Great Guitars: Stanley Jordan

In a career that took flight with immediate commercial success and critical acclaim, guitar master Stanley Jordan has consistently displayed a chameleonic musical persona of openness, imagination, versatility and maverick daring. Be it bold reinventions of classical masterpieces or soulful explorations through pop-rock hits, to blazing straight ahead jazz forays and ultramodern improvisational works-solo or with a group-Jordan can always be counted on to take listeners on breathless journeys into the unexpected. To date Jordan has performed in over 60 countries on 6 continents. During the 1980s, he collaborated with a diverse array of artists, including performances with Art Blakey and Richie Cole and recordings with Stanley Clarke and Kenny Rogers. The track with Rogers, “Morning Desire,” became America’s #1 country song in 1986. Later, Jordan became a frequent guest with Les Paul during Paul’s legendary Monday nights at Iridium in New York. Today, Jordan performs frequently as a soloist and with his band, as well as collaborating with other guitarists such as Kevin Eubanks, Sharon Isbin and Muriel Anderson. He’s also a frequent guest with jam bands such as the Dave Matthews Band, the String Cheese Incident, Phil Lesh, Moe and Umphrey’s McGee. Jordan has received four GRAMMY nominations. And, his most recent album, Friends, was nominated for an NAACP Image Award. Stanley is committed to music as an artistic, spiritual, and even health-promoting endeavor. His involvement with music therapy leads him to do outreach in schools, hospitals and other venues wherever he tours. He is an artist-spokesperson for the American Music Therapy Association, and he has done numerous lectures and demonstrations on the healing applications of music. Please join us for the latest installment of our Great Guitars series, hosted by Vice President of The GRAMMY Foundation and MusiCares, Scott Goldman. In addition to an enlightening interview about his career, Jordan will perform.