back in 2001 whilst listening to 'tourist' by saint germain i was confronted with some of the greatest guitar playing i have ever heard. this was an electronic lounge album and i never expected to hear guitar riffs that would stay with me forever. there were two guitar greats playing on two different tracks here but the one that struck me the most was the second track on this album titled 'Montego Bay Spleen'. up until that moment i dont think i had ever heard such creativity on a guitar, and to be honest i dont think i've heard anything like it since
the guitar player in question is ernest ranglin. ernest grew up in jamaica and pretty much made a name for himself as a jazz guitarist during the 50's and 60's. apart from being a jazz guitarist he's played on a tonne of regae albums and rumour has it he taught bob marley how to play guitar. not a bad reputation to have. he's worked with lee scratch perry and jimmy cliff and on his solo albums has fused jazz with regae and made it sound totally cool
i love the way ernest plays the instrument. he plays with a smile on his face and does things with his fingers you wouldn't think are possible. it's almost as though he's finding a new way to make the guitar make a noise but it always sounds musical. he plays creative scales that dont sound wanky and has the technical proficiency of a master. he's a true doyen in the musical world
i suggest if you love jazz, regae, or even just groovy international music you check this guy out. later
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