Various
Progressions: 100 Years of Jazz Guitar
Columbia Legacy
If you love jazz guitar, make room
for the most comprehensive collection ever assembled. Columbia selected vintage
tracks from 33 labels to present 78 guitarists on four discs. Included in the
oversize package is a 148-page lavishly illustrated book with an excellent
essay by guitar historian Charles Alexander and a section where 25 guitarists
discuss their heroes.
Just about every performance is a
knockout. “St. Louis Tickle,” a 1906 banjo recording by Vess Ossman, is an
appropriate start, considering the linking role of the banjo from its West
African roots to American slave culture. Highlights include “You’re The One For
Me,” a vibrant performance by Sol Hoopi and “Add A Little Wiggle” by Eddie
Lang. Django Reinhardt is stunning on his “Honeysuckle Rose.” So is his less
famous rival, Oscar Aleman, on “Whispering.”
Disc Two is packed with brilliant
performances from the 1950s and 1960s, including Barney Kessel’s effortless
jaunt down “Green Dauphin Street,” Jimmy Raney’s lush take on “Body and Soul,”
Tal Farlow’s fluid “Yardbird Suite” and Jim Hall’s great duet with Bill Evans
on “I’ve Got You Under My Skin.” Kenny Burrell, Wes Montgomery, Grant Green,
and Joe Pass — they’re all here along with outside-the-box inclusions like
Les Paul’s sped-up, but still astounding “Running Wild.”
There’s a palpable sense of
experimentation on disc three with Sonny Sharrock’s raucous “As We Used To
Sing,” and John McLaughlin’s “Birds of Fire.” Jimi Hendrix (hey — he
improvised) is represented by “Manic Depression.” The influential Mick Goodrick
is included, so is his student Pat Metheny. Disc four has its moments:
innovators like James “Blood” Ulmer, John Scofield, and Bill Frisell. But it’s
weighed down by too much smooth jazz.
This article appears in Oct 12-18, 2005.
