Legends of Jazz Guitar - Stefan Grossman's Guitar Workshop

CHARLIE BYRD
“Some guitarists impress me.
Some guitarists reach me. Charlie Byrd does both.”
— Herb Ellis on Charlie Byrd
Charlie Byrd’s background is nothing if not eclectic.
Born in Chuckatuck, Virginia, in 1925, Byrd’s first musical
experiences were playing country music on the radio
in Newport News with his father. He later tried his hand
at playing jazz with a pick, only to be seduced by the
sounds of the classical guitar. He studied with Segovia in
1954, but experienced a withering revelation: “I really
wasn’t going to be a significant classical guitar player,”
Byrd recalls. Subsequently he decided to arrange some
jazz for classical guitar, and this new sound debuted on a
1956 Savoy label album, Jazz Recital.
Byrd’s new approach to jazz found a welcome audience.
He won down beat’s New Star award in 1960, the
same year he toured with Woody Herman’s band. The
following year the State Department sponsored Byrd’s
musical goodwill tour of Latin America, an event which
led to Byrd’s role in introducing Brazil’s ‘new beat’ (bossa
nova) sound to America. His duet album with Stan Getz,
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