Hey all. My postings have been sporadic as of late due to a bunch of personal and professional issues as well fighting a nasty flu! I should be getting back to more regular postings within the next few days as well as working on updating Jazz Guitar Life. So stay tuned for some good stuff coming soon.

And speaking of good stuff, I wanted to mention a site I came across yesterday created by University of Toronto Statistician Mike Evans. It is a site devoted to the musical life of Jazz Guitar Legend Howard Roberts and as Evans’ states:”I’m trying to assemble as much information as I can about his career in music and present this in a scholarly fashion.”In this regard Mike has succeeded. It is a rich site filled with articles, interviews and referential resources that should make any fan or interested individual knowledgeable about the impact that Mr. Roberts has had not only on the industry but in the education of Jazz Guitar specifically. Not only was Howard an influential player as a recording artists coming out with such phenomenal albums as “This Is Howard Roberts - Color Him Funky“, “The Howard Roberts Quartet - H.R. Is a Dirty Guitar Player“, and my all time favorite killer Jazz Guitar album “Howard Roberts - The Magic Band Live at Donte’s“, but he also worked on thousands of albums, film soundtracks and TV shows in a studio setting possibly rivaling studio ace Tommy Tedesco’s recorded output. A very impressive feat indeed.

On the educational front, Howard Roberts made it his mission to instill a philosophy and standard of learning and teaching of the highest order, culminating in his co-founding GIT (The Guitar Institute of Technology and now part of the overall Musicians Institute - MI) in the late 70’s with Pat Hicks. Roberts, “…applied a lifelong passion for learning theory to writing books and columns as well as conducting legendary seminars. His efforts raised the standards for guitar education and culminated in the establishment of GIT, the world’s first full-time contemporary guitar program.”

Howard Roberts has always inspired me to try and go beyond what I can do while having fun challenging myself and I hope you have the same experience as you read, listen and learn from a true artist. His body of work, both aurally and intellectually has left us with a lifetime study of this great music we call Jazz and if we can assimilate even one tenth of what Roberts has to offer then we would be way ahead of the game. That’s just my opinion of course so feel free to make a comment…:)

Jazz Guitar Stylings of Howard Roberts By Mitch Holder and Patty Roberts. For Guitar (All). Solos. Jazz. Level: Intermediate. Book. 112 pages. Published by Mel Bay Publications, Inc. (20011) See more info…