CHARLIE HUNTER
 
www.charliehunter.com
 
 
Charlie Hunter (born May 23, 1967) is an American guitarist, composer and bandleader. First coming to prominence in the early '90s Hunter has since become one of the leading names in jazz, recording 20 albums. Hunter is noted for playing custom-made seven and eight-string guitars, on which he simultaneously plays basslines, rhythm guitar, and solos. Critic Sean Westergaard[2] describes Hunter's innovative guitar technique as “mind-boggling ... he's an agile improviser with an ear for great tone, and always has excellent players alongside him in order to make great music, not to show off”.
Hunter was born in Rhode Island. When he was four his mom packed him and his younger sister in an old yellow school bus and headed west. After several years living on a commune in Mendocino County they settled in Berkeley, California. Hunter graduated from Berkeley High School and took lessons from famed guitar teacher Joe Satriani. At eighteen he moved to Paris. Returning to the Bay area, Hunter played a seven-string guitar and organ in Michael Franti's political rap group, The Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy. In 1992, they were one of the opening acts for U2's Zoo TV Tour.
Since the debut of his self-titled Charlie Hunter Trio in 1993, Charlie Hunter has recorded 20 albums. He co-founded Garage A Trois, a jazz fusion band with Stanton Moore and Skerik. He has collaborated with Bobby Previte for an ongoing project entitled “Groundtruther”. He also recorded and toured for Bobby Previte's The Coalition of the Willing in 2006. He appears on acclaimed jazz bassist Christian McBride's Live At Tonic. On both The Coalition of the Willing and Live at Tonic he plays 6-string guitars. His earliest known released recording without unusual guitars is as a guest bassist for the band Sweet Potato from California's East Bay. The song “Crankshaft” can be found on the Ubiquity Records compilation Mo Cookin from 1994 and the song “Monkey Wrench” can be found on the Ubiquity Records compilation Still Cookin from 1995. He also plays guitar on the track "Me and Chuck" from the Les Claypool and the Holy Mackerel album, Highball with the Devil, released in 1996.
Charlie played in the band T.J. Kirk active 1990s that merged the music of Thelonius Monk, James Brown, and Rahsaan Roland Kirk. T.J Kirk is: Will Bernard, Guitar; John Schott, Guitar; Charlie Hunter, 8-string guitar and Scott Amendola, Drums. Three recordings of the time are called: T.J. Kirk (1995), If Four Was One (1996) and Talking Only Makes it Worse released in 2005. Hunter contributed to three songs for D'Angelo's Voodoo (2000), including “The Root”. Hunter has stated that the session for the song was the most challenging session he has worked on.
In the summer of 2007, Charlie toured with a trio that included New York keyboardist Erik Deutsch and New York/New Orleans drummer Simon Lott. This trio recorded the July, 2007 Fantasy release Mistico. In 2008, Hunter recorded his first self-release, "Baboon Strength. Featured on the record are Erik Deutch on keys and Tony Mason on drums.
Hunter’s latest recording effort, Gentlemen, I Neglected To Inform You You Will Not Be Getting Paid, features the jaw-dropping guitarist alongside drummer Eric Kalb (Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, John Scofield) and a new horn section including trombonist Curtis Fowlkes (Jazz Passangers, Lounge Lizards, Bill Frisell), trombonist Alan Ferber (Don Byron, Kenny Wheeler) and trumpeter Eric Biondo (Antibalas, TV On The Radio). Gentlemen, I Neglected To Inform You You Will Not Be Getting Paid marks Hunter’s second full-length release on his independent label Spire Artist Media.

Here goes: Baboon Strength: Cool name, huh?
We recorded Baboon Strength at Trout Studio in Brooklyn. They have an old school set-up where everything happens in the same room, instruments, mixing desk, tape machine, everything. We recorded to 16 track two-inch tape before putting it in the digital realm (for those of you who are interested). Erik brought his 1970s Yamaha combo organ, Casiotone and Echoplex. His sonic aesthetic and abilities as an improviser are impeccable. Go Erik! Tony played Trout's big ass bass drum, snare and toms. He also happens to be, in my opinion, the best pure pocket drummer I've ever heard. Science. In terms of groove and time it's his world, we live in it, act accordingly. Erik and I both concur that he gets the game ball for this record. I brought some decent songs and tried not to overplay. It's a never- ending process. Dave McNair did a hell of a job mixing and mastering the disc. Check out the fat drum sound on Difford-Tillbrook. Athens: This tune is really supposed to be a kind of a set opener or closer, a “theme” so to speak. We call it Athens because the high-pitched one note melody is our version of said city's (Greece, not Georgia) horde of excruciatingly grating motor scooters. Astronaut Love Triangle: You know the news story. Welcome to Frankfurt: What can I say, Europeans like this because it has a four-on-the-floor bass drum pattern. Difford-Tillbrook: We call this one “The Squeeze Tune”. It has that vibe. A Song for Karen Carpenter: I think she was a great singer and wrote this with her in mind. Baboon Strength: Did you know that “strength” is the longest word in the English language with only one vowel? Fine Corinthian Leather: A four - chord jam. Porter-Hayes: This ended up with a quasi-Stax kind of sound so I named it after their two top writers. AbadabA: I was reading “Billy Bathgate” by EL Doctorow and decided to name this one after Dutch Schultz’s number crunching assistant.
ERIC KALB
Eric Kalb is a devotee of R&B drumming with an improvisational aesthetic colored by bursts of rock aggression. Best known for his high energy live performances he has toured North America, Europe, Australia and Japan with such notables as Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, John Scofield, Dr. Lonnie Smith, The Greyboy Allstars and Deep Banana Blackout to name a few. Along the way he has had the pleasure of playing with the legendary Allman Brothers Band and The Meters. Eric has also backed up Rock-n-Roll icon Chuck Berry and performed at such important events as the Newport, Monterey and Umbria Jazz Festivals. Recent studio sessions have included recordings for the major motion pictures American Gangster and Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. Eric Kalb endorses DW drums and Vic Firth sticks exclusively.
MARKO ĐORĐEVIĆ
Born in Belgrade in 1972, Marko Đorđević started studying the trumpet with Prof. Izudin Čavrković. He completed primary and secondary music schools as well as the first year of studies at the Faculty of Music in Belgrade. During his school years, he received a number of first prizes in Federal and Republic competitions, and participated in international competitions as well. In 1991 Djordjević started showing his inclination to jazz. He joined the RTB Big Band, leaving shortly for Graz, Austria, to study and work (1994-1999), and then Munich, Germany (1999-2004). During his stay abroad Đorđević gained wide experience, performing and recording with many jazz greats such as: Clark Terry, Barry Harris, Sheila Jordan, Don Menza, Dushko Goykovich, Charly Antolini, Peter Erskine, Brad Leali, Vic Vogel, and was selected as a soloist of the “European Youth Jazz Orchestra” twice. He has performed on all eminent jazz stages all over Europe, and recorded a number of CDs (Charly Antolini, Karlheinz Miklin, Dushko Goykovich ...)
Upon his return to Belgrade, he became a permanent member of the RTS Big Band. Đorđević has performed and recorded with the most prominent local musicians such as: Dushko Goykovich, Steve Gut, Vladimir Vitas, Bora Roković, Lazar Tosić, Eduard Sađil, Jovan Miković... and as a member of many formations (Jazz Connection, Belgrade Trumpet & Rhythm Unit, Lazar Tošić Quintet ...). He currently lives and works in Belgrade.
DRAGOSLAV FREDI STANISAVLJEVIĆ
Born on May 15th 1975, in Belgrade. Currently based in Belgrade. After high school Dragoslav Stanisavljevic played in the Radio Belgrade Symphony Orchestra. Later he studied at the Jazz Academy in Graz, Austria. During his period at the Academy he joined the high school big band which gave concerts with such famous jazz musicians as: Clark Terry, Benny Bailey, Bobby Shew and Bob Brookmayer. After graduating from the Jazz Academy he returned to Serbia and Montenegro and became a member of the Radio Belgrade Jazz Orchestra where he met and played with musicians such as Ray Charles, Diana Schuur, Ack van Royen and Peter Herbolzheimer. Dragoslav Stanisavljevic has also played in the International Octet of Dushko Goykovich - Trumpet & Rhythm Unit.
IVAN ILIĆ
Ivan Ilić was born in 1972 in Belgrade, where he completed primary and secondary music schools. In 1992 he graduated from the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston (USA), major Arrangement, with the highest grades. With equal success, he graduated from the Faculty of Music in Belgrade, Specialist Studies in Conducting.
He was professionally engaged in music education in Canada, and upon his return to Belgrade, he started leading the RTS Big Band as the conductor, arranger, composer and trombone soloist, successfully conducting the orchestra at numerous concerts, festivals and radio and television recording sessions. He has also established cooperation with many internationally acclaimed jazz musicians.
As an active performer, Ivan has performed at a number of international festivals worldwide, such as the Montreal Jazz Festival, Toronto Jazz Festival, Montreaux Jazz Festival, Belgrade Jazz Festival, “Django Reinhardt” Jazz Festival, Lucky Strike “Summertime” Festival, Valjevo Jazz Festival, North City Jazz&Blues Festival, Nishville, as well as festivals in Luxemburg, France, Germany, Austria, FRYOM, Greece, Bulgaria, Montenegro, etc.
Ivan Ilić has composed music for theatre, video productions, musicals and film.
He is the RTS Big Band conductor, President of the Association of Jazz, Pop and Rock Musicians of Serbia and the President of the Assembly of the Organisation for Collective Administration of Performing Rights of Serbia (PI).
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