Charlie Christian – Solo Flight: Best Of 1939-41

Despite having such a short recording career, the original guitar hero Charlie Christian single-handedly revolutionised the electric guitar. With having no direct influence on his guitar playing, he used the horn and reed lines he heard from the likes of Lester Young as inspiration to develop his unique single line phrasing - and so was born the guitar solo. Christian tragically died at 25 of tuberculosis, just as he was jamming with cool cats Thelonious Monk and Charlie Parker on the East coast, developing the future sound of be-bop. Our collection features some of the best material he recorded with the legendary Benny Goodman small bands. Playing alongside such luminaries of the jazz world as Goodman himself, Count Basie, Fletcher Henderson, Papa Jo Jones, Lester Young and Lionel Hampton, Christian shone above them all with his utterly unique and pioneering playing.

1. Flying Home
2. Rose Room
3. Shivers
4. Grand Slam (Boy Meets Goy)
5. Lester's Dream
6. Wholly Cats
7. Royal Garden Blues
8. As Long as I Live
9. Breakfast Feud
10. I've Found a New Baby
11. Gone With What Draft
12. Solo Flight
13. Smoo-ooth One
14. Air Mail Special

Label: Acrobat

Catalog: 1640

Genre: Jazz