George Benson Wiki Information
George Benson
(born March 22, 1943 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) [1] is an American musician, whose recording career began at the age of twenty-one as a jazz guitarist. He is also known as a pop, R&B, and scat singer.
Benson uses a rest-stroke picking technique very similar to that of gypsy jazz players such as Django Reinhardt.
|
GEORGE BENSON TICKETS
|
Biography
Early career
Benson was born and raised in the
Hill District in
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and attended the defunct
Connelly High School before dropping out. Benson got his first experience playing straight-ahead instrumental jazz in a several-year stint with organist
Jack McDuff. At the age of 21, he recorded his first album as leader,
The New Boss Guitar
, featuring McDuff.
Benson's next recording was
It's Uptown with the George Benson Quartet
with
Lonnie Smith on organ and
Ronnie Cuber on baritone sax.
. Benson followed it up with
The George Benson Cookbook
, also with Lonnie Smith and Ronnie Cuber.
employed Benson in the mid 1960s, featuring his guitar on "Paraphernalia" on his 1967
Columbia release,
Miles in the Sky
. Benson went to
Verve Records afterwards. Then,
Creed Taylor signed him up for his
CTI label, where he recorded numerous albums with jazz heavyweights guesting to limited financial success. Benson also did a version of
The Beatles's 1969 album
Abbey Road
called
The Other Side of Abbey Road
, also released in 1969, and a version of "
White Rabbit", originally written and recorded by
San Francisco rock group
Jefferson Airplane, around this time.
1970s and 1980s
below =
Problems listening to this file? See media help.
By the mid to late 1970s, as he recorded for
Warner Bros. Records, a whole new audience began to discover Benson for the first time. With the 1976 release
Breezin'
, Benson began to put his vocal on tracks such as "
This Masquerade". He had used his vocals on songs earlier in his career, notably his rendition of "
Here Comes the Sun" on the
Other Side of Abbey Road
album. He was part of psychedelic soul group
Harlem Underground Band during the 1970s, whose song "
Smokin' Cheeba Cheeba" was featured in
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
.
[2]
Benson toured with soul singer,
Minnie Riperton, in 1976. Riperton had been diagnosed with terminal breast cancer earlier that year.
"This Masquerade" won a
Grammy Award for Record of the Year and the live take of "
On Broadway", recorded two years later from the 1978 release
Weekend in L.A.
, also won a
Grammy. Benson made it into the pop and R&B top ten with the song "
Give Me the Night", produced by
Quincy Jones. On Warner Bros., Benson accumulated three other platinum LPs and two gold albums.
[3]
He also recorded the original version of "
Greatest Love of All" for the 1977
Muhammad Ali bio-pic,
The Greatest
, which was later recorded as a cover by
Whitney Houston.
During this time Benson recorded with the German conductor,
Claus Ogerman.
[4]
Later and current career
below =
Problems listening to this file? See media help.
charts with their collaboration "Sunrise", one of two songs from the duo released on Atkins' disc
in America, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand to promote their 2006 album
Benson continues to tour the world performing over 100 shows a year. Benson lives a private life in Arizona, where he is one of
2009 sees Benson back in the studio recording a new album, with David Paich and Steve Lukather of Toto.
Benson performs at the 49th issue of The Ohrid Summer Festival in Macedonia on July 25th 2009 and his Nat King Cole "Unforgettable" tour in as part of the Istanbul International Jazz Festival in Turkey on July 27th.
| Year
| Album
| Pop
| R&B
| Jazz
| Label
|
| 1964
| George Benson/Jack McDuff
| —
| —
| —
| Prestige
|
| The New Boss Guitar
| —
| —
| —
|
| 1965
| Benson Burner
| —
| —
| —
| Columbia
|
| It's Uptown
| —
| —
| —
|
| 1966
| The George Benson Cookbook
| —
| —
| —
|
| Willow Weep for Me
| —
| —
| —
| CBS
|
| 1967
| Blue Benson
| —
| —
| #23
| Verve
|
| 1968
| Giblet Gravy
| —
| —
| —
|
| Goodies
| —
| —
| —
|
| 1969
| Shape of Things to Come
| —
| #38
| #11
| A&M
|
| Tell It Like It Is
| #145
| #43
| #16
|
| The Other Side of Abbey Road
| #125
| #18
| —
|
| 1970
| I Got a Woman & Some Blues
| —
| —
| —
|
| 1971
| Beyond the Blue Horizon
| —
| —
| #15
| CTI
|
| 1972
| White Rabbit
| —
| —
| #7
|
| 1973
| Jazz on a Sunday Afternoon, Vol. 1
| —
| —
| —
| Accord
|
| Jazz on a Sunday Afternoon, Vol. 2
| —
| —
| —
|
| Witchcraft
| —
| —
| —
| Jazz Hour
|
| 1974
| Body Talk
| —
| —
| #10
| CTI
|
| 1975
| Bad Benson
| #78
| —
| #1
|
| 1976
| Good King Bad
| #51
| #18
| #3
|
| Benson & Farrell
| #100
| #27
| #3
|
| Breezin'
| #1
| #1
| #1
| Warner Bros.
|
| 1977
| In Concert-Carnegie Hall
| #122
| #43
| #6
| CTI
|
| In Flight
| #9
| #2
| #1
| Warner Bros.
|
| 1978
| Space Album
| —
| —
| —
| CTI
|
| Weekend in L. A.
| #5
| #1
| #1
| Warner Bros.
|
| 1979
| Livin' Inside Your Love
| #7
| #4
| #1
|
| Take Five
| —
| —
| —
| CTI
|
| 1980
| Cast Your Fate to the Wind
| —
| —
| —
|
| Give Me the Night
| #3
| #1
| #1
| Warner Bros.
|
| 1981
| GB
| —
| —
| —
| CTI
|
| The George Benson Collection
| #14
| #5
| #1
| Warner Bros.
|
| 1983
| In Your Eyes
| #27
| #6
| #1
|
| Pacific Fire
| —
| —
| —
| CTI
|
| 1984
| 20/20
| #45
| #20
| #3
| Warner Bros.
|
| Live in Concert
| —
| —
| —
| Design
|
| 1985
| The Electrifying George Benson
| —
| —
| —
| Affinity
|
| 1986
| While the City Sleeps...
| #77
| #21
| #8
| Warner Bros.
|
| 1987
| Collaboration
(with Earl Klugh)
| #59
| #28
| #1
|
| 1988
| Twice the Love
| #76
| #17
| #10
|
| 1989
| Tenderly
| #140
| —
| #1
|
| 1990
| Big Boss Band
| —
| —
| #3
|
| 1991
| Midnight Moods
| —
| —
| —
|
| 1992
| The Essence of George Benson
| —
| —
| —
| Columbia
|
| 1993
| Love Remembers
| —
| #50
| #1
| Warner Bros.
|
| 1994
| The Most Exciting New Guitarist on the Jazz Scene
| —
| —
| —
| Sony
|
| 1995
| The Best of George Benson
| —
| —
| #14
| Warner Bros.
|
| 1996
| California Dreamin
| —
| —
| —
| Sony
|
| Lil Darlin
| —
| —
| —
| Thunderbolt
|
| That's Right
| #150
| #33
| #1
| GRP
|
| 1998
| Standing Together
| —
| #47
| #1
|
| Masquerade
| —
| —
| —
| Thunderbolt
|
| 1999
| The Masquerade Is Over
| —
| —
| —
| Jazz Hour
|
| 2000
| Live at Casa Caribe
| —
| —
| —
| Columbia River
|
| Absolute Benson
| #125
| #24
| #1
| GRP
|
| 2001
| All Blues
| —
| —
| —
| Bianco
|
| 2002
| Blue Bossa
| —
| —
| —
| Prestige Elite
|
| After Hours
| —
| —
| —
| Universe
|
| 2003
| Irreplaceable
| —
| —
| —
| GRP
|
| 2003
| The Greatest Hits of All
| #138
| #74
| #3
| Rhino
|
| 2004
| Golden Legends Live
| —
| —
| —
| St. Clair
|
| 2005
| Jazz After Hours with George Benson
| —
| —
| —
| Performax
|
| Best of George Benson Live
| —
| —
| #4
| GRP
|
| 2006
| Givin' It Up
(with Al Jarreau)
| #58
| #14
| #1
| Concord
|
| Givin' It Up
(with Al Jarreau) (HDS 5.1 SuperDisc)
| —
| —
| —
| Monster Music
|
| 2007
| Live from Montreux
| —
| —
| —
| Immortal
|
| 2009
| Songs And Stories
| —
| —
| —
|
|