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Greg Howard Band: Lift
by Todd S. Jenkins
Smart, moody, original fusion from an American and four Dutchmen. Howard is a virtuoso of the Chapman Stick, a many-stringed instrument played entirely by tapping. Though the Stick has been used to good avail in ensembles like Hawkwind and King Crimson, it’s rather difficult and has therefore never gained much popularity. Howard is one of the small breed of musicians who make it seem effortless. He is joined here by a group of Dutch performers he met while touring the ...
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by Jim Santella
Greg Howard's smooth jazz session features saxophone melodies, groove rhythms, and powerful electronic effects. The Chapman Stick, a 10-stringed electric instrument, allows the artist to use both hands, each with a tapping motion. Howard assumes the role of fusion guitarist. Along with Hubert Heeringa's ethereal soprano saxophone lines, he provides a contemporary front line that emphasizes pleasant harmony. Amplified sounds blend across the horizon while bass and drums provide varied textures. Vocal samples add to the fun. From world beat ...
read moreGreg Howard Band: Lift
by Dave Nathan
Greg Howard plays a Chapman Stick. a unique electric 10 stringed instrument where the player taps the strings with both hands to play. Created in 1969, there are now a number of adherents. Using it since 1985, Chapman “broke in' the instrument on his first album Whispers. It's sound resembles a number of a variety of instruments, changing colors depending on how the strings are tapped. There's the sitar, the Indian lute and even a touch of the organ in ...
read moreGreg Howard: Sol
by Christopher Hoard
It's almost been two decades since the LA band Kittyhawk introduced the 10-stringed Chapman Stick to jazz fusion. For those still uninitiated, the stick was designed on the basis of a revolutionary, string tapping technique positioning the guitar's neck parallel to the musician's body, and approaching the neck with the arms at a perpendicular angle, and then tapping two sets of strings on an electric instrument indepentently. There have been a number of musicians who've now adopted the instrument, primarily ...
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