Lenny Breau

Lenny Breau distinguished himself as a jazz improviser equally at home on acoustic and electric guitars, shaping his right-hand technique from classical, flamenco, and country finger-picking traditions associated with Travis and Atkins. He counted among the earliest players to absorb the impressionistic, post-bop chord voicings developed by pianist Bill Evans. This skill allowed him to comp chords while simultaneously improvising single-string melodies, producing the effect of two guitarists performing together. His command of artificial harmonics continues to provoke envy in other guitarists. Late in life Breau took up the seven-string guitar, thereby extending the instrument’s upper register. His first RCA sessions blended diverse influences with technical brilliance, while his subsequent recordings exchanged flash for deeper communication.

Born to Canadian country music singers, Breau initially performed country material in an advanced style. Chet Atkins personally facilitated Breau’s RCA recording contract in 1968. Breau’s jazz-oriented approach together with his remarkable technique soon rendered him impossible to categorize. Drug problems rendered his career erratic, leaving him recognized today as an underground guitar legend. Guitararchives was established in 1995 expressly to issue privately recorded tapes of his performances.