Home » Jazz News » Performance / Tour

56

Guitarist Pete McCann Saturday August 12 at Chris' Jazz Cafe

Source:

Sign in to view read count
GUITARIST PETE McCANN CELEBRATES NEW OMNITONE CD MOST FOLKS IN CONCERT SATURDAY, AUGUST 12 AT CHRIS' JAZZ CAF, PHILADELPHIA

With saxophonist John O'Gallagher, bassist John Hebert, and drummer Mark Ferber

“An impressive guitarist who keeps company with the likes of the Maria Schneider Orchestra, Dave Liebman, Randy Brecker and Kenny Wheeler, McCann is fluent with several musical vocabularies...Along with fine playing and breadth, McCann has an underlying artistry, something that immediately places him a cut above players who tend to be one-trick ponies."
- Jim Ferguson, JazzTimes

“McCann obviously has been influenced by Bill Frisell, evident in his willingness to allow eclecticism to sneak into his music, and in his compelling variety of timbres-from hard-edged, country-style picking to thick, cluster strumming, and rock feedback alternating with sweet-toned jazz guitar sounds. But the external influences do not diminish either the quality of his playing or his very real prospects for breaking out of the crowded pack of jazz guitarists."
- Don Heckman, Los Angeles Times

Join guitarist / composer Pete McCann and his quartet - John O'Gallagher, saxophones; John Hebert, bass; Mark Ferber, drums and percussion - as they celebrate the release of their new OmniTone CD Most Folks in concert at 8 and 10 pm on Saturday, Chris' Jazz Caf, 1421 Sanson Street, Philadelphia. Tickets are $12. Call 215-568-3131 or log on to www.chrisjazzcafe.com.

Versatile guitarist, New York new music composer, and much-in-demand jazz collaborator Pete McCann's third CD as a leader showcases his uncommon guitar prowess. From gentle nylon acoustic guitar sounds to sinewy and intricate jazz guitar runs to roots-of grunge Jimi Hendrix-inspired hooting, McCann blends straight-ahead jazz, post-bop, creative improvised music, and Latin on Most Folks (OmniTone, May 23, 2006).

Featuring a quartet that includes top improvisers from the Big Apple's vital jazz and creative music scene, the eminently listenable CD features homespun and wide-ranging inspirations from McCann's life including his kids and Ecuadorian aunts to Middle Eastern cab drivers, Colonel Sanders, and a “backspeaking" commander-in-chief to guitar heroes Allan Holdsworth and John McLaughlin.

Considering a select sampling of the folks McCann has performed or recorded with on 50+ albums - Kenny Wheeler, Dave Liebman, The Other Quartet, Kenny Garrett, Peter Erskine, Tom Varner, the Maria Schneider Orchestra, Curtis Stigers, George Schuller, and the Mahavishnu Project - it's hard to pin him down musically. “I like music; I like all different types of jazz - jazz-rock, jazz fusion, old-school standard jazz, nylon-stringed Brazilian guitar styles - I love it all," explains the Wisconsin-born guitarist and composer who's called the New York area home for more than fifteen years. “I don't like to be and I've never been really pigeonholed into one category. I don't know why you should have to be." Little wonder, coming from the tall, unassumingly baby-faced guitarist who feels nearly as comfortable pluckin' country music as he does roaring through Wes Montgomery licks or heavy metal thrash. His music, says Geraldine Wyckoff in JazzTimes, “...makes you wish that McCann was playing down the street so you could run over and check this chameleon out - he is definitely that compelling."

Starting with his early days of studying guitar in Eau Claire with a teacher who had played cornet years earlier on the Milton Berle Show and who expanded McCann's musical horizons by writing original Django Reinhardt-type tunes for him, McCann's diverse influences include a mother who sang along with him when he practiced, a father who listened to 24/7 country radio, a brother who listened to Three Dog Night and Peter Frampton, a sister who played flute, a musical degree at “Bebop U" (North Texas State), and even working Dixieland banjo gigs. More information on Most Folks (including a biography, discography, and publicity photos of McCann) is available at www.OmniTone.com.

OmniTone Inc, founded in 1999, is dedicated to releasing new recordings of “adventurous and listenable jazz" from today's foremost creative improvising musicians. Through the label and its online store, OmniTone offers “All the tones, all the shapes, all the time..." OmniTone CDs are available internationally at fine retailers and on-line.

Visit Website

For more information contact .

Comments

Tags

View events near Philadelphia
Jazz Near Philadelphia
Events Guide | Venue Guide | Local Businesses | More...

News

Popular

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.