Additional Liner Notes for GUITAR IN VELVET

Modern Harmonic Website

After his discharge from the army in 1946, electric guitar pioneer George Barnes returned to his hometown of Chicago and formed The George Barnes Octet. He had established himself before the war as a radio star on others’ shows; but now, he was given a 15-minute program of his own on the ABC Radio Network, transcriptions of which were broadcast across the country. The recordings of the Octet’s extraordinary live performances showcased Barnes’ intricate, avant-garde arrangements (including 26 Barnes originals). Those 48 performances have been celebrated for decades as a singular achievement by an artist whose career was not only defined by his supremely identifiable playing, but by his bold and inventive arranging and composing. 

“I had complete freedom on the network to play whatever I wanted,” Barnes said in a 1977 interview, “and we were very well received, because the sound contrasted so much with the vanilla sounds of staff bands in those days. We were considered very far out.”

In 1951, Barnes was offered a comprehensive contract by Decca Records, and moved east, establishing himself as a first-call guitarist in the recording studios of New York City, where he worked with, and befriended, the finest musicians in the industry. The players who’d comprised his Chicago octet were first class; but the four reed players were from the Chicago Symphony, and Barnes had to teach them how to swing! In 1957, he began to write octet arrangements again; this time, with the thought of bringing his New York friends–who knew very well how to swing–along for the ride. Barnes’ new arrangements were calibrated to the new era, and his experimentation with time signatures, contrapuntal writing, and harmonic structures in the late 1940s bore fresh fruit in the late 1950s. “Guitar in Velvet” is the superb result, owing not only to Barnes’ musical ingenuity, but to his fellow masters: Allan Hanlon (rhythm guitar), Lou Stein (piano), Jack Lesberg (double bass), Cliff Leeman (drums), Hank D’Amico (clarinet), Bernie Kaufman (saxophone), Romeo Penque (flute, oboe), and Danny Bank (bass clarinet). These were all men of great musical achievement; they belonged together, and you can hear it in every note.

“September in the Rain” is the only song Barnes had arranged for the original Octet that he also arranged for “Guitar in Velvet.” If you have a chance to make a comparison, you’ll hear two marvelous performances by Barnes and his comrades; you’ll also hear in this recording a guitarist and arranger whose mastery had reached a new level. And he didn’t stop there. But there’s no doubt you’ll enjoy hanging with him here for awhile.

-Alexandra Barnes Leh for The George Barnes Legacy Collection