George Benson & Brother Jack McDuff Quartet: The New Boss Guitar of George Benson [CONCORD JAZZ]

Why you'll love it

This stereo reissue of the Prestige original comes with a download card. It's the first album under George Benson's own name, a swinging soul jazz date that announced a major new guitarist.

This edition

• Stereo mix
• Download card included

About the album

Long before the big hits and the stadium shows, George Benson was the young guitarist in Brother Jack McDuff's organ group, and on May 1, 1964 his boss handed him the spotlight. The result was this Prestige session in New York, produced by Lew Futterman, with the whole McDuff quartet backing him up.

McDuff plays organ and piano, Red Holloway brings the warm, bluesy tenor saxophone, and Ronnie Boykins and Montego Joe hold down bass and drums, with Joe Dukes taking over the kit on the closing track. "Shadow Dancers" and "The Sweet Alice Blues" lock into that greasy organ groove, "I Don't Know" swings hard, and the ballads "Will You Still Be Mine?" and "Easy Living" show off Benson's lovely, singing tone. "Rock-A-Bye" closes things in high spirits.

It's a terrific soul jazz record and a fascinating first look at a guitarist who would go on to sell millions. Being called the new boss on your own debut, while your actual boss sits at the organ, takes a certain amount of nerve, and he backed it up on every track.

Also at Kops: more George Benson on vinyl · browse Classic Jazz

Tracklist

Listen

On Prestige (cat# PR 7310), a reissue of the 1964 album.