Thanks for your comments. Mr. Benson deserves all the recognition he gets. By underrated I meant he shoud get more of it for all he has contributed(and still continues to do so) to jazz.
Most underrated playin' today? In case you didn't notice Mr. GB has a documented recording career goin' back to the early 60's...ever heard of the CTI label?
@garys1100 everyone who likes jazz (pretty much unanimous) considers benson to be one of the greatest living guitarist remaining in the genre. even gypsy jazzers worship benson. in fact, benson is extremely fond of the gypsies, django, etc. anyway, benson is best everywhere for everyone
I think that hall would have had terrible fold back for them, seems like they are all struggling to hear each other. Being masters of course they still nail it!
George Benson is a jazz master in elegant company with McCoy Tyner and a superb rhythm section here. When George plays straight out jazz he is remarkable, and it seems to me that McCoy inspires him here to pull out all stops. Great performance.
Im looking for a version of stella by starlight which has a main female singer and guys as backup singers. It sounds a bit like anita O day, but with male backup singers. Can anyone help me? thanks!
I think the acoustics of the hall made it hard for them to hear each other. I can imagine a big room like that would blow the sound around with probably unhelpful foldback. Giants!
Great phrasing - and an impressive array of techniques, such as glissando, raking sweeps, cross-picking and legato - all of which are second nature to a fertile imagination - there's a lifetime of music being expressed here - Benson is his own man every time, and it's pointless trying to compare others to him - I knew this years ago when I first heard him as a 19 year old playing with Brother Jack McDuff - he should be an inspiration to anyone who has a genuine interest in jazz guitar
@djcuvcuv. I see what you mean. But been a fellow gtrist It's horrible when you're playing a fast bop tune and you just have walking bass and drums; there's nothing to hold onto so it's hard to relax. Pianist out there we gtrists like chords! It's not a coincidence that most of the greats done their best work with an organist.
@otnas01 You should be able to hold onto your own harmony and not be depending on anyone to feed it to you. Besides, you've got the bass, haven't you? Don't you think they're playing the harmony too?
I love all the fancy ass jazz trolls and their exotic ways of criticism. None of them has a SINGLE FUCKING video, playing a single note (Meat flute solos do not count). Hell, one of them has nothing but justin timberlake videos.
Ride cymbals in the 80's were not all that great. They mostly sounded like this... listen to any jazz drummer during that period. Art Blakey in the 80's comes to mind, REAL splashy.
yeah, the ride is standing out because all the highs fq's are bouncing off all the studs on benson's strap. that thing looks like a relic from the spanish inquisition. nice vid. i think the performance is very much in tune with the house. not every gig has to be judged against the pinnacle of earth shattering, cutting edge jazz. it's always a joy to hear the masters play.
yeah, the ride is standing out because all the highs fq's are bouncing off all the studs on benson's strap. that thing looks like a relic from the spanish inquisition. nice vid. i think the performance is very much in tune with the house. not every gig has to be judged against the pinnacle of earth shattering, cutting edge jazz. it's always a joy to hear the masters play.
@Dazzer1234567 I agree, it really makes the balance terrible too. You can barely here the bass changes during Benson's solo, which since Tyner isn't comping, it's kinda important. Plus, the ride is just way too much. Acoustics makes a difference.
Small group acoustic jazz does not lend itself to large concert halls as little as string quartets or any other chamber ensemble. Everything just becomes a blurred reverberating wash.
Wow, Benson playing is absolutely exquisite. His soloing is so smooth and precise like the precision that Jet Li carries with his Wushu Martial Art forms and stances. What a brilliant performance.
@IMBACHABRI You could listen take five,mr pc,blue monk,autumn leaves,round midnight,all the things you are... Well,there are thousands of standards to listen
In "The Real Book" Stella is in Bb (first chord is Em7b5), which is also the key that 99 percent of people play it in; Benson plays it here in G (first chord is C#m7b5), which I think is the key Stella was originally written in.
Benson first chorus was just right in your face and the only reason you can think of his solo as well developed is he brought it down a bit before bringing it back and out. IMO
Its actually one of the rare Ibanez Geroge Benson GB20 models. The signature model that everyone knows is the GB-10 (clsoer to es-175 style/size. The GB-20 signature model was bigger and johnny smith style. Fantastic guitars (both of them). Look em up.
It's fantastic to hear George's licks so good and so defined but perhaps the volume levels for all instruments aren't the bests...one has to interpret the changes constantly and its harder to enjoy the piece...anyway, Benson giant!!!
@manuelcreinhardt What are you taking about? The changes can be followed very easily. You just need musical ear.... Unless you think that the choruses without piano were an amplifying defect.....
This comment has received too many negative votesshow
I admire George B playing but Stella By Starlight is simply unrecognizable. He and/or the group could easily call the improvisation some other name and it would undoubtedly and deservedly receive the accolades such superior playing deserves, only don't associate it with the classic, Stella By Starlight.
You have ears to hear, obviously this music is for you or accessible to you, enjoy it. I'll try some of his other tunes, he is very talented and easy to listen to, in any case. I just like Stella by starlight done in a style my ears can enjoy. My ears and their ability to hear are still evolving. I'll give it another listen at a later time.
I just got through listening to george benson - Take Five 1976 Montreux 1986, terrific, and I recognized the melody throughout the piece, also enjoyed the other, also very important, variational stuff.
phibero . sorry but they would LOL about every comment here on YT jajjaja sorry its true do you really think benson is trying to stop mccoy solo?? or that mccoy is lost in bensons solo? not even a huge feedback burn their ears man. do you think they hate each other? they are playin great music togeather. stop bullshit man
you don't understand music or you are a republican with the hate critic!! These are world class musician, they know exactly where they are. I know and hear the chord changes. Notice GB came in at exactly at the end of the chord changes to start the melody. So, shut up you don't know what the hell you are talking about! If you really want to hear some mess listen to Bireli Largene doing the same song!!
you hit the nail on the head! these truly are world class musicians, who know exactly where the tune is at all times during their improv! CSHARP57 summed if up in one word.. MASTERFUL!!!
I dunno man... Bireli is pretty amazing... not that benson isnt... but... i dunno... I think Bireli is better than benson, or at least his rendition of this song is better than bensons... they're both good, but to call Bireli's piece a "mess"... now thats just downright wrong man!
If Benson played a few more notes, maybe he would not have turned Stella into such a machine-gunfest. He plays at 90 MPH with gusts up to 120.
Mister Tyner looks over the piano staring into space, trying, amidst the flurry of notes, to figure out where in the hell Benson is in the tune. The song loses all melodic sense in a burst of notes. Lookee! See how fast I can play....
Dude!?Really? One day if you have the pleasure you'll find out what a real down to earth and nice guy he really is.......and do the rest of us a favor and CLEAN YOUR GLASSES!
I saw it! It was one of admiration, I think. Cos, from what I can gather, most often players don't give much away when another band member is soloing, cos more often than not they know the way the soloist at the time, plays. So, for me if George is showing anything by his facial expression while Tyner was wailing then you KNOW, it must be feeling it. That's my take on it anyway.
To add my two bits to the debate....I think GB sounds great, but I do have a problem with the scores of imitators that try and aproximate that sound. I mean, alot of these guys I reffer to, really try hard but they end up making bad music. Just like when you go to a jam session and every sax player wants to be blowing faster louder and higher, its just bad music.
No hay nada q me guste mas q la musica de jazz, tocada con alegria y muchisimo swing, como esta. Y otras mas, por supuesto, no importe de quien sea. Es hermosa.
George, simply put is a jazz master on the guitar with a lethal combination of soul, rhythm , harmonics, speed, grit, continuity, traditional and contemporary. Mr. Tyner is in a class all by himself.
Uh, I'll get scolded by y'all pretty hard, but GB seems a bit noodly here to me. His live playing is full of energy and seems to be a bit "go man, go!" Kinda like he's floating through the changes, rather than trying to tell a story or a cohesive statement. No build, just 'go'....which is cool, but it just comes off a bit noodly.
And I am NOT a GB hater, as I dig him throughly (solo on Freddy Hubbard's First Light, anyone?).
In my opinion, the LP Absolute Benson is a pretty powerful blend of the two worlds of Benson: the songs have catchy melodies and aren't that deamanding to listen to, while George and his crew play wonderfully progressed, adventurous solos, with a little blues flavor of course. The album is fantastic for both listening and jamming to.
The skill required to play runs as fast as Ligrene did in his version of Stella is impress but I just can't stand Ligrene on an archtop. He plays it like a gypsy guitar, his playing just doesn't sound clean. I prefer Benson's version over Lagrene's even though Lagrene is a more skillful guitarist.
No way is Lagrene more skilful. He has a lot of "tricks" but Benson hears and manipulates harmony like very few others. He also thinks (and sounds) like a jazz player not a guitarist playing on jazz, if you know what I mean.
Listen to Take five (link above), he shows as much skill as Lagrene ever does.
@dave17186 oh shit they're all on a level unreachable by mortals...yeah listen to bensons version of take five on youtube then listen to bireli's solo on imprompto also on youtube and then legitimately declare one is better than the other...it comes down to taste and I bet you know that
I just listened to Lagrene's version. Benson's is is much better and more melodic. Lagrene uses too many scale oriented high speed riffs which are distracting and I think just don't fit. Benson is a better improviser. Speed picking does not equal better playing.
It's always funny to hear people argue about GB "going pop" from "pure jazz roots." While GB is a great guitarist who can blow through bebop changes, his music has ALWAYS been infused with blues and R&B. He had his start in funky organ bands, some of which were themselves not considered "pure jazz." And on one of his first solo albums, he did a cover of "Ain't That Peculiar", as well as sang "Summertime and "Take all of me". He's a great guitarist who's always had the popular idiom in mind 2
damn straight. But to me, Grant Green managed to blur the lines moreso than Benson. He didn't have two "modes", but only his own style of music, evolving with the day. :)
True, Grant Green was pure funky, and a great soloist. I still remember his version of "Ain't It Funky Now". I was reading a guitar mag a few years ago where George Benson said Grant Green could shred and hold his own with ANY other jazz guitarist of his time or since.
he's my all time favorite guitarist and the one who inspired me to learn guitar (I'm a bassist). To me, he's one of the few players to really have a direction in his playing. Just like horn players or blues players. I grew up listenin horn players, and most of the time I feel guitar players are zapping from chords to runs, and gimmicks and so on. Grant has that single voice that is ALWAYS right on... no frills, just from the soul. Too bad this type of playin is virtually unseen these days.
I was reading in that same article how GB said that Grant Green taught him a technique to equalize the sound of his strings across all 6 strings, so that his bass strings were not SOOO deep and he got an even sound across all 6. I thought it was interesting. But yeah, my pops raised me off Grant Green and he was a serious player, some of the jazz snobs hated on him too though
Benson Style is magnifecent,And please( no Compare).
juanreyflores 4 days ago
Now there's a guy that could have shown even Dave Mustaine a thing or two!
iheartedjwj 1 month ago
Now I just want to hear DeFrancesco and Benson together...too much to ask?
(bizarre guitar btw - L5 tailpiece and super upper...but sounds pretty good!)
SkonrokkenTV 1 month ago
Come on George. Write your own material.
DistortedV12 2 months ago
Comment removed
paleH0rz 2 months ago
thumbs up if you came from the Bireli's version
risingsun1987 3 months ago
Oh yea
He was my main guitar hero back in the 70's
This reminds me why
McCoy aint no slouch either
There all freakin great while I'm at it
gbtayc 3 months ago
Make that 23 trolls! Amazing solo from George, and McCoy is the MAN on piano
emjaybee63 3 months ago
amazing
MrEmotionalShred 3 months ago
can i buy this anywhere on vhs oder dvd?
where do you got this video from?
rasgoFunk 4 months ago
Bravo!!
blubblubblub345 5 months ago
Birelli Legrene's version is hard to beat!
kiwibilly2 5 months ago
pardon me right
garys1100 5 months ago
you got that rught
garys1100 5 months ago
Thanks for your comments. Mr. Benson deserves all the recognition he gets. By underrated I meant he shoud get more of it for all he has contributed(and still continues to do so) to jazz.
garys1100 5 months ago
LOVE THIS SONG!!
sammusicdude 5 months ago
Most underrated playin' today? In case you didn't notice Mr. GB has a documented recording career goin' back to the early 60's...ever heard of the CTI label?
pnojazz 6 months ago
Why underrated....Who doesn't think Benson is one of the Jazz Guitar Greats?
Froike 6 months ago
one of the most underrated guitar palyers performing today!
garys1100 6 months ago
@garys1100 everyone who likes jazz (pretty much unanimous) considers benson to be one of the greatest living guitarist remaining in the genre. even gypsy jazzers worship benson. in fact, benson is extremely fond of the gypsies, django, etc. anyway, benson is best everywhere for everyone
xemosintightsx 5 months ago
Sounds like Benson's guitar was never plugged in.
JoelGallob 6 months ago
SEÑOR McCOY.
BRILLIANTCORNRS 6 months ago
Rock!!!
Airmanf7 7 months ago
I think that hall would have had terrible fold back for them, seems like they are all struggling to hear each other. Being masters of course they still nail it!
upT3mpo 8 months ago
that was like one giant george benson lick, just one single line of pure jazz
oOoACFREEMANoOo 8 months ago
the best jazz guitar solo that's on youtube!
luc0sugar1 9 months ago 14
@luc0sugar1 I disagree. Best in the world!!!!!
sammusicdude 5 months ago
pior que tem gente que acha q sabe tocar kk
Thiagobrum15 9 months ago
Fascinating, exciting amazing!
nasak11 9 months ago
Beautiful
nasak11 9 months ago
check out bireli lagrene's version
risingsun1987 9 months ago
I LOVE me some Mr. Benson!! And the (Alfred) McCoy Tyner Trio is SMOKING TOO!! =)
ladynfsoffice 9 months ago
4:22 I love that gesture!
NacoMan08 10 months ago
bring the left channel down a bit like 20% and it sounds balanced although the ambiance is skewed to the right.. Killer performance, right??
soybalm 10 months ago
fckindonnnalee
jazmathe 10 months ago
George Benson is a jazz master in elegant company with McCoy Tyner and a superb rhythm section here. When George plays straight out jazz he is remarkable, and it seems to me that McCoy inspires him here to pull out all stops. Great performance.
guitargod6997 11 months ago
aaaaaaaaaaaaaah, mcCoy....
BRILLIANTCORNRS 11 months ago
Im looking for a version of stella by starlight which has a main female singer and guys as backup singers. It sounds a bit like anita O day, but with male backup singers. Can anyone help me? thanks!
ViralZen 11 months ago
Straight from Round Midnight into this! Pure Genius with unbelievable Stamina!
trisk77 11 months ago
I think the acoustics of the hall made it hard for them to hear each other. I can imagine a big room like that would blow the sound around with probably unhelpful foldback. Giants!
upT3mpo 11 months ago
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19 people thought it was the download button
topanguitarchannel 1 year ago
Sometimes, we forget how much of a beast Mr. GB is
camilyon2 1 year ago
Great phrasing - and an impressive array of techniques, such as glissando, raking sweeps, cross-picking and legato - all of which are second nature to a fertile imagination - there's a lifetime of music being expressed here - Benson is his own man every time, and it's pointless trying to compare others to him - I knew this years ago when I first heard him as a 19 year old playing with Brother Jack McDuff - he should be an inspiration to anyone who has a genuine interest in jazz guitar
bernieholland775 1 year ago
after 5 years of using youtube, why have I only seen this now? this is great =)
chiibiROXAS 1 year ago
one word : cool
micheleapicella2 1 year ago
Which 18 trolls disliked this masterpiece, let me at em!
trisk77 1 year ago 14
@trisk77 I know right? Can you believe that anyone WOULDN'T like this?
Guitfiddlejase 11 months ago
@trisk77 Nice work on the name calling! That should solve everything.
musiccalgary 10 months ago
@trisk77 guitar or piano or jazz haters i presume?
jamesedwardtheobald 3 months ago
@djcuvcuv. I see what you mean. But been a fellow gtrist It's horrible when you're playing a fast bop tune and you just have walking bass and drums; there's nothing to hold onto so it's hard to relax. Pianist out there we gtrists like chords! It's not a coincidence that most of the greats done their best work with an organist.
otnas01 1 year ago
@otnas01 You should be able to hold onto your own harmony and not be depending on anyone to feed it to you. Besides, you've got the bass, haven't you? Don't you think they're playing the harmony too?
TheDaveWallace 11 months ago
koja razbijacina!
krajnjikorisnik 1 year ago
I wish this were available on DVD!
George is smoking the hell out of that guitar! Then he sits back and chills while Mr. Tyner takes over with a solid solo on the piano
JazzyZenBrotha 1 year ago
we've got some hot jazz felines right there ;)
ChapterVIII09 1 year ago
I love all the fancy ass jazz trolls and their exotic ways of criticism. None of them has a SINGLE FUCKING video, playing a single note (Meat flute solos do not count). Hell, one of them has nothing but justin timberlake videos.
Youtube is full of douchebags *sigh*
furbymetal83 1 year ago
this is sick! benson is smooth as ever, but hes really pushing the time in his solo for a lot of his phrases. stressing me out a little bit haha
djcuvcuv112 1 year ago
Ride cymbals in the 80's were not all that great. They mostly sounded like this... listen to any jazz drummer during that period. Art Blakey in the 80's comes to mind, REAL splashy.
trumpetman 1 year ago
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yeah, the ride is standing out because all the highs fq's are bouncing off all the studs on benson's strap. that thing looks like a relic from the spanish inquisition. nice vid. i think the performance is very much in tune with the house. not every gig has to be judged against the pinnacle of earth shattering, cutting edge jazz. it's always a joy to hear the masters play.
doctorsumatra 1 year ago
yeah, the ride is standing out because all the highs fq's are bouncing off all the studs on benson's strap. that thing looks like a relic from the spanish inquisition. nice vid. i think the performance is very much in tune with the house. not every gig has to be judged against the pinnacle of earth shattering, cutting edge jazz. it's always a joy to hear the masters play.
doctorsumatra 1 year ago
WOW!
dnettles 1 year ago
Brilliant!
dondijazz 1 year ago
Holy smoothness! Reminds me why George reigns supreme and McCoy is just as amazing! Wonderful drumming too!
mardebcin 1 year ago
Comment removed
mardebcin 1 year ago
Holy smoothness! Reminds me why George reigns supreme and McCoy is just as amazing!
mardebcin 1 year ago
George is taking it there! Loving this:)
jarbon5 1 year ago
my best version of stella by starlight so far .
kaymany 1 year ago
shame about the aircraft-hanger sound
Dazzer1234567 1 year ago
Comment removed
BillyWillis89 1 year ago
@Dazzer1234567 I agree, it really makes the balance terrible too. You can barely here the bass changes during Benson's solo, which since Tyner isn't comping, it's kinda important. Plus, the ride is just way too much. Acoustics makes a difference.
BillyWillis89 1 year ago
yeah you're right about the balance and the ride is a little over the top.
good points.
mardebcin 1 year ago
yeah you're right about the balance and the ride is a little over the top.
good points.
very nice stuff still.
mardebcin 1 year ago
Small group acoustic jazz does not lend itself to large concert halls as little as string quartets or any other chamber ensemble. Everything just becomes a blurred reverberating wash.
fctchk 1 year ago
fantastico..!!!
trmptplrr 1 year ago
Benson and Tyner is an excellent combination.
Wow, Benson playing is absolutely exquisite. His soloing is so smooth and precise like the precision that Jet Li carries with his Wushu Martial Art forms and stances. What a brilliant performance.
JazzyZenBrotha 1 year ago
Great, great artist. Thanks for sharing!
jmadtoyou 1 year ago
SUPER MASTER!!!
Dvareckas 1 year ago
ベンソンの使ってるギタ－判る方教えて下さい。
iwgpventures 1 year ago
@iwgpventures
イバニーズの訴訟ギター（あまり上手に作ったんでギブソンから訴えられました）でジョ二ー・スミスのコピーです。たぶん７０年代後半の物だと思います。
redrabbitjazzbox 6 months ago
wow the best performance of his "mainstream period"! great jazz !
BeatBay 1 year ago
Awesome!Can someone recommend me jazz classics like this :P?
IMBACHABRI 1 year ago
@IMBACHABRI You could listen take five,mr pc,blue monk,autumn leaves,round midnight,all the things you are... Well,there are thousands of standards to listen
loumaTROM 1 year ago
Benson's tone is so natural. It almost sounds like he is playing a nylon.
dawsonea1 1 year ago
Benson is stuck in the middle between pop and jazz. His soloing sounds laboured - and McCoy Tyner's effortless solo shows why.
AncientFan 1 year ago
@AncientFan I wish I was stuck in the middle between pop and jazz. George sounds great no matter what he's doing.
LetzBeaFranque 1 year ago
Nossa é uma viagem vendo o que ele faz na guitarra, só quem conhece musica de qualidade sabe o que estou falando. Que loucura!!!!!
serlipiassarollo285 1 year ago
wonderful
brainspecialists 1 year ago
Great music from great performers.
TBone5699 1 year ago
Go freak it baby.. lovin it! M!
rockykam 1 year ago
In "The Real Book" Stella is in Bb (first chord is Em7b5), which is also the key that 99 percent of people play it in; Benson plays it here in G (first chord is C#m7b5), which I think is the key Stella was originally written in.
dtetreault 1 year ago
Which guitar is that one?
lclira 1 year ago
george is awesome.great solo
edlaksmi 1 year ago
Here the real Benson burning killing smoking my man....Jazz baby...
armagedontoulon 1 year ago
this is one of my favourite song
Bramestyoharyputra 1 year ago
Now I know who stole the michael jackson suit.
1968musicsoul 1 year ago
haha funny Jackson's suit is actually sitting at the Rock n rool hall of fame in Cleveland Oh
I saw it last time I was there
fattirevsbud 1 year ago
great!benson has a copy.LOL
1968musicsoul 1 year ago
Nossa tocar assim é mesmo um Dom de Deus. Tenho meu irmão que tb. ja participou de varios momentos com esse monstro da guitarra. È lindo demais!!!!!
serlipiassarollo285 1 year ago
Benson first chorus was just right in your face and the only reason you can think of his solo as well developed is he brought it down a bit before bringing it back and out. IMO
JoeHeiderGuitar 2 years ago
i love classic bop benson, and of course mccoy and pals...
dfmutant4488 2 years ago
hey, is he playing one of the ibanez l5 copys they produced at remarcable quality at the end of the 80's ?
cuetty 2 years ago
Ibanez Johnny Smith copy. I had one years ago.
jazz1bro 2 years ago
Its actually one of the rare Ibanez Geroge Benson GB20 models. The signature model that everyone knows is the GB-10 (clsoer to es-175 style/size. The GB-20 signature model was bigger and johnny smith style. Fantastic guitars (both of them). Look em up.
Bojazzki 1 year ago
@Bojazzki Actually it is a Ibanez 2461NT.
ttsqas 1 year ago
@ttsqas I have a 1977 Ibanez 2460 NT (2 pickups, L5 copy). I didnt know the 2461 had a floating pickup.
Bojazzki 1 year ago
@Bojazzki Yes check out here for one place w w w.archtop.c o m/ac_77Ibanez_js.html
ttsqas 1 year ago
Master
mandino07 2 years ago
Great, McCoy and George are beyond great! Hear the changes perfectly.
G7flat5 2 years ago
the technician
hampork 2 years ago
Comment removed
cynwoof 2 years ago
????????
SGCmyASS 2 years ago
Comment removed
alowderm 2 years ago 22
@alowderm - yeah, it's that "I am so digging this" smile on Benson's face during McCoy's last solo that makes this performance priceless!
dtetreault 1 year ago
@alowderm Anyone that puts this down can't hear!!!
KABRIS1 1 year ago
@alowderm orgasm after lol ye
ashrafilm 1 year ago
wow, when benson actually plays jazz. its amazing.
billdaniel92 2 years ago
It's fantastic to hear George's licks so good and so defined but perhaps the volume levels for all instruments aren't the bests...one has to interpret the changes constantly and its harder to enjoy the piece...anyway, Benson giant!!!
manuelcreinhardt 2 years ago
@manuelcreinhardt What are you taking about? The changes can be followed very easily. You just need musical ear.... Unless you think that the choruses without piano were an amplifying defect.....
detectosoretes 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@manuelcreinhardt Just goes to show, some people will always find something to complain about.
musiccalgary 10 months ago
best
olahjancsy 2 years ago
Slick
smcoh326 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
I admire George B playing but Stella By Starlight is simply unrecognizable. He and/or the group could easily call the improvisation some other name and it would undoubtedly and deservedly receive the accolades such superior playing deserves, only don't associate it with the classic, Stella By Starlight.
billjhyt 2 years ago
Well, I can hear the changes throughout the whole piece
Martincer 2 years ago
You have ears to hear, obviously this music is for you or accessible to you, enjoy it. I'll try some of his other tunes, he is very talented and easy to listen to, in any case. I just like Stella by starlight done in a style my ears can enjoy. My ears and their ability to hear are still evolving. I'll give it another listen at a later time.
billjhyt 2 years ago 3
I just got through listening to george benson - Take Five 1976 Montreux 1986, terrific, and I recognized the melody throughout the piece, also enjoyed the other, also very important, variational stuff.
billjhyt 2 years ago
@billjhyt the changes are dead on, i can hear them perfectly
earthchild100 2 years ago 3
Mazacote del gordo!!!
robertojimenez204 2 years ago
phibero . sorry but they would LOL about every comment here on YT jajjaja sorry its true do you really think benson is trying to stop mccoy solo?? or that mccoy is lost in bensons solo? not even a huge feedback burn their ears man. do you think they hate each other? they are playin great music togeather. stop bullshit man
Nu9v9 2 years ago
PhiberOptik001,
you don't understand music or you are a republican with the hate critic!! These are world class musician, they know exactly where they are. I know and hear the chord changes. Notice GB came in at exactly at the end of the chord changes to start the melody. So, shut up you don't know what the hell you are talking about! If you really want to hear some mess listen to Bireli Largene doing the same song!!
mudywaters1 2 years ago
mudywater1,
you hit the nail on the head! these truly are world class musicians, who know exactly where the tune is at all times during their improv! CSHARP57 summed if up in one word.. MASTERFUL!!!
jstaley335 2 years ago
I dunno man... Bireli is pretty amazing... not that benson isnt... but... i dunno... I think Bireli is better than benson, or at least his rendition of this song is better than bensons... they're both good, but to call Bireli's piece a "mess"... now thats just downright wrong man!
ZanNNNNG 2 years ago
masterful!!!!
csharp57 2 years ago
If Benson played a few more notes, maybe he would not have turned Stella into such a machine-gunfest. He plays at 90 MPH with gusts up to 120.
Mister Tyner looks over the piano staring into space, trying, amidst the flurry of notes, to figure out where in the hell Benson is in the tune. The song loses all melodic sense in a burst of notes. Lookee! See how fast I can play....
PhiberO
PhiberOptik001 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Benson sucks.
entity3sf 2 years ago
phiber optik001 - post your videos with how Stella should be played...
dragondix 2 years ago
I want that guitar strap...not the crap they sell in guitar center
sclogse1 2 years ago
1:32 Donna Lee transposed ^^
jazztom86 2 years ago
As a young guitarist, growing up in the 60's my "bible" was Pat Martino's EL HOMBRE and George Benson's COOKBOOK.
sprechstimme 2 years ago
It's Uptown changed my life. Stunning record.
min7b5 2 years ago
EVERYONE!!! listen to "The George Benson Cookbook", and "It's Uptown w/ The George Benson Quartet"....HIS BEST WORK, PERIOD!
omegaluke 2 years ago
Except for Take Five here on youtube....
sclogse1 2 years ago
George sure looks like he's having a good time. His "look" at 4:25 is due to the fact that McCoy Tyner has clearly just raised the bar with his solo.
jazznoises 2 years ago
he's almost as good as me
8aetroya8 2 years ago
Wonderful!
wolf1750 2 years ago
after wes, or WITH wes, THE jazz guitarist ever!! noone can do it better
gianromanigroup 2 years ago
Benson is a force of nature. incredible
sireel 2 years ago
George Benson can play,smile,talk and take a pis
at the same time....He play since 6....
TROMBOTRAK 2 years ago
he got everything ;)
mukawa 2 years ago
to him play is something more than natural as talk or walk....he scares me!!!
TROMBOTRAK 2 years ago
great vid. Tyner burns on this
Rolandriprig 2 years ago
I didn't particularly like the way GB looked over at MT as if to say: don't play too much, don't get outside, you'll make me look bad".
johnnylance 2 years ago
Really? You give that look so many different meanings. Personally I didn't see the kind of look you were describing.
OstrOsized 2 years ago
George is a Controlling, religious, nut; who's ego is amazingly creepy. And with that look he made McCoy end his solo.
Praise the Lord.
johnnylance 2 years ago
At what time did he give Mccoy 'that look'?
AsaCameron 2 years ago
You're an ass. Stupidest comment ever.
GaryNull 2 years ago
You don't know the man...
johnnylance 2 years ago
I really don't care what a performer does off stage or about their personal lives.
I met George in 1985 and he was very nice and gave me a nice autograph with a nice note.
GaryNull 2 years ago
Dude!?Really? One day if you have the pleasure you'll find out what a real down to earth and nice guy he really is.......and do the rest of us a favor and CLEAN YOUR GLASSES!
phenixdagemini 2 years ago
How do you know this? it wouldn't surprise me but I'm curious to know how you would know that.
steveey251 2 years ago
I saw it! It was one of admiration, I think. Cos, from what I can gather, most often players don't give much away when another band member is soloing, cos more often than not they know the way the soloist at the time, plays. So, for me if George is showing anything by his facial expression while Tyner was wailing then you KNOW, it must be feeling it. That's my take on it anyway.
hahabass 2 years ago
To add my two bits to the debate....I think GB sounds great, but I do have a problem with the scores of imitators that try and aproximate that sound. I mean, alot of these guys I reffer to, really try hard but they end up making bad music. Just like when you go to a jam session and every sax player wants to be blowing faster louder and higher, its just bad music.
loren1283 2 years ago
sei grande benson
klipto929 2 years ago
No hay nada q me guste mas q la musica de jazz, tocada con alegria y muchisimo swing, como esta. Y otras mas, por supuesto, no importe de quien sea. Es hermosa.
McCarlos60 2 years ago
George, simply put is a jazz master on the guitar with a lethal combination of soul, rhythm , harmonics, speed, grit, continuity, traditional and contemporary. Mr. Tyner is in a class all by himself.
mikesharkey81 2 years ago
Uh, I'll get scolded by y'all pretty hard, but GB seems a bit noodly here to me. His live playing is full of energy and seems to be a bit "go man, go!" Kinda like he's floating through the changes, rather than trying to tell a story or a cohesive statement. No build, just 'go'....which is cool, but it just comes off a bit noodly.
And I am NOT a GB hater, as I dig him throughly (solo on Freddy Hubbard's First Light, anyone?).
3shiftgtr 2 years ago 3
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense to me.
BillyC15 2 years ago
100% agree... blowing at its worst. But GB can sound good I agree (of course).
handdancin 2 years ago
In my opinion, the LP Absolute Benson is a pretty powerful blend of the two worlds of Benson: the songs have catchy melodies and aren't that deamanding to listen to, while George and his crew play wonderfully progressed, adventurous solos, with a little blues flavor of course. The album is fantastic for both listening and jamming to.
Whizzblitz 2 years ago
Comment removed
carystrings 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Bireli Lagrene totally destroyed GB's version of Stella by Starlight. youtube it, youll be the judge.
karun8236 2 years ago
all he did was play bensons shit over it... i respectfully disagree
robthekang 2 years ago 4
The skill required to play runs as fast as Ligrene did in his version of Stella is impress but I just can't stand Ligrene on an archtop. He plays it like a gypsy guitar, his playing just doesn't sound clean. I prefer Benson's version over Lagrene's even though Lagrene is a more skillful guitarist.
BringBackBlues 2 years ago
No way is Lagrene more skilful. He has a lot of "tricks" but Benson hears and manipulates harmony like very few others. He also thinks (and sounds) like a jazz player not a guitarist playing on jazz, if you know what I mean.
Listen to Take five (link above), he shows as much skill as Lagrene ever does.
dave17186 2 years ago 10
@dave17186 oh shit they're all on a level unreachable by mortals...yeah listen to bensons version of take five on youtube then listen to bireli's solo on imprompto also on youtube and then legitimately declare one is better than the other...it comes down to taste and I bet you know that
thejazzman8 1 year ago
I just listened to Lagrene's version. Benson's is is much better and more melodic. Lagrene uses too many scale oriented high speed riffs which are distracting and I think just don't fit. Benson is a better improviser. Speed picking does not equal better playing.
tbcass 2 years ago 5
Je to proste Pán hudobník klobúk dole.
janica63 2 years ago
It's always funny to hear people argue about GB "going pop" from "pure jazz roots." While GB is a great guitarist who can blow through bebop changes, his music has ALWAYS been infused with blues and R&B. He had his start in funky organ bands, some of which were themselves not considered "pure jazz." And on one of his first solo albums, he did a cover of "Ain't That Peculiar", as well as sang "Summertime and "Take all of me". He's a great guitarist who's always had the popular idiom in mind 2
DiscoHank 2 years ago 4
damn straight. But to me, Grant Green managed to blur the lines moreso than Benson. He didn't have two "modes", but only his own style of music, evolving with the day. :)
SlikkTim 2 years ago
True, Grant Green was pure funky, and a great soloist. I still remember his version of "Ain't It Funky Now". I was reading a guitar mag a few years ago where George Benson said Grant Green could shred and hold his own with ANY other jazz guitarist of his time or since.
DiscoHank 2 years ago
he's my all time favorite guitarist and the one who inspired me to learn guitar (I'm a bassist). To me, he's one of the few players to really have a direction in his playing. Just like horn players or blues players. I grew up listenin horn players, and most of the time I feel guitar players are zapping from chords to runs, and gimmicks and so on. Grant has that single voice that is ALWAYS right on... no frills, just from the soul. Too bad this type of playin is virtually unseen these days.
SlikkTim 2 years ago
I was reading in that same article how GB said that Grant Green taught him a technique to equalize the sound of his strings across all 6 strings, so that his bass strings were not SOOO deep and he got an even sound across all 6. I thought it was interesting. But yeah, my pops raised me off Grant Green and he was a serious player, some of the jazz snobs hated on him too though
DiscoHank 2 years ago
as always. But hey, no wonder his music has been sampled by countless hiphop guys. Real soul music never leaves the streets ;)
SlikkTim 2 years ago