Indeed sorely. How long had you been a fan?

@@JmelBst I've listened to and seen Chuck perform live as far back as the early 90's. He had been a fixture or regular recording artist whose CDs were played regularly on underground and smooth jazz FM radio stations in big-city America as far back as 20-30 years ago. Had seen him twice in the Midwest, maybe 3 times. Just a consummate professional, no nonsense musician and really nice guy.

You're not kidding....he's real good. Melvin Davis on bass is also muy excellente. Rayford reminds me a little of Sonny Emory...another session guy who Lee Ritenour had out on tour some years ago. Also an outstanding percussionist.

Thank you.

The great Melvin Davis on bass

..saw Rayford in concert with JLP several times..an Indy guy that made it!

..got several of his albums..not a clinker in the bunch..

Magnificent wasn't he?

Yes¡ maestro

lol have you ever heard anything about John Mclaughlin or Pat metheny or John Scofield?

I even tried to play the blues by Scofield but i like how plays Chuck his improvisation just really beautiful.

Oh, there are maaaany fantastic guitarists out there. My personal gurus are Holdsworth, Govan, McLaughlin and DiMeola, but also guys like Gambale, Metheny and Thordendal. Ever heard of Barney Kessel, Attila Zoller, Tal Farlow, Herb Ellis? Brilliant musicians. But it does not have to be extremely technical or virtuoso. I also like Guys like Knopfler, Santana or Zappa (only talking about guitar playing). The list of superb guitarists is quite long...

That`s right, a lot of guitarists in the world, and each individual

+22fret I like your comment with the latter being guitar players only, I wish to be a musician composer theorist who happens to have a guitar in my hand occasionally. Unfortunately the availability of guitars to make a miriad of tones and sounds with little musical effort has spawned generations of guitar technicians who don't know what they are doing theoretically. Some like Joe Pass are perfect theory wise just by talent, others like Rosenwinkel seem to have acquired it through hard work and study, others like the Claptons Hendrix and Santanas are guys who found their sweet spots with the guitar but no point in studying them they play by ear. The Best guitarist is a guy in Chicago........his name is Steve Best.

Awesome talent!

Melvin Lee Davis

A SEVEN string bass!!!

@@77JeffT Anthony Jackson

I see that bass player with Lee Ritnoure also his skills are SERIOUS

Yes, he be very good, but it's all lead 6 string sound and neck exercise.....pull offs, bends, etc. What ever happened to the walking bass style of patterned run notes.....I don't think it was Chuck's best move to have two lead players.....as I've said before.....permitting a bass guy to have and use a 5 or 6 string bass instrument is akin to abdicating sonic real estate, octave wise and tone wise, for the regular 6 string guitar guy, in this case, Chuck. Makes no sense, none whatsoever, other than to permit showing off, of which there is enough in musical digressions like this little number.

Have him stick to the bass guitar, not a 6 string monster bass permitting access to conventional guitar tones and noodling up the neck. Just overkill and a perversion of bass guitar and it's role at the bottom of the tonal range and as a percussion/tempo instrument.

Why?

This was one of Chuck's signature numbers, a tribute to a guy he revered on the instrument.....but this live performance was very frustrating to guitar players and music fans in a technical context. Loeb's guitar solo might have been much better if it were a guitar solo and not some cheap impersonation of a synthesizer, keyboard or preamp loaded up with phase/delay/chorus and other distortion or signal distortion. What the hell is an octaver and why would that digital mutation even be necessary but for Melvin Davis playing his bass up in an octave range reserved for 6-string guitar? Davis had no reason to use a 6 string bass other than for ego to get into lead guitar soloing unnatural to that instrument. Loeb is a pristine sound player.....he ought to be laying this tune down on some kind of Gibson guitar with humbuckers, not a distortion infused Sadowsky. I mean this guitar tone that Loeb had to embrace just ruined his solo and tore down the entire performance to some garage band foray into the world of pedals, boxes, and psychedelia. God, do you even play guitar, sir?

Hans Zermuehlen, keys.

Why was Lenny Castro's name crossed out above?

Pete Wentz I sort of agree that Chuck flew well below the radar here in the US, he was probably one of the greatest guitarists ever, and I would say, the best contemporary jazz guitarist, Lee Ritenour and Larry Carlton were way behind Chuck as a composer, and with style. You can honestly tell that Chuck had played the guitar his entire life, and it came easy. I would say that Chuck’s legacy as a whole is cult like.

It may also be that in order to know about performers like Loeb, you have to be a listener of the genre that he occupied. Unfortunately, I know a few guitar players and friends who think they know music (lol) and they are all locked into The Beatles, British Invasion, and rock guitar players over the last 4 decades or so. Nothing wrong with that of course, but limited, yes. They never heard of Loeb, Ritenour, Carlton, Golub and others. I am fortunate to have had a bit bigger ear for music in general and have a wider listening range. Loeb was a unique talent and very disciplined/serious about his craft, in his own way every bit deserving of the acclaim reserved for guys like Clapton, Page, Beck, Hendrix, Blackmore, etc. Smooth jazz has always flown under the musical radar....and the performers just haven't received the kind of recognition their talent warrants....