It just cannot get any better than this. With all the due respect and admiration I feel for genius Joe Pass, I'd say he was very lucky Ed Bicker didn't record and play more solo concerts. Ed's harmonic concepts, taste and sound are just out of this world. I cannot find more recordings of this incredible genius playing solo guitar other than this one. So if someone reads my comment and know of other solo recordings of his, please point me in the correct direction. Thank you so much in advance and God bless Mr Bickert's soul wherever it is flying very high.
If any jazz guitarist hasn't heard this guy, then I would doubt his jazz education. So many talk about the well known ones but man, this guy is a once in a lifetime. Thanks for the post.
All my thumbs are going up to support your comment dude... He (Ed Bickert) is most certainly the one to learn from... Just watch this: ua-cam.com/video/osolDOtLuKo/v-deo.html
Very much agree with your comment. Everyone who plays jazz guitar know Benson, Montgomery, Grant Green, Kenny Burrell, Pat Martino, Jim Hall and the list goes on. The real gems and the people in the know and the real students of the genre know the unknown heroes like Ed Bickert. He was a true master with tones for days!
Wow, it doesn't get much better than this. Ed is a role model for all of us who aspire to play jazz guitar. His tone, his harmonic sense, his rhythm.... if you try to emulate Ed, you can't go wrong. He was truly one of the greats.
Growing up in Toronto it was great to be able to hear him live from time to time. My favourite was with Paul Desmond at Bourbon St. ($9.99 for a bowl of pasta - any sauce - just add a glass of wine).
Some people, musicians included, believe that what they do is frivolous. As a “music customer” who has enjoyed countless hours sharing an experience that I lack the ability to create I’d like to thank them for the joy they’ve given me. Ed played in the Hamilton area and I’ve tried to attend whenever Ed or any of his Boss Brass buddies were in our area.
In Rick Beato's interview with Julien Lage, they talked about jazz players that played a tele. Julien mentions Ed, Rick nodded his head like he knew who that was. So it would appear that he was familiar with Ed.
I could probably work that out note for note over several months of hard work, with all its intricacies and complexity. And then I would be left grappling with the fact that he composed it on the spot. It’s improvised. He literally pulled it out of thin air.
I've never understood why Ed Bickert was not celebrated by the global jazz community in the way he deserved. I think the passage of time will rectify that because his talent is objectively undeniable. The man was also incredibly humble, soft spoken with a dry sense of humour and generous in that he would share some musical advice or display his curiosity of people and life in a brief chat. What an amazing man.
I think it’s just because he stayed in Toronto, he didn’t go on the road and he didn’t record under his own name much. So he simply wasn’t known outside of Toronto and hard core jazz aficionados. It’s certainly not because of the quality of his playing
Mr Beckert recorded A LOT, he did a lot of studio sessions mostly at CBC as well as with The Boss Brass, his trios and duets aside from his recordings with Paul Desmond. But he was a very quiet unassuming man, he was a family man, didn't travel because he did not like to leave town, he didn't like the stardom and spotlight, he barely spoke. It was his choice. IMHO, I think he's at the top of most influential jazz guitarists of all time, I selected 7 of a long list of favorites, and placed them in alphabetical. Charlie Christian, Ed Bickert, Django Reinhardt, Jim Hall, Lenny Breau, Joe Pass, Wes Montgomery.
@@LuisMarioOchoa-ArtistI know he was very busy doing sessions, but under his own name as a trio or solo there aren’t nearly as many recordings as his contemporaries like Hall and Pass etc. You won’t be able to pick out much of him on big band recordings because he’ll be buried
That's so awesome! I wrote the Canadian government, shortly before his death, and suggested they make an extensive bio-pic of his career, since he was a knighted C.M.E. They basically replied- yeah- that's a nice idea. We already did a CBC special on him, once- I think. Made me mad. He was a real treasure.
@@jusplainmark I think that this was taken from that CBC show. If I recall, he was interviewed (off camera) by the jazz DJ of another station, CJRT-FM. Ted O'Reilly
Sorry to learn of the passing of Canadian guitar Jazz legend Ed Bickert in February 2019 ! He played with the best , most notably The Boss Brass Orchestra !
Someone should market Ed Bickert Chewing Gum and sell it in music stores! It must be the secret that separates the good players from the truly outstanding ones!
First time I heard Ed Bickert, was on the Paul Desmond Quintet Live at Bourbon Street. I was very impressed when hearing Ed's cord voiceings. Like pianistic style. He is not a fan of rock sound, but more propper sound as he says.He did never become a part of Fender family. Its almost a shame that they did not take care of the formost Tele-jazz voice in history. Maybe someone else?
Fender could have thrown him a bone, I agree. But when he was most active on the international stage in the 1980s and early 1990s, the "cult of the telecaster" was more limited to players coming out of the Roy Buchannan and Nashville/Bakersfield traditions. Fender probably knew that they weren't going to convince a lot of mainstream/bebop jazz players to start playing Fenders. Even with Mike Stern using one while playing a more modern style, Telecasters weren't getting much traction in the jazz world back then. Now Scofield and Frisell play Telecaster-like guitars on stage, and with the internet, it's easy to learn what Ted Greene and Ed Bickert were able to do with Fenders. Also, Ed thankfully didn't need much "taking care of" by Fender. He just kept getting his old Telecaster refretted, and it lasted him 30 years, even while he carted it around in some kind of crappy vinyl gig bag that offered almost no protection. Ted Greene and Bill Frisell were/are total equipment nerds, but Ed did not collect guitars or do much tinkering with them. He was old-school all the way.
@@zenobardot Also at a later point he swapped out for humbucker pickups - he always had a lovely sound but I almost prefer the original Tele neck pickup sound ( the lipstick tube)...
Rembrandt. Period. What makes this even more wonderful- and uncommonly interesting is Eds uncommonly brighter sound. Not sure if it was an eq adjustment by the recorder but a big relief after his tone was totally muffed and blanketed on the otherwise wonderful-P ure Desmond.
Ed is very eloquent on his guitar. Early rock and roll was simpler, less sophisticated musically and lyrically. There is room in my heart and head for both.
I think Ed was trying to describe the shock of hearing it after spending his early life learning to play traditional popular music, more than passing judgement on the ultimate value of rock. He did play all kinds of music as a studio musician in the 1960s and 1970s (and indeed, this is why he abandoned the hollow-bodied jazz guitar for his telecaster). Bickert can also play pure electric blues guitar licks very convincingly, something one doesn't hear Jim Hall or Wes Montegomery do. I do think his heart always stayed with swing and traditional pop, but he did evolve and expand his playing.
Wow I think he improvised the solo in part ! His chord melody solo improv is at least as deep as Wes Montgomery or deeper. I wish I had time to transcribe that or even look at a transcription of that I’m sure it’s somewhere.
Wowee maui- thanks for sharing! Would love to know if there's a whole tape from this trio(?) concert? I only ask because that looks like a blurry Neil Swainson in the background
What makes this recording intersting (there is no need to mention the obvious about the playing) is the unusually trebly sound he is getting. Wonder if Ed moved to middle position on his tele or is using round wound strings here. I have a 66 tele and do that and round wound-just so I dont sound like an exact crappy version of him!!
I'm hearing a really full, "humbuckery" tone when I listen...I was thinking the opposite (how his tone here has more bass than you hear on some of his studio recordings). Though I also hear lots of treble frequencies, as compared to say the 60s sound of Jim Hall. I was assuming he wasn't rolling off the tone control, and that his amp settings and the recording engineer were playing a part in getting that clear-sounding top-end.
![Lp. Сердце Вселенной #60 РОЖДЕНИЕ ЛОЛОЛОШКИ [Финал] • Майнкрафт](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/YoR0pAV9FVQ/mqdefault.jpg)
We have a million UA-cam jazz guitarists today, and none of them are even close to Ed.
It just cannot get any better than this. With all the due respect and admiration I feel for genius Joe Pass, I'd say he was very lucky Ed Bicker didn't record and play more solo concerts. Ed's harmonic concepts, taste and sound are just out of this world.
I cannot find more recordings of this incredible genius playing solo guitar other than this one. So if someone reads my comment and know of other solo recordings of his, please point me in the correct direction. Thank you so much in advance and God bless Mr Bickert's soul wherever it is flying very high.
thank you Ed - for sticking to your "way" of approaching guitar.
If any jazz guitarist hasn't heard this guy, then I would doubt his jazz education. So many talk about the well known ones but man, this guy is a once in a lifetime. Thanks for the post.
All my thumbs are going up to support your comment dude...
He (Ed Bickert) is most certainly the one to learn from...
Just watch this: ua-cam.com/video/osolDOtLuKo/v-deo.html
Mark Wilson
Lenny Breau too.
Very much agree with your comment. Everyone who plays jazz guitar know Benson, Montgomery, Grant Green, Kenny Burrell, Pat Martino, Jim Hall and the list goes on. The real gems and the people in the know and the real students of the genre know the unknown heroes like Ed Bickert. He was a true master with tones for days!
@Yael Saul all good
Fact!
Wow, it doesn't get much better than this. Ed is a role model for all of us who aspire to play jazz guitar. His tone, his harmonic sense, his rhythm.... if you try to emulate Ed, you can't go wrong. He was truly one of the greats.
R.I.P. Ed Bickert. What a wonderful genius, for the world to have enjoyed.
Growing up in Toronto it was great to be able to hear him live from time to time. My favourite was with Paul Desmond at Bourbon St. ($9.99 for a bowl of pasta - any sauce - just add a glass of wine).
How can this have only 347 likes?
That’s because you are a real musician Ed. A REAL musician. Bless your memory.
RIP He was the BEST. A classy man all the way around; a gentleman.
In terms of musical taste and playing is one of the best jazz guitarists ever
Incomparable, unique, elegant, a true master of the art of playing jazz guitar. For me, number one. I feel love for him.
Excellent playing- he was way out there, into his own groove- thanks
Some people, musicians included, believe that what they do is frivolous. As a “music customer” who has enjoyed countless hours sharing an experience that I lack the ability to create I’d like to thank them for the joy they’ve given me. Ed played in the Hamilton area and I’ve tried to attend whenever Ed or any of his Boss Brass buddies were in our area.
The greatest guitar player of all time. Tone, touch, melody and timing. And insane instincts and range. Nobody better.
A special guitarist who can create a beat completely out of the silence found in between notes and chords.
Absolutely One of the Finest at the Craft.
Good grief... Ed's playing is always just jaw dropping. Thanks so much for sharing this.
How #Rickbeato hasn't done a video on E.B. I do not understand.
In Rick Beato's interview with Julien Lage, they talked about jazz players that played a tele. Julien mentions Ed, Rick nodded his head like he knew who that was. So it would appear that he was familiar with Ed.
Love the “Darn that Dream” quote at the end of the tune ,
I could probably work that out note for note over several months of hard work, with all its intricacies and complexity. And then I would be left grappling with the fact that he composed it on the spot. It’s improvised. He literally pulled it out of thin air.
I've never understood why Ed Bickert was not celebrated by the global jazz community in the way he deserved. I think the passage of time will rectify that because his talent is objectively undeniable. The man was also incredibly humble, soft spoken with a dry sense of humour and generous in that he would share some musical advice or display his curiosity of people and life in a brief chat. What an amazing man.
I think it’s just because he stayed in Toronto, he didn’t go on the road and he didn’t record under his own name much. So he simply wasn’t known outside of Toronto and hard core jazz aficionados. It’s certainly not because of the quality of his playing
I said he didn’t record much but apparently there are 9 albums on concord but they don’t seem to be on Spotify ☹️
Mr Beckert recorded A LOT, he did a lot of studio sessions mostly at CBC as well as with The Boss Brass, his trios and duets aside from his recordings with Paul Desmond. But he was a very quiet unassuming man, he was a family man, didn't travel because he did not like to leave town, he didn't like the stardom and spotlight, he barely spoke. It was his choice.
IMHO, I think he's at the top of most influential jazz guitarists of all time, I selected 7 of a long list of favorites, and placed them in alphabetical.
Charlie Christian, Ed Bickert, Django Reinhardt, Jim Hall, Lenny Breau, Joe Pass, Wes Montgomery.
@@LuisMarioOchoa-ArtistI know he was very busy doing sessions, but under his own name as a trio or solo there aren’t nearly as many recordings as his contemporaries like Hall and Pass etc. You won’t be able to pick out much of him on big band recordings because he’ll be buried
THANKS FOR SHARING YOU DONT KNOW HOW IMPORTANT TO FIND THIS MATERIAL IS TO ME
So wonderfull ! He is a inspiration.
what a guitar player!
My grandmother was his sister I have his original harmony amp from 1962 it's sounds great
That's so awesome! I wrote the Canadian government, shortly before his death, and suggested they make an extensive bio-pic of his career, since he was a knighted C.M.E. They basically replied- yeah- that's a nice idea. We already did a CBC special on him, once- I think. Made me mad. He was a real treasure.
@@jusplainmark I think that this was taken from that CBC show. If I recall, he was interviewed (off camera) by the jazz DJ of another station, CJRT-FM. Ted O'Reilly
Awesome. Wow.
Sorry to learn of the passing of Canadian guitar Jazz legend Ed Bickert in February 2019 ! He played with the best , most notably The Boss Brass Orchestra !
mike sutton and Frank Rossilino, Sarah Vaughn, Paul Desmond and likely dozens of others
The peak of chord melody !
Ed Bickert RIP 2-28-2019. Unparalleled.
Gaaaah.... Such an outstanding player!
Someone should market Ed Bickert Chewing Gum and sell it in music stores! It must be the secret that separates the good players from the truly outstanding ones!
"Tone is in the gum."
He wasn’t chewing his gum he was chewing his gums Ha!
Just Perfect *****
Another Canadian guitar master.
First time I heard Ed Bickert, was on the Paul Desmond Quintet Live at Bourbon Street. I was very impressed when hearing Ed's cord voiceings. Like pianistic style. He is not a fan of rock sound, but more propper sound as he says.He did never become a part of Fender family. Its almost a shame that they did not take care of the formost Tele-jazz voice in history. Maybe someone else?
Fender could have thrown him a bone, I agree. But when he was most active on the international stage in the 1980s and early 1990s, the "cult of the telecaster" was more limited to players coming out of the Roy Buchannan and Nashville/Bakersfield traditions. Fender probably knew that they weren't going to convince a lot of mainstream/bebop jazz players to start playing Fenders. Even with Mike Stern using one while playing a more modern style, Telecasters weren't getting much traction in the jazz world back then. Now Scofield and Frisell play Telecaster-like guitars on stage, and with the internet, it's easy to learn what Ted Greene and Ed Bickert were able to do with Fenders.
Also, Ed thankfully didn't need much "taking care of" by Fender. He just kept getting his old Telecaster refretted, and it lasted him 30 years, even while he carted it around in some kind of crappy vinyl gig bag that offered almost no protection. Ted Greene and Bill Frisell were/are total equipment nerds, but Ed did not collect guitars or do much tinkering with them. He was old-school all the way.
@@zenobardot Also at a later point he swapped out for humbucker pickups - he always had a lovely sound but I almost prefer the original Tele neck pickup sound ( the lipstick tube)...
Rembrandt. Period. What makes this even more wonderful- and uncommonly interesting is Eds uncommonly brighter sound. Not sure if it was an eq adjustment by the recorder but a big relief after his tone was totally muffed and blanketed on the otherwise wonderful-P ure Desmond.
It was remixed for Mosaic by Don Thompson, who both played bass and recorded it all originally.
I dont believe it is on any mosaic tecording. I thoght it was only the Desmond quartet that is on it. Any idea of which amp he was using here?
Rest in peace.
Had a beautiful tone. The use of the Tele knocked me out. Wish I’d seen him play.
Che bel suono jazz !
a freakin wizard
Ed is very eloquent on his guitar. Early rock and roll was simpler, less sophisticated musically and lyrically. There is room in my heart and head for both.
I think Ed was trying to describe the shock of hearing it after spending his early life learning to play traditional popular music, more than passing judgement on the ultimate value of rock. He did play all kinds of music as a studio musician in the 1960s and 1970s (and indeed, this is why he abandoned the hollow-bodied jazz guitar for his telecaster). Bickert can also play pure electric blues guitar licks very convincingly, something one doesn't hear Jim Hall or Wes Montegomery do. I do think his heart always stayed with swing and traditional pop, but he did evolve and expand his playing.
They broke the mold after Ed..
Immenso
speechless
Title of my friend Albert Lee CD 😊
RIP
moving
Wow I think he improvised the solo in part ! His chord melody solo improv is at least as deep as Wes Montgomery or deeper. I wish I had time to transcribe that or even look at a transcription of that I’m sure it’s somewhere.
Wowee maui- thanks for sharing! Would love to know if there's a whole tape from this trio(?) concert? I only ask because that looks like a blurry Neil Swainson in the background
What makes this recording intersting (there is no need to mention the obvious about the playing) is the unusually trebly sound he is getting. Wonder if Ed moved to middle position on his tele or is using round wound strings here. I have a 66 tele and do that and round wound-just so I dont sound like an exact crappy version of him!!
I'm hearing a really full, "humbuckery" tone when I listen...I was thinking the opposite (how his tone here has more bass than you hear on some of his studio recordings). Though I also hear lots of treble frequencies, as compared to say the 60s sound of Jim Hall. I was assuming he wasn't rolling off the tone control, and that his amp settings and the recording engineer were playing a part in getting that clear-sounding top-end.
Thanks for that video, much appreciated. Is there more footage from where it came from?
Great player. Didn't know he was such a musical snob though.
fine and great musician
Het gets better Jazz sound with his old tele than many players do with these $20k archtop Jazz guitar. He use wonderful chord voices too.
Descriptive Words are useless. Ty for the post.
When is this interview/preformance from?
sensa