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Benny Green

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Benny Green is an American hard bop pianist, born in 1963 in New York. He grew up in Berkeley, California, and had classical piano lessons from the age of seven. He was interested in jazz from an early age, since his father played tenor saxophone. Faye Carroll discovered him, and while still a teenager he played in a quintet of Eddie Henderson. At Berkeley High School he played in the school's jazz group.

Music and breakthrough

In April 1983 he joined the band of Betty Carter. Later he became a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. Since 1991 he has led his own trio. His first albums are Prelude from 1988, In This Direction and Lineage from 1990, followed by The Place to Be in 1994, My Gentlemen Friend in 1996 and Kaleidoscope in 1997. He recorded for Blue Note, Telarc and Criss Cross, and in 2018 Then and Now appeared on Sunnyside Records. He regularly gives workshops in the United States, including at Jazz Camp West and Jazz Port Townsend, and tours the world with his trio.

Influence

Green is compared in style to Bud Powell and Oscar Peterson, whom he also names as influences. His playing is fast, full of swing and firmly rooted in the blues, and shows that the hard bop of the 1950s is still alive for a new generation.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to a track from The Place to Be from 1994. Notice the fast, flowing right hand and the blues in the left hand, which recalls Oscar Peterson.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

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Categories: Artists