Sucky Jazz Axes

Stanley Jordan's album

Stanley Jordan

record label

Mark Whitfield's album

Mark Whitfield & Co.

record label

Why is it that young talented jazz guitarists record so much bad music? The answer is that they are simply perpetuating a great and longstanding tradition. Ever since Wes Montgomery, jazz guitar greats have recorded pop and soul tunes, often in search of crossover success. Inevitably the results are ugly, as with Grant Green, and sometimes they are disastrous, as with George Benson. The latest releases of two young guitar virtuosos catch this fate, Stanley Jordan's new Bolero, and Mark Whitfield's '93 self-titled release. Both musicians began their recording careers with very impressive debuts that drew strong commercial responses as well as critical raves. Yet they share a disturbing tendency not to pursue their music in the directions that best suit their abilities.

One of the prime criticisms of Stanley Jordan's music in the past was that his amazing technique was not well-suited to playing with other musicians, in a trio for instance. This is often the case with so-called virtuoso technicians. It is apparent on the first three albums he released. All had other musicians involved, but Stanley shined the most on his solo tracks, because he could do it all himself--comping melody, and solos. This has everything to do with his technique. Teaching himself guitar, Jordan created his own style of playing that involved tuning the guitar in straight fourths and tapping the fretboard with two hands to produce pianistic-type lines. The story goes that he eventually took this novel act on to the streets of New York, 48th Street to be precise, playing and selling copies of his self-produced LP Touch Sensitive. He even had a weightlifter friend act as bodyguard, fending off hustlers.

From there he went on to record for the Blue Note label in 1985. On his most recent album Cornucopia Jordan sought to demonstrate his ability to play with other musicians, and he succeeded. Yet his penchant for stu-