Larry Carlton : Larry Carlton With Special Guest Robben Ford 'Live In Tokyo'

Larry Carlton with Special Guest Robben Ford, Two Legendary Guitarist... One Stage. This CD is a guitar lover's dream! Sixteen-time Grammy nominee, three-time Grammy winner and all-time guitar great, Larry Carlton established himself from his first recording, A Little Help From My Friends. His studio credits include musicians and groups like Steely Dan, Joni Mitchell, Michael Jackson, Sammy Davis Jr., Herb Alpert, Quincy Jones, Bobby Bland, Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and literally dozens of others. He went on to perform with the Crusaders and then with Fourplay. With 26 albums to his credit and having performed on over 100 albums that have gone Gold or Platinum, Larry Carlton has set a standard for artistry that spans three decades. Now joining forces with Robben Ford who at 18 was playing with the likes of Charlie Musselwhite, Jimmy Witherspoon, the L.A. Express with Tom Scott, George Harrison, and Joni Mitchell. In 1977, he was a founding member of the Yellowjackets, which he stayed with until 1983. Ford then toured with Miles Davis, Sadao Watanabe and Little Feat, but he seemed to really find himself in 1992 when he returned to his roots: the blues. Today, possessing a resume that includes stints with an impressively broad range of other musical personalities, Ford has demonstrated an uncanny adaptability similar to that of the MG's and the Muscle Shoals group. This guitarist effortlessly traverses genres without compromising his exquisite, blues-based playing and singing. This unique paring of two all-time great guitar legends promises to deliver an unforgettable evening of dueling guitar solos and an uncompromising evening of The Blues performed the way it was meant to be.

Full title is: Live in Tokyo with Special Guest Robben Ford

The All Music Guide rating for this album on a 1-9 scale (9=best) is: 7

The All Music Guide rating for this album among this artist's works on a 1-9 scale (9=best) is: 6

  Jeff Babko - Keyboards
  Robben Ford - Guitar, Vocals
  Toss Panos - Drums
  Travis Carlton - Bass

The history of jazz includes unlikely but successful collaborations as well as examples of people who should have gotten along but didn't. Miles Davis ' economy, restraint and understatement were quite a contrast to John Coltrane 's lengthy, stream of consciousness solos, and yet, they made great jazz together. Stan Getz and Chet Baker had a lot in common musically and should have collaborated time and time again; however, they couldn't stand one another. And then there are musicians who know they have a lot of musical common ground and act on that knowledge, which is what guitarist Larry Carlton and singer/guitarist Robben Ford do on this live disc (which was recorded in Tokyo, Japan in September 2006). The fact that Carlton and Ford (who knew each other from Tom Scott 's L.A. Express back in the mid-'70s) have a lot of common ground does not mean that their guitar playing is identical; Carlton is essentially a jazzman who has been greatly influenced by rock, soul, funk, and blues, while Ford is essentially a bluesman who has been greatly influenced by jazz , rock, soul, and funk. Neither are purists -- Carlton isn't a jazz purist any more than Ford is a blues purist -- and the fact they have eclectic tastes as well as similar tastes makes them logical allies musically. Live in Tokyo cannot be neatly lumped into any one category; jazz , blues, rock, and funk are all part of the musical equation, and Carlton and Ford clearly enjoy a strong rapport on memorable performances such as Carlton 's 'Burnable' and Ford 's 'That Road.' Ford doesn't do a lot of singing on this 64-minute CD; in fact, 'Talk to Your Daughter' is the only vocal offering on a mostly instrumental disc. Live in Tokyo is a rewarding example of what can happen when two musicians who have much in common musically get together. ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide