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Freihofer Saratoga Jazz Festival 2019
by Richard Conde
Celebrating its 42nd anniversary over the June 29th weekend, the 2019 Freihofer Saratoga Jazz Festival at the Saratoga's Performing Arts center in Saratoga Springs N.Y., featured a great program presenting a wide range of music. Over 25 featured artist played over two days across two stages with headliner George Benson taking the Amphitheater stage Saturday night. Other featured artist included Norah Jones, Trombone Shorty, Joshua Redman and Veronica Swift just to name a few. This festival is a must for ...
Continue ReadingGilly’s Remembered
by Michael J. Williams
Anyone who was a jazz aficionado in Cincinnati in the 1970s and wanted to hear the upper echelon musicians in the art form--the artists written about in Downbeat and whose records played regularly on the local AM station, WNOP--knew what to do. Make the 50-mile trek up Interstate 75 to Gilly's in Dayton. While the Queen City had its share of jazz spots, they mostly drew upon the local talent, which was nothing to disparage when ...
Continue ReadingGeorge Benson at Denver Botanic Gardens
by Geoff Anderson
George Benson Botanic Gardens Denver, CO August 31, 2016 NEWS FLASH: George Benson's gone pop! OK, maybe that one's about 40 years late. I even knew that at the time it happened, having purchased the Breezin' album (Warner Brothers, 1976) when it first came out. But, over the years, through careful picking and choosing and focusing on his older material, I've mainly been listening to his jazz side. Nevertheless, I knew that a ...
Continue ReadingGeorge Benson at the NYCB Theatre at Westbury
by Mike Perciaccante
George Benson with special guest Chrisette Michele NYCB Theatre at Westbury Westbury, NY August 14, 2015 George Benson is a multi-platinum (R.I.A.A. certified), best selling, Grammy Award-winning guitarist and singer-songwriter. In 2009, Benson was recognized by the U.S. National Endowment of the Arts as a Jazz Master, the country's highest jazz honor. Benson was born and raised in the Hill District in Pittsburgh, PA. A child prodigy, at 8 years of age, ...
Continue ReadingGeorge Benson and the Phoenix Symphony Orchestra at Mesa Arts Center
by Patricia Myers
George Benson and the Phoenix Symphony OrchestraMesa Arts Center Mesa, Arizona January 21, 2015 Guitarist-vocalist George Benson performed two straight hours of soul-satisfying and totally thrilling music that reprised his five decades of hits in jazz and pop- contemporary music acclaim. The non-stop set ranged from his 1964 jazz albums debut through multiple Grammy-winning gold and platinum CDs, to his 2013 Nat King Cole tribute, Inspiration: A Tribute to Nat King Cole (Concord Records, 2013). ...
Continue ReadingGeorge Benson: Finding His Groove In Inspiration
by Belinda Ware
George Benson is a quintessential master of jazz whose professional musical career continues to flourish over decades due to his charisma, wit, showmanship and a succession of multiple hit record releases that are foundational in the evolution of contemporary jazz. As a seasoned jazz connoisseur, Benson stays in demand as a sought after performing artist as seen in his steady concert schedules taking to the stage in countries around the world. Simply put, Benson is on a mission ...
Continue ReadingGeorge Benson: Inspiration: A Tribute To Nat King Cole
by Bruce Lindsay
Million-selling, hugely popular and readily recognisable jazz artists are a bit thin on the ground these days. So when one such giant records a tribute to another it's something of an event. George Benson's Inspiration: A Tribute To Nat King Cole certainly falls into that category: an album of songs from one of the biggest stars of the twentieth century, performed with due respect by one of the biggest names in the contemporary jazz scene.The album's opener, “Mona ...
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