By 1939, not only had Benny Goodman fronted one of jazz's most popular big bands, but he'd also created highly influential chamber jazz with his legendary trio and quartet. Once he heard the young guitar pioneer Charlie Christian, Goodman immediately expanded his small group to a sextet to accommodate Christian (along with bassist Artie Bernstein). Goodman's recordings with Christian remain some of the genre's most significant work, mainly because of the impact of Christian's revolutionary guitar. In fact, many of the original tunes here were based on Christian's own "pet licks," showing us just how logical and well-constructed his improvisations were.
Christian's harmonically advanced single-note solos were a precursor to bebop, but even more importantly, he established the guitar as an equal partner to the horn soloists. No longer relegated to rhythm work, Christian's lines were every bit as awe-inspiring as those of the leading blowers of the day. The first four cuts of this volume include Goodman, Christian, vibist Lionel Hampton, and pianist Fletcher Henderson. Christian moves with ease from beautiful chords to single-note flurries on "Stardust," and the blues "Soft Winds" became a jazz standard. Johnny Guarnieri subs for Henderson on the next six tracks while Goodman continues his marvelously relaxed and always-swinging clarinet. "Shivers" finds Christian creating well-developed solos with equal parts humor and innovation. Benny bends notes like only he can on "AC/DC Current," throwing some rather challenging ensemble parts into the simple blues structure. A Middle Eastern intro begins "Sheik of Araby," followed by a vibrant and playful Goodman solo. Christian is simply inventing the vocabulary of modern jazz guitar, and all soloists raise the intensity trading riffs until the rideout. Christian offers his most ambitious solo on "Good Enough to Keep" (aka "Air Mail Special"), and Goodman, clearly inspired by Christian's presence, matches him.
The final six tunes include the horns of Cootie Williams (trumpet) and Georgie Auld (tenor). Christian plays with urgency on "Breakfast Feud" and Auld follows with an expressive turn. Williams' muted growl introduces "I Can't Give You Anything But Love," and Christian begins his solo in mellow fashion before a perfectly double-timed finish.
If you like this album, check out:
Artie Shaw Grammercy Five Recordings
Benny Goodman Stompin'
Wes Montgomery The Incredible Jazz Guitar
Grant Green Idle Moments
Charlie Christian The Genius of the Electric Guitar
Benny Goodman Trio and Quartet After You've Gone
psst...you might wanna check out our swing links for more features on swing artists.
-- Marc Greilsamer
