Charlie Byrd Music

Brazilian Byrd along with The Bossa Nova Years are my two favorite Byrd CDs. Based on compositions by Antonio Carlos Jobim, this is a lyrical and ethereal performance by a talented and versatile guitarist. With Byrd's guitar at the helm and a ravishing orchestra as accompaniment, Jobim's melodies sing and float. The samba is light and melancholic, yet deeply moving.

...than this is a CD for you. Can't beat Charlie Byrd's guitar playing.

I believe that this CD can be considered a chamber-suite for acoustic jazz guitar and small orchestra; and that as such, it is a masterpiece! It's so perfectly performed, arranged and recorded; one gets the feeling that Jobim wrote these pieces specifically for this recording. I guess I wouldn't be letting the cat out of the bag if I said that this is my all-time favorite!

There are actually three important musical aspects of this disc to be considered: Charlie Byrd's consummate performance; Antonio Carlos Jobim's compositional genius; and Tommy Newsom's wonderful arrangements. It would be unfair not to mention Teo Macero's production expertise as well as the technically astute recording itself; however space prohibits elaboration.

Charlie Byrd was undoubtedly a multi-talented musician; and one of his primary talents was his ability to impart the true feeling of a composition - and what un-plumbed depths of feeling are provided for him by Jobim's compositions! Even in less talented hands, Jobim's magnificent melodies and haunting harmonies artfully express Brazilian life - both joyous and sanguine; on this disc we have the perfect collaboration of a master guitarist. Byrd's lush use of the full, expressive timbre of the acoustic guitar gives us the ultimate interpretation of this music.

What can be said about Jobim's genius? And I, like many others, do consider him a true musical genius. People can learn harmony; they can be taught to arrange, write scores, and they can study rhythmic variations. But melody is a gift. Antonio Carlos Jobim had the gift --- and he did the studying as well! "Corcovado" is one of the most beautiful melodies ever written; "Dindi", "Someone to Light Up My Life", and "O Amor em Paz (Once I Loved)" are all exquisitely melodic pieces. But, I have not heard a Jobim piece that wasn't.

Tommy Newsom's arrangements are what, I think, "make" this recording. Arranging is, in a sense, a form of composing, at least a really good arranger makes it seem that way. Newsom's sense of "what" fits "where" is brilliant. He makes all the components of this session musically coherent; emphasizing Byrd's guitar at just the right time, while giving the strings and woodwinds theirs, too! This was recorded before computer mixing techniques and the sophisticated acoustic-electric systems available on any acoustic guitar today; yet the balance between soloist and ensemble is perfect! Newsom, working with the compositional genius of Jobim, and the interpretative genius /technical expertise of Byrd, created a body of work of which any arranger would, and should, be justifiably proud. This is as good as it gets!

Brazilian Byrd along with The Bossa Nova Years are my two favorite Byrd CDs. Based on compositions by Antonio Carlos Jobim, this is a lyrical and ethereal performance by a talented and versatile guitarist. With Byrd's guitar at the helm and a ravishing orchestra as accompaniment, Jobim's melodies sing and float. The samba is light and melancholic, yet deeply moving.

This is an excellent album and I'm glad to see that is available in CD now, Charlie is an extraordinary guitarist and his rendition to Tom Jobim's songs is nothing but fantastic, it's one of those albums that you can enjoy by yourself at home or you can play as a background at your party or reunion and enjoy as well; if you like Brazilian-Jazz or Bossa Nova flavored music, this is a must-have for your collection; don't wait another minute and purchase it immediately.

"Christmas Carols for Solo Guitar" is one of the best of seasonal albums. We purchased the original in 1966. It is a sleeper but the religious message helps retain the spiritual nature of the holiday. Thanks for bringing it out on disc after all these years!

I understand Charlie Byrd is a great jazz guitarist, but you'd certainly never know it from his Christmas albums. The song selections are OK run of the mill holiday fare, but there is nothing to set these tracks apart. The chord melody style is so banal as to be droning, the chord choices are too simplistic, and the technique is quite heavy-handed and overly loud. To put it bluntly, they all sound like a 6th grader playing at a recital. I accidentally put this disc on my iPod and during a shuttle play, one of the tracks came on, and the effect was quite jarring.

If you want some good-sounding Christmas guitar, try David Cullen, Tuck Andress, Joe Pass or Alex di Grassi.

Charlie Byrd's mello guitar sounds bring the best feelings of Christmas to me. I carry it with me from the car to the house so when I am feeling the holiday is all too commercial, I listen to this CD and remember what Christmas really is. Of course, the fact that I love Charlie Bryd's music may have something to do with this. Best Christmas albumn ever.

A Army buddy in Germany had this and I always loved it, but never could find it there, before I got shipped out. When I got back from Vietnam I drove clear to Denver to buy the LP. I thought it was the best Christmas record I had ever heard. I think there are two cd's out now, so get them both, you won't be sorry! I gave them to my sons also.

Finally Charlie Byrd's solo guitar carols are on CD! I had the LP and it inspired me to learn to play carols on my guitar. There are many solo guitar Christmas recordings, but this is the best--in fact, one of the best Christmas music recording, period! It sounds like someone's sitting in the corner, quietly playing. Though Byrd is known for jazz & bossa nova, he plays it straight, without fancy ornamentation. I heard Byrd in Annapolis years ago, and he was an outstanding musician. This is simply a wonderful recording.

This album is exciting and tasteful at the same time. It is also at times emphatic, at times delicate, but always classy. With only bass and drums to complement him, Charlie's virtuosity shines through.
Naming particular tunes is largely pointless - it's all about the feel. But no-one has ever done "It Don't Mean A Thing" better, despite countless attempts.

Charilie Byrd is the quintessential SMOOTH. On this album he also gets down and dirty with a dry sense of humor. This album makes you want to drink beer straight from the bottle and dance around the room. Every single track is a personal favorite, but Ain't Got Nothin' But the BLues, is a definite call to feet.

This album is exciting and tasteful at the same time. It is also at times emphatic, at times delicate, but always classy. With only bass and drums to complement him, Charlie's virtuosity shines through.
Naming particular tunes is largely pointless - it's all about the feel. But no-one has ever done "It Don't Mean A Thing" better, despite countless attempts.

Charilie Byrd is the quintessential SMOOTH. On this album he also gets down and dirty with a dry sense of humor. This album makes you want to drink beer straight from the bottle and dance around the room. Every single track is a personal favorite, but Ain't Got Nothin' But the BLues, is a definite call to feet.

Like J. Klugman, I too had this album on vinyl, which is why I ordered the "digitally remastered version" of Blues Sonata.
Sadly, the Wow is awful and the choice of material to fill the CD is disappointing, although I understand that there may be copyright restrictions on more appropriate tracks being utilised.

This is an album I owned in vinyl in the early 60's. I hadn't heard it in decades but, on coming across a reminder of its existance, I remembered it clearly and bought the cd. The title of the album refers to a 3 part piece composed by Byrd which combines classical and jazz guitar styles - it's unique, with a slightly Spanish flavor, with interwoven crystal-clear musical lines, and is immensely enjoyable. It is also totally unlike the bossa nova music which Byrd popularized in Jazz Samba, his collaboration with Stan Getz.

This should not be your first Charlie Byrd album. It doesn't have the wonderful Samba rhythms that make some of his best albums such joyous experiences. However, this is good jazz with a nice beat and some very hot guitar playing. I enjoyed it from the first time I heard it, but it definitely has grown on me after repeated listenings. All the songs have strong melodies and a nice, easy to find beat. You can hear each instrument very clearly, so that you can really enjoy the interplay between the guitar, bass, drums and piano. Some of the songs are romantic ballads, but most have enough energy to get you into a nice groove.