Contemporary Electric Guitarists playing Jazz?

[Serial_Apologist]

...

more Regan and Carter?



PS don't remember this in the Sweeney !

It's hard to imagine that ultra-Cool Scottish Stan Getz stylist, both before and since, doing that rip off adaptation to cruder ends of the Chameleon riff, because political involvements of the time meant it passed me by!

I see there's been an album out by Steve Topping, who impressed a few discerners in the late 1990s as a follow on from Allan Holdsworth, still seeing creative potential for advance in what others view as outworn late 70s-style British Fusion, ever optimistic and ever more ambitiously enquiring about harmony and time signatures as meanwhile Punk and New Wave preoccupied the "novelty"-seeking commentariat. The second link below has Gary Husband talking briefly about Topping, whom we see playing all-too-briefly to get a fuller idea.

https://www.jazz-rock.com/artists.ST.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocmM71cm5g4

(Woops - funny how I was able to link to the first URL by just googling Steve Topping!)

[CGR]

I've been listening a lot to guitarists lately. I'm now looking for suggestions for names of electric guitarists now playing in jazz, other than the usual Frisell, Scofield, etc. Thanks.

British guitarist Nigel Price. He is often to be seen playing the usual jazz venues around the country. Probably the best jazz guitarists the UK has produced in many years.

[Serial_Apologist]

My impression is different, but then I've seen him play quite a few times. I think he has quite a remarkable command of harmony, a bit in the Holdsworth vein maybe.

I should make a New Year Resolution, never on the basis of limited information on hand to jump to premature ejaculations!

I would second Ian's mention of Mary Halvorsen, although my first encounter with her work was on Braxton's Iridium box set which as I've probably said ad infinitum is in my opinion one of the very few musical masterpieces of the 21st century in any genre so far.

My association of Mary is with the German-born saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock, married, living and working in New York for a few years now.

While I'm here I would also mention Brandon Ross and Liberty Ellman, both guitarists I first came across as Henry Threadgill sidemen although they both have pretty extensive CVs in other contexts.

I should check 'em out.

[Joseph K]

It's hard to imagine that ultra-Cool Scottish Stan Getz stylist, both before and since, doing that rip off adaptation to cruder ends of the Chameleon riff, because political involvements of the time meant it passed me by!

I see there's been an album out by Steve Topping, who impressed a few discerners in the late 1990s as a follow on from Allan Holdsworth, still seeing creative potential for advance in what others view as outworn late 70s-style British Fusion, ever optimistic and ever more ambitiously enquiring about harmony and time signatures as meanwhile Punk and New Wave preoccupied the "novelty"-seeking commentariat. The second link below has Gary Husband talking briefly about Topping, whom we see playing all-too-briefly to get a fuller idea.

https://www.jazz-rock.com/artists.ST.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocmM71cm5g4

(Woops - funny how I was able to link to the first URL by just googling Steve Topping!)

I have one of Topping's album. It's nice. Though the man himself, from my experience years ago on the Allan Holdsworth forum before it was shut down, is not nice.

[Serial_Apologist]

British guitarist Nigel Price. He is often to be seen playing the usual jazz venues around the country. Probably the best jazz guitarists the UK has produced in many years.

I keep managing to overlook Nigel Price, though his name continually crops up on London listings. Great to see dear old Spike there on the drums, one of my longtime favourites, and still a fully signed up C of E clergyperson - he seemed hurt that I asked him! - together with the "Irish McCoy" on piano. That particular number is one of my own warm-ups, cheap keyboard over the knees and quick click on the Jazz Guitar "app", which is No 27.

[Ian Thumwood]

I had forgotten about Mike Walker, who I must admit, is one the most rewarding British jazz musicians in a live setting. Every time I have heard in a group, he is always the standout soloist and it is normal of come out of a gig raving about his playing. He is a hugely under-rated player.

Mary Halvorson is interesting because of her unusual tuning but I would have to say that she is one of those players I find who spreads themselves around a little thinly. She was on the latest, "all star" Taylor Ho Bynam album and the whole affair was an anti-climax where the writing was, to quote a former colleague, "highly average." The Illusionary Sea album is terrific and perhaps more mainstream yet offers her in the context of a septet including Laubrook. It really shows her writing to he very original and enjoyable and aided with the likes of the under-rated Jacob Garchik on trombone, the woozy effect her guitar player can sometimes have is absent. As an entry point to her music , this is probably the most recommended although she has since enlarged the ensemble on a disc called "Away with you" which is, by all accounts, even better.

Picking up on Liberty Elman, I have nothing under his own name but would recommend two CDs where he is a sideman. The first one if "Snowy Egret" by pianist Myra Melford which also includes Ron Miles on cornet. This is a brilliant record with some terrific writing and a Japanese bass guitarist who is fascinating. Melford is another associated of Braxton, I believe and she enjoys a reputation as an avant gardist yet this record is really good fun and her reputation should not put off anyone wishing to explore. I think it came out about three years ago and , in my opinion, it was the best album that came out that year - a nice surprise as I bought the disc entirely on spec! The best jazz albums are those you know little about yet turn out to be a revelation. He also appears as a guest on the J D Allen trio album augmenting a stellar trio in to a group that recalls some of Ornette's harmolodic stuff. The pairing of the more mainstream tenor man and the more wayward guitarist is inspired and rather than anchor a working trio in to a harmonically locked in quartet, the reverse actually happens with the two soloists pinging off each other and sometimes coalescing. It is a record that gradually creeps up on you. All four band members are top notch and whilst the trio has been a regular working group with a fine body of work for a number of years, Elman's addition is unexpected and totally inspired.

[Flyposter]

I have just got round to reading this thread and I am rather surprised the remarkable Marc Ribot has not been mentioned.

He plays in a variety of combinations, but his trio with Henry Grimes was arguably the best gig in our local club (sadly no longer in existence) that I have heard since I moved to the Netherlands about 13 years ago. His repertoire then was similar to that of his “Live at the Village Vanguard” cd.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GALmP_PxzAI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9ZgkkQc3zA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmGah3p9ym4&t=132s

Unfortunately, with the cutbacks in funding in the Netherlands, we do not see so many such players touring nowadays

[MrGongGong]

I have just got round to reading this thread and I am rather surprised the remarkable Marc Ribot has not been mentioned.

He plays in a variety of combinations, but his trio with Henry Grimes was arguably the best gig in our local club (sadly no longer in existence) that I have heard since I moved to the Netherlands about 13 years ago. His repertoire then was similar to that of his “Live at the Village Vanguard” cd.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GALmP_PxzAI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9ZgkkQc3zA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmGah3p9ym4&t=132s

Unfortunately, with the cutbacks in funding in the Netherlands, we do not see so many such players touring nowadays

There is also this

[Joseph K]

Julian Lage is pretty awesome.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_tEV5ux6eY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GS4-Fv89JuM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7MAFEKDdRw

[Bryn]

If you like your jazz on the free, experimental side, try N. O. Moore. O.K., I have only heard him twice, both times at iklectik, with Eddie Prevost et al, but both times I was truly impressed with his musicianship. ("N. O.", rather than "Nathan" presumably to avoid confusion with the singer/guitarist of the same name.)

[Joseph K]

Julian Lage is also no stranger to free playing, witness the improvisation at 45 minutes here -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVdDJIkaLus

[Alyn_Shipton]

Sadly we have had to postpone Monday's session by Marc Ducret (who ought to be mentioned in this thread) to make room for the Stanko tribute.
Did I see any mention of this fellow above: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p067s7wf
And thinking of Loueke, there's this: https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/play/p0541rst

[Serial_Apologist]

Sadly we have had to postpone Monday's session by Marc Ducret (who ought to be mentioned in this thread) to make room for the Stanko tribute.
Did I see any mention of this fellow above: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p067s7wf
And thinking of Loueke, there's this: https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/play/p0541rst

Indeed and fair enough - however Monsieur Decret was not given any mention in Radio Times, my eternal source. Perhaps it was supposed to be a... secret.

[Joseph K]

Mike Stern is also rather formidable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4EtzZB4AIM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-HBsYKNmzs

[Serial_Apologist]

Mike Stern is also rather formidable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4EtzZB4AIM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-HBsYKNmzs

Very nice friendly guy - with his ruddy cheeks I always picture him as an all American country boy. I had a chance to talk to him briefly at one of the later Bracknells, when from memory he was in Randy Brecker's band, and he was all "aw shucks man, I was just a kid" about working with Miles when I complimented him on his work.