I have enjoyed and played jazz for many years. As a teacher, I tell my students that playing jazz guitar at any level is a worthwhile experience and that the enjoyment of having the ability can be it's own reward. The majority of the musicians featured here have influenced my own playing and musical perceptions in some way. Others are just plain interesting and original in their approach. Inevitably, there are numerous jazz guitarists that have not been included. My links on Page 3 list websites that contain information on many more great artists.
The "Recommended Listening" section contains a list of albums and CDs that have become my personal favorites over the years and features a wide variety of exceptional jazz guitarists. As a player, I remain fascinated by the wonderful musicianship of the guitarists mentioned on these pages and encourage anyone interested to make an effort to obtain their recordings.
The "Recommended Listening" section contains a list of albums and CDs that have become my personal favorites over the years and features a wide variety of exceptional jazz guitarists. As a player, I remain fascinated by the wonderful musicianship of the guitarists mentioned on these pages and encourage anyone interested to make an effort to obtain their recordings.
Page 1; Page 2; Page 3
Recommended Listening; Links
Charlie Christian
Mary Osborne
Django Reinhardt
Snoozer Quinn
Eddie Lang
Carl Kress & Dick McDonough
Blind Arthur Blake
Recommended Listening; Links
Charlie Christian
Mary Osborne
Django Reinhardt
Snoozer Quinn
Eddie Lang
Carl Kress & Dick McDonough
Blind Arthur Blake
Charlie Christian is, arguably, the most influential jazz guitarist of all. For photos, transcriptions and biographical information, visit Solo Flight - The Charlie Christian Website. View the guitar made famous by Charlie Christian, the Gibson ES 150. (Photo from "Gibson Electrics" by Andre Duchossoir ©1981).
"I don't look at it as playing a guitar. I try to make my guitar sound like I think a saxophone should."
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"I don't look at it as playing a guitar. I try to make my guitar sound like I think a saxophone should."
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One of the formidable players from the 40s is a woman named Mary Osborne. Unfortunately, she is not a well known guitarist but she could swing with the best of them. Go to this website, classicjazzguitar.com, for a brief bio, photos and sound clips.
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There wouldn't be enough room on the page to talk about the great gypsy guitarist, Django Reinhardt. Just go to this biography: http://www.redhotjazz.com/django.html posted by Joseph Dinkins (contains soundclips). This French website, about-django.com, has video clips of Django and The Quintet of The Hot Club of France as well as outstanding proponents of Django's style.
Learn about the Selmer (Maccaferri) guitars that were made famous by Django Reinhardt.
This CD features Django's later work:
Django Reinhardt/Nuages - Gitanes 4400184282
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Learn about the Selmer (Maccaferri) guitars that were made famous by Django Reinhardt.
This CD features Django's later work:
Django Reinhardt/Nuages - Gitanes 4400184282
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There were many accomplished jazz guitarists in the 1920s and 30s. Two of the outstanding players were New Orleans based Snoozer Quinn and his successor in The Paul Whiteman Orchestra,
Eddie Lang. Please visit Scott Black's website, Kazoolips.com. It has clips from restored acetates of Snoozer Quinn that he discovered in New Orleans.
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Two pre-eminent soloists were Carl Kress and Dick McDonough.
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Two pre-eminent soloists were Carl Kress and Dick McDonough.
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Blind Arthur Blake was a blues musician from the 1920s who influenced many guitar players both blues and jazz alike. His playing style was unique, interesting and quite sophisticated. There isn't much known about him but his recordings were plentiful and are still available. Click here for a brief biography. Download free mp3s by Blind Blake at www.publicdomain4u.com. In his short but prolific career he managed to record 110 complete published sides.
