Remembering John Gray

**daveg** · 04-17-2016, 09:47 AM

Part 1:

**daveg** · 04-17-2016, 09:49 AM

Part 2:

**sgcim** · 04-17-2016, 04:48 PM

OMG! I never heard of that one! I have that great LP by JG, "The New Wave", with Herb Ellis, but I didn't know he recorded another one.
Thank you for the link. Are you the same Dave Gould who put that on Youtube, and also has the Dave Gould Guitar Pages website?
I think I inquired about some of the videos you were selling a number of years ago.

That JG LP is pretty much what I mean when I use the term Swing. He played with Flanigan on those Four Freshman albums.
Do you know who did the great arrangements on that LP? JG also did an arr. of "Caravan" that was ripped off by the guys that wrote the musical "Swing!", which I played. When we came to that song, I knew it sounded familiar...

**neatomic** · 04-17-2016, 05:19 PM

great player...reminds me a bit of hank garland

not the happiest tale- from - Gary Burton on John Gray - JazzWax

I met John in the late 70's....mabe early 80's in Prior,Oklahoma...his home town ....while traveling with Bill Barker, a longtime friend of John's and a renowned luthier. According to Bill, John had suffered a stroke at the height of his carrer and unable to play, returned to Prior. We took his old Epiphone Emporer back to Peoria, Illinois with us to repair as John indicated that he wanted his son or perhaps a nephew to have it. After our return to Peoria, we were informed that John had died....an apparent suicide. The Emporer was sold to one of our customers in Peoria at the behest of the family.

Personally, I think John's One Way album is one of the greatest guitar albums ever recorded.

Bill Cook
Cook Guitars
Mapleton, Illinois

**daveg** · 04-17-2016, 05:26 PM

**neatomic** · 04-17-2016, 05:45 PM

very cool..sounds like roy lanham on caravan...they share that johnny smith vibe..but with bends! haha

very cool capitol studio '60's stereo production too

thanks

cheers

ps- these 2 records would make a nice fresh sounds label two'fer cd!

**sgcim** · 04-17-2016, 06:17 PM

Yea, that's the Caravan arr. I was talking aboot!
One thing that confused me was the fact that they did a bossa nova thing on "Your Theme", and this was 1959?
Wasn't that very early for Bossas?

**AGM** · 11-05-2016, 01:32 PM

To my view, Johnny Gray's 'The New Wave' is simply a giant of a jazz guitar record.....great tunes, wonderful arrangements and awesome playing.

Yours

Drew

**MarkRhodes** · 11-05-2016, 02:29 PM

Great stuff. I hadn't heard of him. Really great feel and time. Top shelf stuff. Shame he's not better known. (But hey, that's what we're here for!)

**rob taft** · 11-05-2016, 03:21 PM

Thanks for posting. While I have a love/hate relationship with Youtube, this is one of those occasions where its excels. If not for the clips, and this website, I'd not have heard of this artist.

**grahambop** · 11-05-2016, 03:38 PM

Originally Posted by sgcim

Yea, that's the Caravan arr. I was talking aboot!
One thing that confused me was the fact that they did a bossa nova thing on "Your Theme", and this was 1959?
Wasn't that very early for Bossas?

Bud Shank and Laurindo Almeida's 'Brazilliance' came out in 1953, well before the Stan Getz records.

**sgcim** · 11-05-2016, 03:55 PM

Originally Posted by grahambop

Bud Shank and Laurindo Almeida's 'Brazilliance' came out in 1953, well before the Stan Getz records.

That's true. I always wondered why those great records they made didn't have the impact that the records Getz made with the Gilbertos. It might have been because they didn't have any Jobim tunes on them, or Astrud singing them.

**grahambop** · 11-05-2016, 04:09 PM

Originally Posted by sgcim

That's true. I always wondered why those great records they made didn't have the impact that the records Getz made with the Gilbertos. It might have been because they didn't have any Jobim tunes on them, or Astrud singing them.

It's possible they had more impact than people realised, Bud Shank thought that these records along with other West Coast jazz records were a big influence on Jobim and co. when they were formulating the bossa style in the late 50s.

**MarkRhodes** · 11-05-2016, 05:24 PM

Originally Posted by grahambop

It's possible they had more impact than people realised, Bud Shank thought that these records along with other West Coast jazz records were a big influence on Jobim and co. when they were formulating the bossa style in the late 50s.

I've read that Barney Kessel's comping on the Julie London albums had a big influence on Jobim. (I can't remember where I read that---the Kessel bio, maybe?)

**AGM** · 11-06-2016, 07:03 AM

Originally Posted by neatomic

great player...reminds me a bit of hank garland

not the happiest tale- from - Gary Burton on John Gray - JazzWax

I met John in the late 70's....mabe early 80's in Prior,Oklahoma...his home town ....while traveling with Bill Barker, a longtime friend of John's and a renowned luthier. According to Bill, John had suffered a stroke at the height of his carrer and unable to play, returned to Prior. We took his old Epiphone Emporer back to Peoria, Illinois with us to repair as John indicated that he wanted his son or perhaps a nephew to have it. After our return to Peoria, we were informed that John had died....an apparent suicide. The Emporer was sold to one of our customers in Peoria at the behest of the family.

Personally, I think John's One Way album is one of the greatest guitar albums ever recorded.

Bill Cook
Cook Guitars
Mapleton, Illinois

I read somewhere that when Hank Garland came to Illinois he would sometimes get together with Bill Barker and Johnny Gray.....according to Bill Barker Mr Garland's playing inspired Johnny Gray to improve his technique.......but that is only a story.....

**sgcim** · 11-06-2016, 02:04 PM

Originally Posted by MarkRhodes

I've read that Barney Kessel's comping on the Julie London albums had a big influence on Jobim. (I can't remember where I read that---the Kessel bio, maybe?)

Yes, I think it was from the BK bio, when BK was touring in Brazil. He met Jobim, and Jobim told him those records with JL had a strong impact on his harmonic approach to songwriting.

**blue-moves** · 11-09-2016, 04:25 PM

I f***in' love John Gray! Has anyone on here transcribed the arrangement of 'Love Is Just Around The Corner' from his 'New Wave' album with Herb Ellis?

**KLR** · 12-28-2018, 02:55 AM

Michael Owen's book Go Slow - The Life of Julie London, mentions Gray; for instance, here's what her husband thought of him: "Bobby Troup called John Gray “the best accompanist Julie ever had.”" Gray used chicken pickin'; I always thought there was something exceptional about his chording, but not having much of an ear for these things wasn't sure what it was.

**deacon Mark** · 01-26-2019, 11:02 AM

Great player and played a Bill Barker guitar and an Albanus. I never met him but Barker always talked about him when I was around his shop in the early 1980s and studied guitar with Barker. Bill Cook who took over Barker's shop I believe did get to meet him. Gray was a fine chord melody specialist and Bill Barker taught alot of the things Gray was doing on the guitar.

**AndyV** · 01-26-2019, 05:55 PM

Never heard of Gray before. Bright tone and great feel. The Roy Lanham comparison in his chord work is apt.

**deacon Mark** · 01-27-2019, 01:06 PM

Gray played with George Shearing there is a great recording they did live. Gray also worked in Chicago area and may have lived there for a time. Him and Fred Rundquist were good friends and yes they would get together with Hank Garland when he was in town. Fred and Gray would have made an amazing duet which I am sure they must have played many times. Both top of RIM players who basically never became too famous. Fred stayed around Chicago and got the good gigs there and Gray eventually went to the west Coast. My understanding was he may have and an issue with drinking. That is not to spread bad rumors at all just a reality that things happen and in my case my own father a great player himself could not get past booze.

In my case I lack the talent but have manage to avoid the drinking problem, a better trade in the end and I find working on guitars almost a much fun as playing them. I have those Gray recordings and for time in my life played them everyday........Caravan.

**AGM** · 02-11-2019, 07:07 AM

Originally Posted by deacon Mark

I have those Gray recordings and for time in my life played them everyday........Caravan.

Yes, that is a cool version....that lick around 1.15 in is amazing. I believe Mr Gray's chordal work on 'Moonlight In Vermont' & 'Memphis In June' is on a different level. Incredible playing.

**daveg** · 07-06-2024, 05:57 PM

Bump

**jmgalich** · 07-06-2024, 07:39 PM

Originally Posted by KLR

Michael Owen's book Go Slow - The Life of Julie London, mentions Gray; for instance, here's what her husband thought of him: "Bobby Troup called John Gray “the best accompanist Julie ever had.”" Gray used chicken pickin'; I always thought there was something exceptional about his chording, but not having much of an ear for these things wasn't sure what it was.

It looks like sgcim, Deacon Mark and I need to open the doors to the John Gray fan club.

I'd have to agree with Bobby Troup. Gray took over the guitar chair from Dennis Budimer as I understand it. I'm always on the lookout for mid-60s London material. Gray had such a unique sound that you can always know it's him.

John Galich