The Guitar Channel

Video: Ed DeGenaro at The Baked Potato

Here's a recent clip of Ed DeGenaro sitting in with Hubcap Corral at The Baked Potato.

New Prashant Aswani Video for ESP TV

Prashant Aswani has a cool new video up on ESP TV where he demonstrates some Minor 7th linear licks. The video is not embeddable, so you'll need to click the link below, and go to the Lessons & Tutorials section.

ESP Guitars: ESP TV

Oz Noy Joins Los Angeles Music Academy

PRESS RELEASE

Israeli born jazz guitarist Oz Noy joins the school’s Artist-in-Residence (AIR) roster

Pasadena, CA – February 1, 2010 – Los Angles Music Academy College of Music (www.lamusicacademy.edu) announced today that Israeli born jazz guitarist Oz Noy has joined the school’s Artist-in-Residence (AIR) roster. LA Music Academy’s AIR members put on performances and master classes for students throughout the year allowing some of the world’s finest musicians to participate in music education. Noy, who “wowed” students in an on campus clinic earlier this month, is preparing for a tour to Europe with his trio featuring Dave Weckl and James Genus.

“We are thrilled to have musicians like Oz joining our roster of resident musicians. Each of our departments benefit from visits by these musical greats,” says Tom Aylesbury, President of LA Music Academy. He adds, “The AIR program is very inspiring to our students who can connect with their favorite musicians and learn invaluable tips during this very personal interaction with them.”

Noy moved to New York City in 1996 and made a big impact on the local music scene there. With his unique sound, compositions and style, he brings a mixture of pop, rock, blues, funk and jazz into a cohesive groove. Oz has performed, toured and recorded with well-established artists such as Richard Bona, Chris Botti, Mike Clark, Jeff 'Tain" Watts, Harry Belafonte, Toni Braxton, Phoebe Snow, Gavin Degraw, Neil Rogers, Roger Glover, Cyndi Lauper, Clay Aiken and Akiko Yano. He has played for numerous commercials and movie soundtracks and recently wrote the soundtrack for the highly acclaimed documentary A/K/A Tommy Chong.

Oz has released four CDs, which include an all-star roster of musicians such as Anton Fig, Keith Carlock, Will Lee, James Genus, Mike Stern, George Whitty, Shai Bachar, Reggie Washington, Vinnie Colaiuta, Jimmy Johnson, Jim Beard, Dave Weckl, Steve Lukather, Ricky Peterson and Chris Palmaro.

For more information, contact Iris Alba in admissions at 626-568-8850 or email iris@lamusicacademy.edu. LA Music Academy is located at 370 S. Fair Oaks Ave., Pasadena, CA 91105.

Follow LA Music Academy on twitter: twitter.com/LAmusicacademy and on Facebook: facebook.com/LAmusicacademy
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Jeff Beck 2010 Tour Dates

Jeff Beck already has a ton of tour dates scheduled for 2010. In addition to some recently announced US shows for April, Beck will also be playing several gigs with Eric Clapton in February, and will be touring Australia and Asia as well. See the current list of dates and locations below.

February
13th London O2 Arena (w/ Eric Clapton)
14th London O2 Arena (w/ Eric Clapton)
18th New York City Madison Square Garden (w/ Eric Clapton)
19th New York City Madison Square Garden (w/ Eric Clapton)
21st Toronto Air Canada Center (w/ Eric Clapton)
22nd Montreal Bell Centre (w/ Eric Clapton)


March
20th  Korea - Seoul The Olympic Hall
22nd  HK International Airport Asia World Expo Arena
25th  Australia  Adelaide Her Majesty's Theatre
26th  Australia  Melbourne Palais Theatre
28th  Australia  Perth West Coast Blues Festival
30th  Australia  Sydney Enmore Theatre
31st  Australia  Sydney Enmore Theatre

April
1st Australia  Brisbane The Tivoli
2nd Australia  Byron Bay East Coast Blues Festival
5th Japan  Nagoya Shimin Kaikan
7th Japan  Osaka Grand Cube
8th Japan  Osaka Archaic Hall
10th Japan  Tokyo JCB Hall
12th Japan  Tokyo Tokyo International Forum
13th Japan  Tokyo Tokyo International Forum

Emotion & Commotion Tour (First Leg of U.S. Tour):

April
16th San Francisco Nob Hill Masonic Centre
17th Los Angeles Nokia Theatre LA Live
18th Temecula Pechanga Resort & Casino
19th San Diego 4th & B
24th Houston Verizon Wireless Theatre
25th Dallas Nokia Theatre at Grand Prairie
27th Tulsa Brady Theatre
28th Kansas City Starlight Theatre
29th St. Louis Fox Theatre
30th Memphis Beale Street Music Festival

May
1st New Orleans Jazz Festival (Gentilly Stage)


October

UK Dates
15th Bournemouth BIC 0844 576 3000
16th Brighton Centre 0844 847 1515
17th Birmingham Symphony Hall 0121 780 3333
20th Glasgow Clyde Auditorium 0844 395 4000
21st Manchester Apollo 08444 777 677
22nd Sheffield City Hall 0114 2789 789
24th Bristol Colston Hall 0117 922 3686
25th Cardiff St David's Hall 02920 878 444
26th London Royal Albert Hall 020 7589 8212

Wayne Krantz WCSB interview now available for download

Someone was kind enough to archive Wayne Krantz's recent interview with WCSB radio. Grab the MP3 here.

The Baked Potato 40th Anniversary Jazz Festival

The Baked Potato is presenting their own Jazz Festival this coming May to celebrate the legendary North Hollywood venue's 40th anniversary. The festival will take place on May 22nd and May 23rd at the John Ford Amphitheatre in Hollywood (just south of the Baked Potato on Cahuenga Blvd.). The lineup of players set to perform over the two days is an absolute dream-team of jazz and fusion; all the regulars that have made the Spud such a special place over the years will be there. See below for the full schedule. Tickets are on sale now, and can be purchased through the Baked Potato's website.

The Baked Potato 40th Anniversary Jazz Festival Lineup

Saturday May 22, 2010

THE BAKED POTATO ALL STARS
JEFF RICHMAN..NEIL STUBENHAUS..TOME BRECKTLEIN..JEFF BABKO

O.H.M.
CHRIS POLAND..ROBBIE PAGLIARI..KOFI BAKER

SCOT HENDERSON TRIO
JOHN HUMPHREY..ALAN HERTZ

VOLTO
DANNY CARRY..KIRK COVINGTON..JOHN ZEIGLER..LANCE MORRISON

Intermission

MICHAEL LANDAU GROUP

HOLDSWOTH..PASQUA..HASLIP..NOVAK
ALLAN HOLDSWORTH..ALAN PASQUA..JIMMY HASLIP..GARY NOVAK

Steve Lukather and Special Friends

   
Sunday May 23, 2010

JOHN DEVERSA BIG BAND

MITCH FORMAN & THE BAKED POTATO ALL STARS

THE BAKED POTATO'S ORIGINAL JAZZ MASTER
DON RANDI & QUEST

LEE RITENOUR AND FRIENDS

Intermission

YELLOWJACKETS
JIMMY HASLIP..RUSSELL FURRANTE..BOB MINSTER..WILL KENNEDY

THE JAZZ MINISTRY
ABRAHAM LABORIAL SR..ABRAHAM LABORIAL JR...MICHAEL LANDAU..GREG MATHIESON

LARRY CARLTON
TRAVIS CARLTON..GENE COYE

Anthony Jackson and Yiorgos Fakanas album "Interspirit" featuring Frank Gambale to be released March 15th

PRESS RELEASE

For over 40 years Anthony Jackson has been the bassist’s bassist; the man most admired by his peers for his groundbreaking groove work in jazz and pop with the likes of Billy Paul, the O’Jays, Buddy Rich, Roberta Flack, Chaka Khan, Chick Corea, Steely Dan, Donald Fagen, Paul Simon, Al DiMeola, Quincy Jones, Steve Khan’s Eyewitness, Luther Vandross, Lee Ritenour, Michel Petrucciani, Pat Metheny, Michel Camilo, Mike Stern and Wayne Krantz. Jackson’s conception and invention of the 6-string contrabass guitar led to further lauding from his low-end colleagues and resulted in the global standardization of extended-range basses, changing the sound of contemporary music from the bottom up. Additionally, Anthony’s landmark use of a pick and flanger pedal on the O’Jays’ smash, “For the Love of Money,” revealed a unique sound and approach that remains one of his signatures. About the only milestone missing from Jackson’s remarkable career is a solo album. Being neither a composer, nor known for taking solos, however, Anthony has resisted countless offers (beginning with one from Quincy Jones in 1978). Until now.

In 2007, Jackson’s close friend, celebrated Greek composer/bassist Yiorgos Fakanas, proposed a project featuring the two bassmen, for which he would compose contemporary chamber music utilizing a rhythm section, horn section and string quintet. Jackson would then be able to define his role. This appealed to Anthony’s uncompromising commitment to artistry, and he consented, choosing two of his strengths: Reviving and advancing his picking technique to fully interpret Fakanas’s extremely challenging melodies (including double tracking them, often an octave apart), and providing the written as well as improvised bass lines behind soloists—a skill at which he is without equal. Fakanas, highly accomplished in his own right, would contribute all (five) of the bass solos. Recorded in 2009, in Athens and Connecticut, the CD brings together many of Greece’s finest jazz and classical musicians—including alto saxophonist Takis Patarelis and trombonist Antonis Andreou—while starring such international heavyweights as drummer Dave Weckl, guitarist Frank Gambale, keyboardist Mitch Forman and saxophonist Tony Lakatos.

The nine-track disc erupts via the volcanic opener, “Inner Power,” with Weckl’s double-time fusion-funk groove fueling Jackson’s fearless flatpick foray through the tortuous melody. In divine contrast is Anthony’s palm-muted quarter-note swath beneath Forman’s synth solo, further engaged by Jackson’s spontaneous reharmonization. Anthony and Yiorgos (on fretless) explore Wayne Shorter’s “Footprints” through theme and variation, before brightly coloring the pleasing “Cuore Vibes Part 2” with chord melody. On both tracks, the duo’s differing approaches to their instrument are clearly audible. Summoning Isaac Hayes and Bob James’ CTI days, the soul-tinged title track pivots on Jackson’s bass line melody and Fakanas’s ensemble counterpoint. Meanwhile, the brooding “Seviglia” recalls Return To Forever and Anthony’s pivotal precision pick work with Al DiMeola, while showcasing his best pick-and-flange tone to date.

Another of Anthony’s fortes is afforded by the Afro-Cuban-edged “Caldera.” First flawlessly performing the twin melodies incorporating multiple octaves, Jackson next delivers clave-informed fundamental through improvised tumbaos behind the soloists. For the graceful “Ionio II,” Anthony calls upon his superior sense of touch and dynamics to blend the more difficult melodic passages into the overall hue, as well as to gradually build to a hard-swinging walk behind Forman’s piano turn. Surging to a dramatic finish, the disc-closing “Parhelia” finds maestros Fakanas and Jackson teaming for the funky, finger-busting lead, while also boasting Fakanas’s finest solo and support work. All credit is due Fakanas for recognizing Jackson’s original voice and for creating a touchstone vehicle for his one-of-a-kind talent. Interspirit’s impact is immediate, while its deep layers demand repeated listenings. Either way, spread the word: Anthony Jackson’s solo statement has arrived!

UPDATE: Jackson's label Abstract Logix will begin shipping Interspirit on Feb 15th, one month ahead of the street date. Click here to order.

Robben Ford and Michael Landau: Live Review at Strat-O-Blogster

Strat-O-Blogster has a great review up of the Jan 23rd Trial By Fire show courtesy of guest poster Bill Wagner. Trial By Fire (as it's currently known) is the new project featuring Robben Ford and Michael Landau on guitar and vocals, Jimmy Haslip on bass, and Gary Novak on drums. Look for their debut release this coming March.

Strat-O-Blogster: Live Review - Trial By Fire at Jazz Alley 1/23/10

Gerald Gradwohl Videos: Live at Posthof - 1/29/10

Spotted these on Truth In Shredding: Some nice footage of the Gerald Gradwohl Trio (Jojo Lackner - bass, Farid Al-Shami - drums, Gradwohl - guitar) performing songs from their Sally Beth Roe album at Postof on 1/29/10.

Tunnel Elevator

Blues For Ben

Wayne II

New Greg Howe video for DiMarzio

Here's a new Greg Howe video for DiMarzio. Greg discusses getting the Michael Jackson gig, and his signature Laguna guitar with DiMarzio pickups. He also plays a great version of "Kick It All Over" later in the clip.

And here is another DiMarzio vid from earlier in the month where Greg talks about his "Hammer-Ons From Nowhere" technique.

Videos: Robben Ford & Michael Landau perform in-studio on the Bob Rivers Show

Two awesome clips of Robben Ford and Michael Landau performing in-studio at a recent appearance on the Bob Rivers Show.

Carl Verheyen European Tour Dates

Carl Verheyen has announced the following European tour dates for March/April 2010. He's also playing the Baked Potato in Studio City, CA next Fri, Feb 5th.

MARCH

Germany

Thurs. March 4       
Luneburg - Garage First Class Session

Fri. March 5             
Hamburg - Downtown Blues

Sat. March 6            
Delmenhorst - Keram Music Club

Sun. March 7            
Burkersdorf - TecNet

Tues. March 9         
Frankfurt - Sinkkasten

Switzerland

Wed. March 10       
Basel - Casino Airport

Spain

Fri. March 12           
Valencia - TBA

Sat. March13                      
Villamalea - TBA

Sun March 14         
Madrid - TBA

France

Mon. March 15       
Toulous - TBA

Wed. March 17       
Paris - TBA

Belgium

Thurs. March 18     
Verviers - Spirit of 66

Germany

Fri. March 19                      
Mechernich - Burgkonzert

Sat March 20                      
Leonberg - Uhlenspiegel

Sun. March 21        
Bruchsaal - Schlachthof Musikschool workshop

Mon. March 22        
Bruchsaal - Schlachthof

Tues. March 23      
Lorsch - Rex Theater

France

Wed. March 24       
Nancy - M.A.I.

Austria

Fri. March 26                       
Velden - Blusiana

Germany

Sun. March 28                    
Opladen - Scala

Mon. March 29                   
Viersen - Tommy’s (acoustic show)

Lithuania

Wed. March 31                   
Vilnius - Champagne

APRIL

Lithuania

Thurs. April 1                                  
Kaunas - Combo

Fri. April 2                            
Palanga - TBA

Austria

Sat. April 3                           
Weiz - Osterbluesfestival

New Steve Morse Band tour dates for March

The Steve Morse Band will be playing the following Florida shows this coming March:

Culture Room  Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Fri, 03/05/10

State Theatre  St. Petersburg, FL
Sat, 03/06/10

Free Bird Live  Jacksonville, FL
Fri, 03/12/10

Plaza Theatre  Orlando, FL
Sat, 03/13/10 

via SteveMorse.info

Steve Morse talks about his Music Man Signature Model

From GuitarPlanet.com.au - Steve Morse talks in depth about his "Serial Number: 1" signature model Music Man guitar.

New Lenny White album featuring Jimmy Herring coming this May

More great stuff coming from Abstract Logix this year! Legendary drummer Lenny White (Miles Davis, Return To Forever) will be releasing a new solo album through ABLX on May 19th. This disc will include Jimmy Herring, Stanley Clarke, and Victor Bailey among others. I spoke with Abstract Logix founder Souvik Dutta about this record at the NAMM show. According to Souvik, this is one heavy album. I can't wait to hear Herring playing with these amazing musicians.

Alex Machacek and Marco Minnemann - "24 Tales" Release date

Alex Machacek and Marco Minnemann will release their new album 24 Tales on May 19th through Abstract Logix. This unique album originated as Machacek's contribution to Minnemann's Normalizer 2 project. This unique album will feature music Machacek composed around a 50+ minute Minnemann drum solo. The extended piece will be split into 24 separate tracks on the disc, all of which are intended to both stand on their own, and work as part of the larger composition. This is sure to be one of the standout releases of the year.

New John McLaughlin album release date

Abstract Logix has announced that the new John McLaughlin and the 4th Dimension album To The One will be released April 20th. Definitely looking forward to this one! I'll post more details as they become available.

Machacek, Fierabracci, Brechtlein, Turcio: Live at The Baked Potato

Some footage of Alex Machacek, Ric Fierabracci, Tom Brechtlein, and Phil Turcio live at The Baked Potato on 1/20/10.