White Rabbit (CTI Records 40th Anniversary Edition George Benson

• 1 White Rabbit 06:55
• 2 Theme From Summer Of '42 05:05
• 3 Little Train (From Bachianas Brasileiras #2) 05:46
• 4 California Dreamin' 07:19
• 5 El Mar 10:49
• Total Runtime 35:54

Info for White Rabbit (CTI Records 40th Anniversary Edition

Recorded in three days in 1971, this CTI recording has been lauded as one of George Benson's best releases. A stellar cast of musicians--all in their best form--are featured on „White Rabbit“, including Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Billy Cobham, Hubert Laws, and Benson's then-young protege, Earl Klugh. Arranger Don Sebesky creates some of the most creative twists on the popular songs of the time such as "White Rabbit" and "California Dreamin," as well as on Hector Villa-Lobos' "Little Train."

The recording has a Spanish flavor throughout, as well as a mysterious, psychedelic tinge reminiscent of the time it was recorded. The players put forth the kind of energy that is rarely found in recordings. Benson's guitar playing here is the stuff that has made him famous.

White Rabbit was a 1972 Grammy® nominee for Best Jazz Performance by a Group and features the signature title track arrangement of the Jefferson Airplane classic.

George Benson, guitar
Airto Moreira, vocals, percussion
John Frosk, trumpet, flugelhorn
Alan Rubin, trumpet, flugelhorn
Jim Buffington, French horn
Wayne Andre, trombone, baritone horn
George Marge, flute, alto flute, clarinet, oboe, English horn
Phil Bodner, flute, alto flute, oboe, baritone horn
Hubert Laws, flute, alto flute, piccolo
Romeo Penque, alto flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, oboe, English horn
Jane Taylor, bassoon
Gloria Agostino, harp
Herbie Hancock, electric piano
Phil Kraus, vibraphone, percussion
Jay Berliner, acoustic guitar
Earl Klugh, acoustic guitar
Ron Carter, bass
Billy Cobham, drums

Recorded November 23 & 30, 1971 at Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey
Mastered at Battery Mastering Studios
Produced by Creed Taylor

Digitally remastered

Born on March 22, 1943 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Benson showed prodigious talent from an early age, winning a singing contest when he was only four years old and enjoying a short career as a child radio performer under the name of “Little Georgie Benson.” He started playing the guitar when he was eight, but it was as a vocalist that he spent much of his vast musical energy as a teenager, organizing and performing with a succession of rhythm-and-blues and rock bands around Pittsburgh. He made recordings for RCA Victor’s X Records subsidiary in the middle 1950s. But Benson’s stepfather encouraged his instrumental efforts by constructing a guitar for him, and in his late teens he began to concentrate exclusively on guitar. Seeking out the music of modern jazz’s golden age, he became more and more interested in jazz, and was particularly inspired by recordings of saxophonist Charlie Parker and guitarists Charlie Christian and Grant Green.

Discovered by John Hammond: In 1961 Benson jumped to the national stage when he joined the group backing jazz organist Jack McDuff. He played and recorded with McDuff for four years. Then he struck out on his own: he moved to New York City, then the capital of the jazz universe, and formed his own band. There Benson made two acquaintances who proved crucial in setting him on the path to jazz stardom: guitarist Wes Montgomery, whose soft tone and graceful octave playing provided Benson with his most important stylistic inspiration, and Columbia Records producer and executive John Hammond, whose unerring eye for talent brought

This album contains no booklet.