Favorite jazz guitar tone?

[rontalsaurus]

I've come to appreciate tone of specific jazz guitarists more and more...and the influence it has on the overall quality of their music.

Certain people have developed very unique tones that are unmistakenly their own. For me, the ones that really stand out are:
Pat Martino--thick, almost rubbery quality. very bass heavy, very little treble presence.
Pat Metheney--smooooooooth. buttery. lots of reverb and sustain and a very even, almost glassy sheen.
John Scofield--a little dirty, always a little bit of flange (kind of irks me sometimes). almost crunchy in ways.
John McLaughlin--thin, piercing midrange with a touch of chorus (?) and reverb. Very strong attack that allows him to get definitioninto those blisteringly fast runs.
Grant Green--Staccatto yet somewhat fat at the same time. Very strong attack and present midrange and treble, just the smooth side of twang, with a touch of reverb.

What are some others? Favorites?

note: I realize trying to use words to describe tone is like dancing about architecture.

[superbassman2000]

pat metheny has my favorite jazz guitar tone,
Joe Pass has good tone as well
Bill Frisell has a cool tone

[Rick Brienzo]

Bill Frisell. His tone reminds me of a pedal steel. Lots of volume pedal work with nice chords.

[tkozal]

McLaughlins tone NOW is what you describe, it didn't used to be that way.

I bought the Dexter Gordon Proper box, and it has about 90 minutes of the Elks Club jam sessions. Barney Kessel is the guitarist. He has to crank his poor little amp up so much, it starts to saturate and distort, radical for its time, but a great, great tone from a great player.

[zac2944]

Originally Posted by Rick Brienzo

Bill Frisell. His tone reminds me of a pedal steel. Lots of volume pedal work with nice chords.

+1

Frissell has amazing touch and tone.

[Kink Rimson]

Originally Posted by tkozal

McLaughlins tone NOW is what you describe, it didn't used to be that way.

I.

McLaughlin's tone, and indeed his whole performance, on the early Mahavishnu Orchestra albums is nothing short of remarkable.
One of the few guitarists to ever make me think, "I'd love to play like that!" ( alongside Howe, Blackmore and May).

[flatwoundfender]

Wes Montgomery - It's got balls and he's killer
Grant Green - I like his later funkier stuff, for the straight jazz it was kind of empty when set next to Montgomery's
Mel Brown - Has a lot of blues in (as he played a lot of blues also)
Django - He was a killer guitarist with killer sound.

[Snarf]

+1 to Pat Martino.

P.S. I hate John Scofield.

[BIg O]

Wes Montgomery, Larry Coryell, Al Dimeola and Larry Carlton.

And I agree with flatwounder on Mel Brown for blues/jazz - he is a local hero; our band played at a benefit for him a few years ago.

[steveb98]

Wes Montgomery
Howard Roberts
Pat Martino
Norman Brown - I know he's gone smooth, but still has a hell of a tone.
Ted Greene
Bill Frizell - for constantly coming up will new sounds in jazz guitar
Chet Atkins - Some might think of him as Jazz, but he played it all

[SuperDuck]

I have heard most of the above, and they are all great!

I would add John Abercrombie to the list, though sometimes it seems he goes for a more non-traditional sound.

[Brad Maestas]

+1000 for Bill! Just saw him at the Livingroom last week. I try to see him as much as possible. I'm a nut for his playing but you should see my roommate! He likes him so much it's annoying.

Ben Monder - the guy is a freak, period.
Steve Cardenas - met him when we both lived in KC, lovely tone
Allan Holdsworth - mastered the legato touch, amazing chordal work
Tim Miller - plays a Klein, mixes acoustic and electric sounds
David Torn - people often mistake him for Frisell, crazy ideas

[Rick Brienzo]

Originally Posted by Snarf

+1 to Pat Martino.

P.S. I hate John Scofield.

But Scofield can make that minor 2nd work with anything.

[JimK]

Pat Martino...he lived behind me back when I lived in Philly(too bad I was only 6-8 years old).

Steve Khan-
Albums like Crossings, Let's Call This, Headline, Got My Mental.

[Richard Lindsey]

Jimmy Raney
Jim Hall
Wes Montgomery
Bill Frisell

There are tons more, but these are some of my faves.

To me, it's not really about some idealized single Jazz Tone. It's more about having a tone that's personal to you and expressive of what you want to say. From that point of view, even some "ugly" tones can be beautiful.

[burk48237]

I'm not over Schofields playing, sometimes his intervals are a little to large, but his tone is excellent. As far as straight ahead jazz playing Kenny Burrell is hard to beat, he has one of the warmest sounds I've ever heard. As far as fusion Larry Carltons 335 sound still sets the standard. But for combination of tone and chops I'll go with Pat Metheny, the most melodic gutiarist ever.

[markjazzbassist]

metheny gets my vote

i am also a big fan of his playing and songwriting abilities. he is one of the best, ever.

in honor of this thread ill put some on in my itunes. The self-titled pat metheny group album, ooooooooooweeeeeee

[PaulMacCnj]

Pat Metheny, especially when he slows down and let's the semi-hollow electric guitar ring. Beautiful!

Also, I saw Pat last November and he opened the show by playing solo on a harp guitar. The combination of the low bass notes with the masterful hammer-on chords sent chills through me. Ain't good music great?

Paul Mac

[tkozal]

theres a great bit in the Miles autobio about how behind the beat Scofiled is...Miles was just amazed....

[Philbiker]

Pick up any post-Police Andy Summers album. You'll find them in the "Jazz" section of your local store. Best jazz guitar tone I've ever heard, and the best playing as well. I'm a big fan of Scofield also, and Tal Farlow always has great tone.