[Dixielandjazz] Guitar vs. Banjo

[Steve Barbone]

As to why Freddie almost never (I think he soloed once or twice) took a
solo, best to let him tell us. See the below interview published in
Downbeat. (snipped).

As to hearing Condon's guitar, I have him on Mosaic CDs where you can easily
hear his guitar. Plus, be assured that when one saw Condon live, at his
joint on 3rd Street in the Village, one could always hear his guitar. Even
when Davison and Brunies were competing to see who could blow louder, before
Brunies moved to Chicago. (Very loud band then)

Just as one could hear the "changes" and "altered chords" of Freddie Green
as he anchored the Basie rhythm section and comped behind the soloists.

The why lots of banjo on earlier recordings? Simply because early recording
technology could not pick up the sound of an um-amplified guitar very well.
So those early guitarists, pre -recording years switched to banjo. Check out
Johnny St Cyr's axe, with that "Guitar Neck" married to a banjo bottom.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone 

Freddie Green - Guitar Who Welds The Band

Periodical: Down Beat Date: July 14, 1954

"You know what I call Freddie Green?" volunteered Count Basie. "He's a
tie-up man, because he's not only very steady for the rhythm section, but he
actually holds the band together." Basie's tribute to his long term
guitarist has been echoed for years by musicians of all jazz styles,
musicians who appreciate how important Freddie has been for 17 years to the
most rhythmically vital big band in jazz history.

Yet in terms of general publicity, the last of the great unamplifieds has
been taken for granted so long that rarely have any of Green's experienced
views been published on the nature of jazz rhythm and the function of the
rhythm guitar. In all these years, for example, Freddie has never recorded a
real solo for the Basie band. "I like to listen to guitar solos, " he
explains, "but when I first came into the band, I was told that the band was
built around the rhythm section and that rhythm was the important thing for
us to concentrate on, so that was it.

"Now I've played rhythm so long it's just the same as playing solos as far
as I'm concerned. The rhythm guitar, I've found, is very important, though I
didn't think that way in the beginning. For one thing, it kind of smooths
the beat out. The rhythm of a performance has what I call a 'rhythm wave',
and the rhythm guitar can help keep that wave smooth and accurate.

"As for whether I play altered chords or otherwise experiment harmonically,
it depends. If I feel the other half of the rhythm section is getting out of
the groove, I have to keep playing the basic rhythm to bring the waves back
even again. Or if the drummer takes a break, there's a tendency for the
rhythm section to get out of the groove when he comes back in, so I have to
keep the beat going.

"In general, being a rhythm guitarist, I have to concentrate on that beat
from beginning to end, listening for how smooth it is. If the band is moving
exceptionally smoothly, then I can play whatever comes to mind, but that
doesn't happen too often. Almost all the time I'm concentrating on the
rhythm wave.

"And Basie's piano certainly contributes to making the rhythm smooth. He
contributes the missing things. I feel very comfortable working with him
because he always seems to know the right thing to play for rhythm. Count is
also just about the best piano player I know for pushing a band and comping
for soloists. I mean the way he makes different preparations for each
soloist, and the way, at the end of one of his solos, he prepares an
entrance for the next man. He leaves the way open."