Starting to upload some of my NAMM videos. Here's Greg Howe, Dennis Chambers and Victor Wooten playing "Bird's Eye View" at the NAMM 2013 D'Addario Artist Party.
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- Video: Greg Howe, Dennis Chambers, Victor Wooten - "Bird's Eye View" Live at NAMM 2013
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- Favorite Albums of 2012
- 2013 Special Edition eBook "Power, Passion and Beauty- The Story of the Legendary Mahavishnu Orchestra" officially released
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January 30, 2013
January 01, 2013
Favorite Albums of 2012
2012 was a tremendous year for progressive guitar music. Here are my favorite releases of the year, in no particular order.
Michael Landau - Organic Instrumentals
Landau's first instrumental album since 1990's Tales From The Bulge is one of my favorite guitar records in many years, let alone this one. Awesome tones, dynamic playing, deep writing. A must-have for serious guitar geeks.
Krantz took a bold new step with this album, and the results are rich and engrossing. A fantastic production filled with heady writing, and an amazing lineup of musicians.
Jimmy Herring - Subject To Change Without Notice
Awesome follow-up to 2008's Lifeboat. Highly textured with killer playing and grooves.
Alex Machacek, Raphael Preuschl, Herbert Pirker - FAT
Adventurous and dynamic with a great variety of guitar tones. Further proof that Machacek is among the most forward-thinking modern jazz composers of his generation.
Kurt Rosenwinkel - Star of Jupiter
Can't get enough of this one. Uber-deep jazz record, filled with great writing and improvisation.
Chad Smith's Bombastic Meatbats - Live Meat And Potatoes
Funky, energetic live release with killer guitar work from Jeff Kollman. Nobody grooves like the Meatbats.
Stellar recording from the OHM-meets-Umphrey's McGee supergroup. Loaded with great riffs and playing. Everybody shines here, but the twin guitar attack of Chris Poland and Jake Cinninger is particularly awesome.
Scott Henderson, Jeff Berlin, Dennis Chambers - HBC
What a band. Killer disc packed with guitar-driven trio versions of fusion classics. Henderson is amazing as always.
A 3-disc smorgasbord from keyboardist/composer David Garfield's classic west coast jazz band. Features a who's-who of the genre's luminaries, including Michael Landau.
The Aristocrats - Boing, We'll Do It Live!
Amazing live CD/DVD release with insane playing and band interplay. Guthrie Govan's guitar work is both musical and mind-blowing.
Other favorites from 2012:
Prashant Aswani - Visions
Chris Poland, Frank Catalano, Sean O'Bryan Smith, Jim Gifford - Polcat
Tribal Tech - X
Tohpati Bertiga - Riot
John McLaughlin & the 4th Dimension - Now Here This
Paul Gilbert - Vibrato
Gary Husband - Dirty & Beautiful, Vol. 2
OHM - Tsunami Jams
Ed DeGenaro - Holiday In Madras
Flying Colors
Chad Wackerman - Dreams, Nightmares and Improvisations
Chris Buck - 3 Crows
Jason Sadites - Broken
Renegade Creation - Bullet
Led Zeppelin - Celebration Day
Van Halen - A Different Kind of Truth (Ed note: \m/)
See Also:
Favorite Albums of 2011
Favorite Albums of 2010
Favorite Albums of 2009
Favorite Albums of 2008
Favorite Albums of 2007
Favorite Albums of 2006
October 28, 2012
Current Listening
Listening to lots of great new stuff lately...
Awesome melodic rock fusion disc. Loaded with Aswani's signature legato lines, smooth overdriven tones, and groove-heavy writing. Includes a guest appearance by Jeff Kollman.
Scott Henderson, Jeff Berlin, Dennis Chambers - HBC
Awesome, raw record with killer playing from all involved. Love the stripped-down trio arrangements of fusion classics such as "Actual Proof" and "Mysterious Traveller." A must-have for Scott Henderson fans.
John McLaughlin and the 4th Dimension - Now Here This
Another great release from the godfather of fusion and his crack quartet, the 4th Dimension. Filled with deep improvisation and band interplay. Not to mention, McLaughlin's ripping runs on "Riff Raff" prove that he is still one of the greatest pickers ever.
New three-disc release from keyboardist David Garfield's classic west coast jazz band. Includes new music, plus demos and live tracks. Features Michael Landau, Tim Pierce, James Harrah, Vinnie Colaiuta, Jimmy Johnson, Jeff Porcaro, and many others. Loaded with great playing.
Charlie Hunter and Scott Amendola - Not Getting Behind Is The New Getting Ahead
Love the vibe on this one. Loaded with deep grooves and subtle interplay between Hunter and Amendola.
Cool collection of jazz-fusion originals from producer Billy Sherwood, performed by a lengthy roster of the genre's giants. Lineup includes Steve Morse, Larry Coryell, Steve Stevens, Scott Kinsey, Chad Wackerman, Billy Cobham, Jerry Goodman, Jordan Rudess, Derek Sherinian, Jimmy Haslip, Randy Brecker, Percy Jones, and many others.
September 17, 2012
Jazz-Fusion All-Star Trio Scott Henderson Jeff Berlin Dennis Chambers To Release New CD 'HBC'
PRESS RELEASE
“The
trio is all about interplay,” explains guitarist Scott Henderson.
“Jeff and I have always had a very high level of communication when
we play together, and putting Dennis in the mix notches it up even
higher. He's an extremely musical drummer, but at the same time has
the ability to bring the energy up to scary levels.” Bassist Jeff
Berlin adds, “We pretty much have the same vision of how three
strong players should sound together. We function well on many
levels; we're friends and love to hang. We're also individually
dedicated to high standards of playing.”
The
music on the CD reflects the influences and spirit of HBC. Tracks
include covers by Weather Report, Herbie Hancock, Billy
Cobham and originals penned by Henderson and Berlin individually.
Says Jeff. “We all agreed to the repertoire but Scott picked most
of the songs.” Scott explains, “I thought it would be cool if a
guitar trio covered songs by keyboard players like Joe Zawinul and
Herbie Hancock, though we did some Wayne Shorter tunes as well.”
Before
recording their debut album, HBC hit the road first, refining their
repertoire in front of thousands of elated fans. “We try to find
new ways to play at every gig,” Jeff explains. “When we are
gigging our motor is always set to high.” Scott adds, “Because
the three of us have so much experience playing different styles
of music, we're able to go from graceful straight-ahead jazz to heavy
metal and just about everywhere in between, so it's an extremely
versatile band, which makes it a lot of fun.”
Scott
Henderson is considered one of the premier jazz-fusion guitarists
performing on the planet today. Although Henderson claims to be more
of a blues-rock player, with influences like Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck,
Jimi Hendrix and Ritchie Blackmore, it was the influence of jazz that
led him to the style of playing and composing he is now famous for.
Henderson has recorded and toured with such notable artists as Chick
Corea's Elektric Band, Jean-Luc Ponty, and a four year stint with
Weather Report legend Joe Zawinul. He formed the band Tribal Tech in
1984 with bassist Gary Willis, and recorded ten critically acclaimed
albums. In 1991 Scott Henderson was named by Guitar World as the #1
Jazz Guitarist, and in January 1992 he was named #1 Jazz Guitarist in
Guitar Player's Annual Reader's Poll. Henderson has also released
three well-received solo albums as well as two releases with Vital
Tech Tones, a trio collaboration with bassist Victor Wooten and
ex-Journey/Vital Information leader Steve Smith on drums. As is often
the case with a musician of Scott's caliber, the demand is great that
he share his knowledge with the current generation of guitarists. He
is on the faculty at Musician's Institute in Hollywood, and has
written columns for Guitar Player, Guitar World and Guitar School
magazines.
Jeff
Berlin is a legend of the electric bass, considered by many to be the
finest electric bass player in the world. A true master of the bass,
Jeff Berlin has played with the likes of Bill Bruford, Alan
Holdsworth, AWBH and George Benson. Jeff Berlin's resume reads like
the who's who of the higher echelon of music artists. Jeff Berlin was
even asked to join Van Halen, an invitation that he actually turned
down. Not only is Jeff Berlin a innovator in the jazz field, but rock
players are constantly siting him as their major influence. Carlos
Santana called Jeff the “best bassist in the world”, while Rush’s
Geddy Lee used the phrase “best bassist on the planet!” Jeff
Berlin's innovative bass playing has influenced a generation of bass
players world-wide. He
was voted #1 Jazz Bassist by the readers of Guitar Player Magazine.
Jeff also pioneered a technique called 'two handed tapping', when he
performed this style on the track "Motherlode" from his
1985 debut solo album called 'Champion'.
The founder of The Players School of Music in Clearwater, Florida,
Jeff has also been at the forefront of music education for almost 30
years. His columns in Guitar Player and Bass Player magazines were
the most read columns due to their controversial content of music
education. Jeff single-handedly has re-vamped music education by
dismissing popular methods of learning such as using electronic
tuners, metronomes, handgrips, tablature, or any study method that
does not include musical content.
Dennis
Chambers is a miracle in modern music; a formidable, ferocious and
ultra-funky presence behind the drum kit in such celebrated ensembles
as Parliament-Funkadelic, Steely Dan, Santana and the Brecker
Brothers, as well as incendiary fusion outfits led by guitarists John
Scofield, Steve Khan, Mike Stern and John McLaughlin. A remarkably
versatile drummer who has shown limitless abilities to swing on a
small kit in traditional jazz settings or flaunt his stylistic chops
in rock-fusion super sessions, Dennis Chambers is one of the most
recorded and sought after drummers in the world of Jazz-Fusion. In
2007, just before Led Zeppelin was scheduled to perform at the O2
Arena in London, John Bonham's son Jason was asked in an interview,
if he was to give up the drum seat for the reunited Zeppelin, who
would he recommend to fill the coveted drum throne. He replied, “I
would probably want a jazz drummer with a strong swing feel. Dennis
Chambers...I think he would 'get it', whereas other rock drummers
wouldn't.”
And
now, these three icons of jazz-fusion have come together to form a
supergroup that has recorded a ground breaking debut CD! “I'm happy
with it,” Scott says of the new CD, “and for me that's saying a
lot because I'm very self critical. Being a big fan of the musicians
we covered, I worked really hard to make the songs sound as huge and
textural as they are on the original recordings, which meant doing a
lot of layering.” Jeff concludes, “I coundn't be more pleased
with the results.”
'HBC
– Henderson, Berlin, Chambers' will be available on Amazon, iTunes,
Shrapnel Records and local record stores on October 16, 2012.
To
purchase 'HBC – Henderson, Berlin, Chambers': http://www.amazon.com/HBC-Berlin-Chambers-Henderson/dp/B00936A2SM/ref=sr_1_1_title_0_main?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1347392766&sr=1-1&keywords=hbc
For
more information:
Scott
Henderson: www.scotthenderson.net
Jeff
Berlin: www.playerschool.com
Dennis
Chambers: www.dennischambers.com
Shrapnel
Records: www.shrapnelrecords.com
September 01, 2012
August 13, 2012
September 12, 2011
Scott Henderson 2011 Tour Dates with Jeff Berlin and Dennis Chambers
Following his upcoming US tour with bassist Jeff Berlin and drummer Mike Clark, guitarist Scott Henderson will be playing the following overseas dates this year with Berlin and drummer Dennis Chambers.
Oct 07 Barquisimeto - Venezuela
Oct 13 Taipei - Taiwan
Oct 15 Manila - Phillipines
Oct 16 Tokyo Japan
Oct 19 Zoetermeer Holland
Oct 20 Milano - Italy
Oct 21 Milano - Italy
Oct 22 Piombino - Italy
Oct 23 Roma - Italy
Oct 24 Foggia - Italy
Oct 25 Marche/ Abruzzo - Italy
Oct 26 Cervia - Italy
Oct 27 Lubiana - Slovenia
Oct 29 Tel Aviv - Israel
Oct 31 Szczecin - Poland
Nov 02 Sarajevo - Bosnia
Nov 03 Trieste - Italy
