Jim Ferguson
Jim’s Contributions
July/August 2004 Gearhead
Saga Gitane Guitars
Arguably no other jazz guitarist has been so blatantly imitated as Django Reinhardt, the Belgian Gypsy whose acoustic work from the mid-1930s to the early 1940s has attained virtual cult status. And while he died in 1953, his spirit lives on, witnessed by...
March 2004 Guitartistry
The Power Trio
Larry Coryell
Captured at Chicago's Jazz Showcase, The Power Trio (HighNote)-headed by guitarist Larry Coryell and featuring bassist Larry Gray and drummer Paul Wertico-reflects the best of live recordings, with its spontaneity and high musical values, while minimizing...
March 2004 Guitartistry
Three Souls
Adam Rafferty Trio
Adam Rafferty plays guitar like a fine watercolorist, something that's apparent from the first track of Three Souls (Consolidated Artists Productions), which features 11 original compositions. More than ably supported by drummer Tomas Fujiwara and bassist...
March 2004 Guitartistry
Melodolodie
Jerome Barde
Sift out the Djangophiles and American jazz-based players from other European guitarists, and arguably what's left are iconoclasts with little sense of real tradition like Jerome Barde, whose approach was no doubt honed in the rues, places and bistros of...
March 2004 Guitartistry
The Legacy
Frank Potenza Quartet
Frank Potenza grew up in Rhode Island, attended the Berklee College of Music and began teaching at the University of Southern California in 1995. A year later he occupied the guitar chair (vacated by the fine Los Angeles-based guitarist Ron Eschete) in a...
March 2004 Guitartistry
Lucky Southern
Rudy Linka
Recorded in 2001, the tracks on Lucky Southern (Quinton) feature Rudy Linka, along with John Scofield, John Abercrombie and drummer Kenny Wollesen. Bassist Dan Fabricatore fills out the varying ensembles. With the exception of a fluid acoustic treatment...
March 2004 Guitartistry
Dark Beauty
Issi Rozen
In the same way that the title of Issi Rozen's latest release, Dark Beauty (New Step), conjures somewhat contradictory images, his often sparse and moody music-which benefits from the contributions of pianist Gilad Barkan, bassist Thomson Kneeland and drummer...
March 2004 Guitartistry
Ohio Lunch
Dan Faehnle
On Ohio Lunch (Heavywood), Dan Faehnle demonstrates that he's a player to be reckoned with. Moving from trio to quartet settings, he calls upon some fine talent for support and inspiration, including bassist Ben Wolfe and fellow guitarist John Stowell. Technically...
March 2004 Guitartistry
Two in the Pocket
Steve Abshire/Vince Lewis
Steve Abshire and Vince Lewis first met at Virginia's Highlands Jazz Festival in 2002, and the ultimate result was this recording, Two in the Pocket (Noteworthy), a fun romp through a field strewn with chestnuts for the most part. Pianist Robert Redd, drummer...
March 2004 Guitartistry
Red Door Number 11
Garrison Fewell Quartet
Red Door Number 11 (Splasch), the most recent release by Berklee professor Garrison Fewell, is an international affair that features Fewell alongside pianist George Cables as well as with Italian jazz-scene veterans bassist Attilio Zanchi and drummer Gianni...
March 2004 Guitartistry
Openground
Giovanni Moltoni
Also from the ranks of the Berklee faculty comes Giovanni Moltoni, whose Openground (C Sharp Squared) also features fellow professors bassist Paul Del Nero and drummer Bob Tamagni. Moltoni's often-inventive original compositions provide a forum for his progressive...
January/February 2004 Albums
Timeline
John Abercrombie/Andy LaVerne
Although John Abercrombie has done his fair share of experimentation over the years, at the heart of his work is a musicality-as evident throughout Timeline and Animations-that has led him to work with many of the finest musicians in contemporary jazz, including...
January/February 2004 Albums
In a Mellow Tone
Howard Alden/Bucky Pizzarelli
There's more to being a legend than just living long enough; you've got to have the résumé and chops to back it up. Now pushing 80, guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli certainly has both. An East Coast studio, club and concert stalwart for several decades, he's played...
January/February 2004 Albums
Acoustic Romance
Gene Bertoncini
While electric instruments dominate the jazz guitar world, a minority of players choose to use the acoustic nylon-string, not only for its sonic properties but also because it more agreeably supports fingerstyle technique, which opens up a whole spectrum...
June 2003 Guitartistry
Don't Get Around Much Anymore
George Barnes Quartet
Often overlooked in a sea of more modern-sounding, bebop-oriented guitarists, George Barnes could swing like mad and spin out intricate, frequently bluesy phrases with awesome precision and musicality. One of the earliest electric guitarists, he began his...
June 2003 Guitartistry
Meditation
Joe Pass
No doubt the mostly widely recorded guitarist in the annals of jazz, the inimitable Joe Pass left dozens of unissued performances, which, happily for fans, continue to be released on the Pablo label under the auspices of Fantasy. This latest posthumous release...
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