George Benson - Breezin' (Reissue, Remastered) (1976/2001)

  • 04 May, 21:21
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Artist:
Title: Breezin'
Year Of Release: 1976/2001
Label: Rhino/Warner
Genre: Smooth Jazz, Jazz-Funk
Quality: Mp3 320 / Flac (tracks)
Total Time: 47:44
Total Size: 143/370 Mb (scans)
WebSite:

George Benson - Breezin' (Reissue, Remastered) (1976/2001)


Tracklist:

01. Breezin'
02. This Masquerade
03. Six to Four
04. Affirmation
05. So This Is Love?
06. Lady

Bonus Tracks:
07. Down Here on the Ground
08. Shark Bite
09. This Masquerade [Single Edit]

Line-up::
Bass – Stanley Banks
Clavinet, Piano – Jorge Dalto
Drums – Harvey Mason
Lead Guitar, Vocals – George Benson
Percussion – Ralph MacDonald
Rhythm Guitar – Phil Upchurch
Synthesizer, Electric Piano – Ronnie Foster

All of a sudden, George Benson became a pop superstar with this album, thanks to its least representative track. Most of Breezin' is a softer-focused variation of Benson's R&B/jazz-flavored CTI work, his guitar as assured and fluid as ever with Claus Ogerman providing the suave orchestral backdrops and his crack then-working band (including Ronnie Foster on keyboards and sparkplug Phil Upchurch on rhythm guitar) pumping up the funk element. Yet it is the sole vocal track (his first in many years), Leon Russell's "This Masquerade" -- where George unveiled his new trademark, scatting along with a single-string guitar solo -- that reached number ten on the pop singles chart and drove the album all the way to number one on the pop (!) LP chart. The attractive title track also became a minor hit single, although Gabor Szabo's 1971 recording with composer Bobby Womack is even more fetching. In the greater scheme of Benson's career, Breezin' is really not so much a breakthrough as it is a transition album; the guitar is still the core of his identity.