiar style. But none of these performances is a conventional pop vocal performance. Similarly, Benson flirts with various pop music styles, covering Donny Hathaway's "The Ghetto," Stevie Wonder's "Lately," and Ray Charles' "Come Back Baby" for elements of R&B and blues, while "El Barrio" has a Latin feel. But he employs these styles as flavorings, the main course of which always remains his melodic guitar playing. His lead work in "Jazzenco" is particularly notable, but throughout the disc he plays with assurance in a manner his fans will recognize and appreciate. If it is difficult to crossover from jazz to pop, crossing back can be just as treacherous. Benson's oldest fans, who later became his detractors, still may not be satisfied with his current approach, but it has deservedly won him a secure place in contemporary jazz.
© William Ruhlmann /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 9 track(s)
- Total length: 00:48:34
- Main artists: George Benson
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Verve Reissues
- Genre: Jazz
© 2000 Verve Label Group, a Division of UMG Recordings, Inc. ℗ 2000 Verve Label Group, a Division of UMG Recordings, Inc.
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