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Probably (very) old news, but I was listening to Youtube and the album Pure Desmond by Paul Desmond popped up. The guitar playing was awesome. I only listened to it once this morning while I was working, so not my full attention, but the playing seemed really tasteful and it didn't sounds like he was ever "shredding" and going crazy.
Seemed like he had some nice solos that would be fun and challenging to transcribe but not impossible. Some really nice sounding comping as well. Definitely going to listen to the album a few times over the next week.
Any other Ed Bickert albums I should check out?
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03-08-2024 04:44 PM
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There's a few live discs of that band out there, definitely worth hearing.
Ed was woefully underrecorded, but if you can find "Out of the Past," "At the Garden Party" or "Mutual Street" (with Rob McConnell you are in for a real treat.
Ed's playing, particularly his chord solos, are deceptively difficult. There's not a lot of flash, but there is a TON of depth.
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Someone discovering Ed Bickert is always very exciting news.
Originally Posted by briandavidyork
Anything with Paul Desmond ... I believe those are Paul Desmond and Like Someone In Love.
He also has some great solo records ... I always really liked Out of the Past, but At the Garden Party is my favorite I think.
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Dammit. Of course Jeff beat me to it. Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
As I have told him before, though ... I started listening to Ed Bickert after hearing the venerable Mr Beaumont raving about him on this very forum probably fifteen years ago now. The original Bickert Evangelist.
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I discovered Ed by chance...I was getting into jazz, and I was debating on whether or not I needed a jazz guitar. I already had a telecaster, so I think I just googled "who plays jazz on a telecaster" and found Ed. Of course if you google that today you'll get dozens of results. Originally Posted by pamosmusic
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Mosaic’s Paul Desmond set is made up of live recordings from Toronto with a ton of wonderful comping and solos by Ed. There is an extensive Bickert discography here: The Ed Bickert Discography
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The first time I heard Ed was a really long time ago on the live Desmond double lp.
Of course I can tell the difference now but on first listen then I thought for sure it was Jim Hall.... nope.
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The first time I heard Ed Bickert was in a radio program where they played a track from "The Paul Desmond Quartet LIVE at Bourbon Street/Toronto", sometime in the late 70's ... at first I thought there was a Rhodes piano playing and what a surprise to realize it was actually an electric guitar and a Tele to boot ! Been an avid fan ever since. I already knew who Ted Greene was at the time and when I discovered another master player who used a Tele and played all these wonderful chords I was hooked. He was also the guitarist of choice for the Rob McConnell Bigband and they cut several albums with him so you might want to check these out, too.
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The first time I heard Ed I was in junior high school so early ‘60s. I took a girlfriend to a matinee performance of a Chekhov or Strindberg play (can’t remember which) at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in downtown Toronto. Ed’s trio played in the upstairs lobby at intermission. I think that must have been my first exposure to jazz guitar. Saw him many times after that in clubs, restaurants and concerts, always one of my favourite musicians.
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Around 33 years ago Dizzy played here. It was my first night out with the future Ms. darkwaters. Although I was there to see Dizzy, I couldn’t take my eyes off the guitar player, who was just excellent and seemed to be (subtly) leading the band. Yep, it was Ed. Been a big fan ever since.
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A recent convert
who has decided to devote the rest of my life practicing triads
. Am I right? Ed is the sickest. His playing flows like water.
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This live gem:
Just a moment...
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Out of the Past is a great trio album. If you've ever heard Jim Hall's album Live, it was recorded with Ed Bickert's rhythm section, and I personally place those two albums as my all time favorite Guitar/Bass/Drums trio albums. Don Thompson and Terry Clarke just know how to support guitarists.
He also released some nice Guitar/Bass/Sax trio stuff under Murley-Bickert-Wallace worth checking out.
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I also enjoy Days Gone By with Sonny Greenwich:
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The Ed Bickert motherlode: Paul Desmond – The Complete 1975 Toronto Recordings (#269 - 7 CDs) - Mosaic Records Limited edition
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This is lovely and should not be overlooked
The entire album is a gem, well recorded and gorgeous performances showing a wide range for both Bill Mays and Ed Bikert
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You are not lying. Originally Posted by FRRGC_
The Canadian wrecking crew. Those dudes are bad.
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Thanks for the recs everybody! Lots of material to listen to.
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I'm with Jeff and Peter. At The Garden Party is my fave.
You might like to check out this recording with Lorne Lofsky (not the later Concord release, This Is New) that was released on vinyl and only recently made available in digital form:
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His version of Street of Dreams is probably my favorite:
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I worked for 30 years in television and would occasionally run into entertainers and have a word. Nathan East was very kind, George Foreman had a hand like a catcher's mitt and Leona Boyd was a lovely flirt. Harrison Ford titled his hat brim forward walking briskly away from what was undoubtedly the worst part of his business. I only became a blubbering fool in the presence of Ed Bickert. He was hired for an afternoon taping by Shirley Eikhard and was waiting, cool as can be, amp and Tele strapped to a light dolly, tie draped in the gig bag pocket, not to be donned until the final minute. I just happened upon him and let him know (not unlike the teenaged girls in the Beatles footage) that he was a god among men. He said 'thank you' and continued to chew his gum slowly. I regret nothing.
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I also went through a massive Bickert phase a few years ago, so much that I actually built a partscaster after his tele (mine has an imperial in the neck though).
I bought an Orange Cube 40 too, but it broke like a week into using it.
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I snapped up a lot of his discs a few years back while sitting at home during the pandemic. They included these two, Out of the Past (same name as one of the best film noirs ever, btw), Bye Bye Baby, I wished on the Moon, This is New with Lorne Lofsky, and several others. It's so easy to listen to this guy. Originally Posted by mayrandp
Many of these were out of print or rare, and I ordered most of them used through ebay, discogs, or Amazon, and paid a premium for all but a few of them.
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Matches Lorne Lofsky's description of of him, said he was a hard man with whom to have a conversation, he'd give a one sentence reply to every remark. At first he thought perhaps he was only that way with him but realized later he was just as reserved with everyone. Originally Posted by A. Kingstone
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Lorne is fairly taciturn also.
I wonder if my guitar mediocrity is due to my loud mouth.
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