George Benson is an American singer, guitarist and songwriter of blues, hard bop, soul jazz, funk, contemporary rhythm and blues, crossover jazz, smooth jazz, contemporary jazz and pop who has won ten Grammy Awards and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He is one of the most important guitarists in the history of jazz for his great versatility and beautiful guitar sound, his excellently constructed solos, impressive speed and extraordinary sense of swing.

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In addition, his exquisite and emotional tenor voice, together with his mastery of scat, his virtuosity on the guitar and his entertainer skills, allowed him to achieve solid commercial success in the late seventies and early eighties. His discography includes more than forty albums and two live DVDs. Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Benson was a child prodigy who had his first musical experience at the age of eight singing, dancing and playing ukulele on weekends at a clandestine club that was eventually shut down by the police.

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Two years later, in 1952, he debuted as a vocalist under the name “Little Georgie” on the “She Makes Me Mad” and “It Should Have Been Me” single for the RCA-Victor label. He studied at Schenley High School, began playing guitar in a self-taught way and in 1960 founded a rock and roll group. Benson learned to play hard bop and soul jazz in organist Jack McDuff’s trio and quartet, which he joined in 1962. He found in the organist’s adventurous swing fertile ground to experiment freely with his instrument. Although his early influences were guitarists Charlie Christian and Wes Montgomery, and alto saxophonist and father of bebop Charlie Parker, he soon developed his own style.

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Translated with the help of DeepL

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℗ Prestige Records