Earl Klugh | |
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 Klugh in 1999 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | September 16, 1953 Detroit, Michigan, U.S. |
| Genres | Jazz fusion, smooth jazz, easy listening |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar |
| Years active | 1970–present |
| Labels | Blue Note, United Artists, Liberty, Capitol, Warner Bros., Koch |
| Website | www |
Earl Klugh ( /kluː/ KLOO; born September 16, 1953) is an American acoustic guitarist and composer. [1] He has won one Grammy Award and received 13 nominations. [2]
At the age of six, Klugh commenced training on the piano until he switched to the guitar at the age of ten. At the age of 13, Klugh was captivated by the guitar playing of Chet Atkins when Atkins made an appearance on the Perry Como Show. [3] Klugh was a performing guest on several of Atkins' albums. Atkins, reciprocating as well, later joined Klugh on his Magic In Your Eyes album. Klugh also appeared with Atkins on several television programs, including Hee Haw and a 1994 TV special titled "Read my Licks". Klugh was also influenced by Bob James, Ray Parker Jr, Wes Montgomery and Laurindo Almeida. His sound is a blend of these jazz, pop and rhythm and blues influences, forming a potpourri of sweet contemporary music original to only him. [1]
Klugh's first recording, at age 15, was on Yusef Lateef's Suite 16 . [4] He played on George Benson's White Rabbit album and two years later, in 1973, joined his touring band. [5]
For their album One on One , Klugh and Bob James received a Grammy for Best Pop Instrumental Performance of 1981. He has since received 12 Grammy nominations, millions of record and CD sales, and continues touring worldwide to this day. Klugh also was awarded the “1977 Best Recording Award For Performance and Sound” for his album Finger Paintings by Swing Journal, a Japanese jazz magazine. [6]
Klugh has recorded over 30 albums including 23 Top Ten charting records—five of them No. 1—on Billboard's Jazz Album chart. With 2008's The Spice of Life, Klugh earned his 12th career Grammy nomination—his second nomination and release on the independent Koch label.
Each spring, Klugh hosts an event called Weekend of Jazz, featuring jazz musicians at the Broadmoor Hotel & Resort in Colorado Springs. [7] Jazz greats including Ramsey Lewis, Patti Austin, Chuck Mangione, Bob James, Joe Sample, Chris Botti, Roberta Flack, and Arturo Sandoval have all performed at the annual event. In November 2010, Klugh brought the 'Weekend of Jazz' to Kiawah Island Golf Resort in South Carolina. [8]
| Year | Title | Label | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Earl Klugh | EMI | |
| Living inside Your Love | Blue Note | ||
| 1977 | Finger Paintings | Blue Note | |
| 1978 | Magic in Your Eyes | Blue Note | |
| 1979 | Heart String | Blue Note | |
| 1980 | Dream Come True | EMI | Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Fusion Performance |
| Late Night Guitar | Blue Note | ||
| 1981 | Crazy for You | Blue Note | |
| 1983 | Low Ride | Capitol | |
| 1984 | Wishful Thinking | EMI | |
| 1985 | Nightsongs | Capitol | Grammy nomination for Best Pop Instrumental Performance |
| Soda Fountain Shuffle | Warner Bros. | ||
| 1986 | Life Stories | Warner Bros. | |
| 1989 | Solo Guitar | Warner Bros. | |
| Whispers and Promises | Warner Bros. | Grammy nomination for Best Pop Instrumental Performance | |
| 1991 | Midnight in San Juan | Warner Bros. | |
| 1994 | Move | Warner Bros. | |
| 1996 | Sudden Burst of Energy | Warner Bros. | |
| 1997 | The Journey | Warner Bros. | |
| 1999 | Peculiar Situation | BMG | |
| 2005 | Naked Guitar | Koch | Grammy nomination for Best Pop Instrumental Album |
| 2008 | The Spice of Life | Koch | Grammy nomination for Best Pop Instrumental Album |
| 2013 | HandPicked | Heads Up |
| Year | Title | Label | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | The Earl Klugh Trio, Vol. 1 | Warner Bros. | with Gene Dunlap and Ralph Armstrong |
| 1993 | Sounds and Visions, Vol. 2 | with Gene Dunlap, Ralph Armstrong & The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra |
| Year | Title | Label | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | One on One | Tappan Zee | with Bob James - Grammy award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance in 1981 |
| 1982 | Two of a Kind | Manhattan | with Bob James |
| 1983 | Hotel California/Super Guitar Duo | Verve | with Hiroki Miyano |
| 1987 | Collaboration | Warner Bros. | with George Benson |
| 1992 | Cool | Warner Bros. | with Bob James |
| Year | Title | Label | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | How to Beat the High Cost of Living | Columbia | Hubert Laws & Earl Klugh |
| 1983 | Marvin and Tige | Capitol | Patrick Williams & Earl Klugh |
| 1986 | Just Between Friends | Warner Bros. | Patrick Williams & Earl Klugh |
| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | The Jazz Channel Presents Earl Klugh | Image Entertainment |
| 2003 | Earl Klugh In Concert | BMG/Image |
Chester Burton Atkins, also known as "Mr. Guitar" and "The Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nashville sound, the country music style which expanded its appeal to adult pop music fans. He was primarily a guitarist, but he also played the mandolin, fiddle, banjo, and ukulele, and occasionally sang.
George Washington Benson is an American jazz fusion guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist.
Leonard Harold Breau was an American-Canadian guitarist. He blended many styles of music, including jazz, country, classical, and flamenco. Inspired by country guitarists like Chet Atkins, Breau used fingerstyle techniques not often used in jazz guitar. By using a seven-string guitar and approaching the guitar like a piano, he opened up possibilities for the instrument.
Robert McElhiney James is an American jazz keyboardist, arranger, and record producer. He founded the band Fourplay and wrote "Angela", the theme song for the TV show Taxi. According to VICE, music from his first seven albums has often been sampled and believed to have contributed to the formation of hip hop. Among his most well known recordings are "Nautilus", "Westchester Lady", "Tappan Zee", and his version of "Take Me to the Mardi Gras".
William Thomas Emmanuel is an Australian guitarist. Originally a session player in many bands, he has released many award-winning recordings as a solo artist. In June 2010, Emmanuel was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM); in 2011, he was inducted into the Australian Roll of Renown. In 2019, he was listed by MusicRadar as the best acoustic guitarist in the world.
White Rabbit is an album by George Benson. The title track is a cover of the famous Jefferson Airplane song by Grace Slick.This album was George Benson's second CTI Records project produced by Creed Taylor and was recorded nine months after Beyond the Blue Horizon.
Sails is the fifty-fourth studio album by Chet Atkins. It was released in 1987 by Columbia Records. Sails follows in the 1980s' vein of Chet Atkins' releases with a smooth jazz and new age atmosphere.
Stay Tuned is a studio album by Chet Atkins, released in 1985 on Columbia Records. His guests included George Benson, Mark Knopfler, Steve Lukather, and Earl Klugh.
Casa Del Vecchio Ltda. is a traditional guitarmaking company headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil. Since its foundation by Angelo Del Vecchio in 1902, it has produced a wide range of acoustic stringed instruments. In the 1930s, Del Vecchio began producing resonator guitars, resulting in their most famous model: the Dinâmico,.
This Time is the fourth studio album by Jazz vocalist Al Jarreau, released in 1980 on Warner Bros. Records. The release marked a change in Jarreau's sound to a more R&B-oriented flavor. As a result, the album achieved more success on the mainstream charts than his previous works, while also topping the Jazz Charts. It also reached No. 6 on the R&B charts and No. 27 on the Billboard 200." In 1981 "Never Givin' Up" gave Jarreau a Grammy Award nomination for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male.
One on One is a 1979 collaboration album by jazz keyboardist Bob James and guitarist Earl Klugh that won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance in 1981. In 1982 the album was certified gold in the United States.
The Spice of Life is a smooth jazz studio album by Earl Klugh released in April 2008. The album received a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Instrumental Album at the 51st Grammy Awards in 2009.
Naked Guitar is a solo-guitar studio album by Earl Klugh released in 2005. The album received a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Instrumental Album at the 48th Grammy Awards in 2006. After six years of studio absence, Klugh returned to the studio and released a fingerstyle jazz album similar to his 1989 release "Solo Guitar". Naked Guitar is the first album to be recorded by Klugh on the Koch Records label. It features solo interpretations of 13 standards and pop classics, as well as the song "Angelina", a tune from Klugh's self-titled 1976 solo debut album that he wrote in 1971.
Midnight in San Juan is a smooth jazz studio album by Earl Klugh released on February 19, 1991. The album was a commercial success as it reached No.1 on many jazz radio and retail charts, including hitting No.1 on the Top Contemporary Jazz Albums charts. In this release, Klugh lays heavy emphasis on Latin and Caribbean elements. Two songs on the album feature legendary NEA Jazz Master Jean "Toots" Thielemans on the harmonica and Grammy Award winner Don Sebesky as conductor and arranger.
Late Night Guitar is an album by jazz guitarist Earl Klugh that was released in 1980. The album received a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Instrumental Performance at the 24th Grammy Awards in 1982. In this release, Klugh is joined by strings and horns in an orchestra arranged and conducted by David Matthews.
Whispers and Promises is an instrumental-pop studio album by Earl Klugh released in 1989. The album received a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Instrumental Performance at the 32nd Grammy Awards in 1990. In this release, Klugh delivers his well-known "light and smooth guitar picking, backed by swarms of violins, chimes and gentle alto saxophones, beautifully arranged and wonderfully romantic". The album also features Grammy Award winner Don Sebesky as conductor and arranger.
Nightsongs is an instrumental-pop studio album by Earl Klugh released in 1984. The album received a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Instrumental Performance at the 27th Grammy Awards in 1985. This release has Klugh perform "a collection of funk-free, soft melodic standards with heavy string orchestrations", featuring legendary NEA Jazz Master Jean "Toots" Thielemans on the harmonica and Grammy Award winner Don Sebesky as conductor and arranger.
Low Ride is the 9th studio album by Earl Klugh released in 1983. The album features Klugh's signature sound of blending "heavy, rhythm-and-blues-oriented background with the feathery sound of Klugh". Conductor and arranger David Matthews joins Klugh on the orchestrated song "Christina".
Dream Come True is the 6th studio album by Earl Klugh released in 1980. The album received a Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Fusion Performance at the 23rd Grammy Awards in 1981.
Two of a Kind is the second album by Earl Klugh and Bob James, released in 1982. The album received a nomination for Best Selling Jazz Album at the NARM Awards in 1983, and peaked at No.1 on the Billboard Jazz chart in January 1983.
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