Joshua Breakstone

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Joshua Breakstone
Born (1955-07-22) July 22, 1955 (age 70)
Elizabeth, New Jersey, U.S.
Genres Jazz
OccupationMusician
InstrumentGuitar
Years active1977–present
Labels Contemporary, Double-Time, Capri
Website joshuabreakstone.com

Joshua Breakstone (born July 22, 1955) is an American jazz guitarist.

Contents

Joshua Breakstone came into contact with the music business early in life through his parents and siblings. His sister was a lighting technician at the Fillmore East theater, where he saw musicians such as Jimi Hendrix and Frank Zappa. Later, he became interested in jazz and was influenced by Charlie Parker and Lee Morgan. He studied with guitarist Sal Salvador in Manhattan. In 1972, he enrolled at the New College of the University of South Florida and graduated three years later. He continued his studies at Berklee College of Music.

After living in Brazil for a few months, he returned to New York City, where he performed and taught. In 1979, he recorded with Canadian saxophonist Glen Hall, with Joanne Brackeen, Cecil McBee, and Billy Hart participating. Until 1983, when he recorded his debut album, he worked with Vinnie Burke, Warne Marsh, Emily Remler, and Aaron Bell. He taught privately and at the Rhode Island Conservatory of Music. In 1983 Breakstone recorded his first album as leader Wonderful! that was released on Sonora Label in 1984 and featured Barry Harris on piano. The recording was followed by 4/4= 1 also on the Sonora Label and featuring Kenny Barron on piano.

Beginning in 1986, Breakstone recorded four albums for Contemporary Records, with sidemen including Pepper Adams, Kenny Barron, Dennis Irwin, Jimmy Knepper, Tommy Flanagan, Keith Copeland, and Kenny Washington. In 1986 he went on his first tour of Japan. Since then, Breakstone has played twice a year in Japan. He has worked with Terumasa Hino, Monkey Kobayashi, and Eiji Nakamura. In 1991, he signed a contract with the Japanese label King Records, which released four albums: Walk Don't Run (with interpretations of Shadows and Ventures numbers such as "Telstar" and "Apache") and I Want to Hold Your Hand and Oh! Darling, two albums with Beatles compositions.

On Remembering Grant Green (Evidence, 1996), he worked with organist Jack McDuff and the drummer Al Harewood, who had been sidemen for guitarist Grant Green. His album Sittin' on the Thing with Ming (Capri, 1994) contained many of his compositions. He followed that album with tributes to Thelonious Monk, Wes Montgomery, and Bud Powell. He recorded A Jamais (Capri, 2004) with French musicians Louis Petrucciani and Joël Allouche  [ de ]. In 2005, the album Memoirs - The French Sessions, Vol. 2 was produced in France.

Discography

Year recordedTitleLabelPersonnel/Notes
1983WonderfulSonoraWith Barry Harris (piano), Earl Sauls (bass), Leroy Williams (drums) [1]
1984 4/4 = 1 SonoraWith Kenny Barron (piano), Earl Sauls (bass), Victor Jones (drums) [2]
1987 Echoes Contemporary With Pepper Adams (baritone sax), Kenny Barron (piano) Dennis Irwin (bass), Keith Copeland (drums) [3]
1988 Evening Star ContemporaryWith Jimmy Knepper (trombone), Tommy Flanagan (piano), David Shapiro (bass), Keith Copeland(drums) [4]
1989 Self-Portrait in Swing ContemporaryWith Kenny Barron (piano), Dennis Irwin (bass), Kenny Washington (drums) [4]
1991 9 by 3 ContemporaryWith Dennis Irwin (bass), Kenny Washington (drums) [4]
1991 Walk Don't Run King With Kenny Barron (piano), Dennis Irwin (bass), Kenny Washington (drums) [5] [6]
1992I Want to Hold Your Hand (The Compositions of the Beatles Vol. 1)Paddle WheelWith Kenny Barron (piano), Dennis Irwin (bass), Kenny Washington (drums) [4]
1992Oh! Darling (The Compositions of the Beatles Vol. 2)Paddle WheelWith Kenny Barron (piano), Dennis Irwin (bass), Kenny Washington(drums) [4]
1993Sittin' on the Thing with Ming Capri With Kenny Barron (piano), Ray Drummond (bass), Keith Copeland (drums) [4]
1993Remembering Grant GreenEvidenceWith Kenny Barron (piano), Jack McDuff (organ), Ray Drummond (bass), Al Harewood and Keith Copeland (drums) [4]
1996Let's Call This Monk! Double-Time With Dennis Irwin (bass), Mickey Roker (drums) [5]
1999This Just In...Double TimeWith Sid Simmons (piano), Dennis Irwin (bass), Kenny Washington(drums) [5]
2000The Music of Bud PowellDouble TimeWith Earl Sauls (bass), Keith Copeland (drums) [5]
2002Tomorrow's HoursCapriWith Earl Sauls (bass), Keith Copeland (drums) [5]
2003A JamaisCapriWith Louis Petrucciani (bass), Joel Allouche (drums) [5]
2004Memoire: The French Sessions Vol. 2CapriWith Louis Petrucciani (bass), Christian Salut (drums) [5]
2009No One NewCapriWith Lisle Atkinson (bass), Eliot Zigmund (drums) [7]
2013With the Wind and the RainCapriWith Mike Richmond (cello), Lisle Atkinson (bass), Eliot Zigmund (drums) [8]
20142nd Avenue: The Return of the Cello QuartetCapriWith Mike Richmond (cello), Lisle Atkinson (bass), Andy Watson (drums) [8]
201688CapriWith Mike Richmond (cello), Lisle Atkinson (bass), Andy Watson (drums) [9]

References

  1. "Joshua Breakstone: Wonderful". AllMusic . Retrieved February 5, 2019.
  2. Yanow, Scott. "Joshua Breakstone Quartet: 4/4 = 1". AllMusic . Retrieved February 5, 2019.
  3. Yanow, Scott. "Joshua Breakstone: Echoes". AllMusic . Retrieved February 5, 2019.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (1996). The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD (3rd ed.). Penguin. p. 173. ISBN   978-0-14-051368-4.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 167. ISBN   978-0-141-03401-0.
  6. "Joshua Breakstone Quartet: Walk Don't Run". AllMusic . Retrieved February 5, 2019.
  7. Nastos, Michael G. "Joshua Breakstone:No One New". AllMusic . Retrieved February 5, 2019.
  8. 1 2 Yanow, Scott (September 2015). "Joshua Breakstone: 2nd Avenue – The Return of the Cello Quartet". DownBeat . Vol. 82, no. 9. p. 63.
  9. Protzman, Bob (January 2017). "Joshua Breakstone Cello Quartet: 88". DownBeat . Vol. 84, no. 1. p. 71.

Sources