Ted Vieira - Perfect Night
Ted
Vieira is a jazz recording guitarist. He is often compared with George
Benson, Wes Montgomery and Joe Pass. His favorite guitar is the Ibanez
L-5. Listening to the sound of this guitar, you immediately know why I
like his music, especially his album "Perfect Night". George
Benson plays Ibanez GB200 and GB10, but there is no great difference
between the sound of these guitars. But Ted also plays keyboards and
know a lot about drum programming. To complete his universatility he
also arranged ,wrote and digitally recorded, mixed and recorded all
songs on his third album. The result is a remarkable professional
album.
First of all I
recommend to concentrate on Ted's phenomenal guitar play starting A
Little Better. I
must admit I also followed the arrangement and observed all
instruments Ted plays like bass, strings, keyboards etc. A smooth
starter.
Desert Sky
has some Latin flavor. His guitar play is fluently and he easily
manages even ambitious parts of his song. Ted Vieira is a professional
guitarist with over twenty years of experience in performance,
composition and teaching and this is his demonstration.
His relaxed style
is significant. Listen for example to Takin'
A Break.
A piece for slow
dancing lovers is The
Closer I Get To You.
This cover version was formerly performed by Roberta Flack on her
album "Blue Lights in the Basement" (1977). The song was an
intoxicating duet with Donny Hathaway. If Ted would have engaged a
real trumpet player for this intimate tune, it would be perfect.
One of Ted's
favorite percussion instrument is the Kalimba. Introducing Time
To Go, Ted
showcases bongos, wood sticks and a great omnium-gaterum of other
rhythm instruments.
"Altered
dominant chords are one of the staples of jazz. Being able to not only
solo over those types of chords, but also create those kinds of sounds
in your solos is an invaluable strength to have as a player." Ted
realizes this proposition on Something
Special.
Ted's liking for
smooth slicks is obvious. Not
A Care is no
exception.
Your Eyes
also has a groovy going. The melody is echoed by several accompanying instruments. Ted has a great talent and doesn't hide it on this album.
What's Going On
is one of the most played covers I personally know. Marvin Gaye had
fought hard to get Motown to release this title. It's an epic song
cycle on which Marvin took total control and weaved his observations
about inner city youth, the ecology, and race relations. Ted's version
is flawless.
A mellow finish
with lyrical chords is Perfect
Night. Ted
has performed in every venue imaginable ranging from small intimate
clubs, to being a featured performer at international jazz festivals.
This album is featuring his silky style as a player in intimate clubs.
