Jazz Guitar Today Talks To Joshua Breakstone

JGT contributor Joe Barth interviews jazz guitarist Joshua Breakstone.

Photo above Michael G. Stewart

As a teenager, Joshua Breakstone, was exposed to great music both at home as well as going to the famed Fillmore East with his sister, where she worked, seeing artists like Frank Zappa and Jimi Hendrix.  Later studying with guitarist Sal Salvador he fell in love with the music of Lee Morgan and Charlie Parker.  In this article, I chat with Joshua about his work and approach to playing the guitar. 

JBa:  You were born and raised in New Jersey and grew up in a home where your parents listened to the music of Broadway musicals. Talk about what inspired you to play jazz guitar.

JBr:  We frequently went to Broadway shows (in that era, most times musicals) and also frequently to the New York Philharmonic. I grew up thinking Leonard Bernstein was my uncle; we’d visit him in the green room after concerts and I’d call him “Uncle Lennie”. My sister worked at The Fillmore East, the great rock venue in Manhattan. I had a chance to hear lots of rock music including my favorites, Jimmy Hendrix, Frank Zappa, Janis Joplin, and many others at very close range many times. I started playing rock guitar at about age 15, then became interested in jazz. I didn’t care for any of the jazz guitarists I was hearing until I heard Masuo Yoshiaki, who played with Sonny Rollins for many years. He was the first jazz guitarist I really liked. Now I play regularly with Masuo-san on my visits to Tokyo.

JBa: As a high school student, I understand that you studied with the great guitarist Sal Salvador.  Talk about that experience.

JBr:  I started studying with Sal not too long after I started playing. He was a wonderful teacher and a wonderfully supportive person. He assigned work in many different books, maybe 12 or so, for each lesson. After I started recording, we stayed in touch, he recommended me to the luthier Carl Barney who ended up giving me one of his wonderful custom-made guitars, and Sal always told me how proud he was of the things I was doing. I had the privilege of playing at Sal’s memorial service held at “the jazz church”, St Peter’s in Manhattan. It was in 1999. 

JBa: Talk about the things you appreciated most about your studies at the University of South Florida and the Berklee College of Music.

JBr:  At the University of South Florida I had time to consolidate the things I’d learned up to that point. At Berklee, I made connections with musicians, some of whom I’m still in touch with all these years later. For example, the great Glen Hall, Canadian saxophonist with whom I did my first recording (as a sideman) with the likes of Joanne Brackeen, Billy Hart, and Cecil McBee on Glen’s wonderful recording Book of The Heart.

JBa: To you, what are three of the most influential jazz guitar albums and why? 

JBr:  I guess they might be Wes Montgomery recordings? But I’m not much of a critic. I guess he might be the most influential guitarist in jazz history. I’m the worst person to evaluate what’s influential or popular! I’ve always listened more to horn players and pianists than guitarists. But I’d have to say that in terms of recorded work- a legacy- nobody could ever touch Barney Kessel who did amazing recordings with Bird, Lester Young, Oscar Peterson, Sonny Rollins and so many more. If he had only recorded the things with Billie Holiday over the course of his career and nothing else, he might still be considered the greatest guitarist in jazz history. Early Pat Martino really knocked me out…middle and late Pat as well, even though my approach to the guitar really has nothing to do with his. Jimmy Raney, Grant Green, influential? No idea! 

JBa:  Since 1986 you have worked a lot in Japan.  Tell us about how your annual performance schedule works for you with so much time in Japan. 

JBr:  I’ve been living in Kyoto, Japan for 6 years. Before moving here, I toured in Japan twice/year for many years- more than 60 tours! I received an artist visa and decided to relocate here. The timing was excellent, right before COVID. I was initially brought to Japan two times a year by a bassist from Osaka who owned his own club (“The Sub Club”) and who also produced tours, Nishiyama Mitsuru. I started doing trio tours that Nishiyama arranged, sometimes with Nishiyama, sometimes, with other bassists. Eventually, I started doing tours with famous Japanese jazz musicians as well. During that time, I was putting out a recording per year for Contemporary Records and then recorded four CDs in four years for the Japanese King Records label.

JBa:  You have recorded several times with the great pianist Kenny Barron. Talk about the musical relationship you have with him.

JBr: Kenny Barron is the most naturally brilliant musician I’ve ever played with. We have done seven recordings together, Kenny’s solos on every take of every recording are wonderful. With no rehearsal he makes it all sound so easy and natural. He’s an inspiration as a musician and as a person.

JBa:  Tell us briefly about your two albums of Beatles songs and the one album of the music that the Ventures performed.

JBr:  These recordings were all done for the Japanese King Records label and with the same quartet, Kenny Barron (piano), the late great Dennis Irwin (bs), and Kenny Washington (dr). The “Ventures” CD is entitled Walk Don’t Run and will be rereleased- at least in Japan- sometime around the end of 2024 or early 2025. (If your readers would like to inquire about ordering copies, they can contact me directly). I especially like Walk Don’t Run, the band nailed it that day! And we did some amazing tunes, as well. The song, “Walk Don’t Run” is Johnny Smith’s line on “Softly in a Morning Sunrise” (which the Ventures butchered and which we played the way Mr. Smith intended it to be played). Months after the release of the recording, I received, out of the blue, a call from Johnny Smith who told me he loved the recording and that it was the best version of the song he’d heard – including his! 

JBa:  Tell us about recording the Remembering Grant Green album.

JBr:  What an honor to record with Grant’s original rhythm section, the iconic organist Jack McDuff, and the wonderful drummer Al Harewood. The session, like most of my recordings, was done at Rudy Van Gelder’s studio (where Grant Green recorded so many times for Blue Note). Rudy pulled out an old amp and asked me if I’d like to use it. It was the amp that Grant kept at the studio (he was recording there so often that it made sense for him to leave an amp at the studio) and used on his recordings. And it’s the amp I used on that date. This recording was just rereleased in Japan last month (July of 2024). (Again, if your readers would like to inquire about ordering copies, they can contact me directly). Also included on the CD are a few tracks with Kenny Barron (piano), Ray Drummond (bs), and Keith Copeland (dr). 

JBa:  You have done albums exploring the music of Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, and Wes Montgomery.  Briefly tell us about either common or unique qualities that made those composers great.

JBr:  Bud was known primarily as a soloist, but he was a wonderful composer as well, his writing spans a large range of feelings and emotions. Monk was known, I think, primarily as a composer and the leader of groups which performed his original compositions. Wes was known primarily as a wonderful soloist, but he composed many wonderful things. The compositions of each of the three are unique. What is it about composing? My whole “thing” is melody and songs. I encourage (exhort?) my students to take the time and make the effort to learn whatever songs they might come across that move them. To learn them, play them, and express to the audience what it was that they found moving, or exciting, or beautiful or unique about that song. We shouldn’t limit ourselves to playing only what happens to be found in “The Real Book”. AND SO, the best way to access music with which we have a truly deep connection is to play the things we’ve written. Yes, I love melody, I love tunes, so it’s right up my alley to make recordings where I have a chance to delve into the compositions of some of our greatest jazz icons.

JBa:  Is your newest the Art Blakey tribute? If so, tell us about it.

JBr:  The Art Blakey tribute is entitled Children of Art. Yes, it’s my most recent recording (other than the two re-releases mentioned above, Walk Don’t Run and Remembering Grant Green, and Sittin’ On The Thing With Ming which was re-released at the end of 2023). The idea behind the recording is this: The Jazz Messengers was a school that turned out so many of the greatest musicians in jazz history- these are the musicians I’m referring to as “Children of Art”- the alumni of the Jazz Messengers, like Lee Morgan, Wayne Shorter, Benny Golson, Cedar Walton, Horace Silver, Hank Mobley, Walter Davis Jr.   

JBa:  Tell us about the primary guitar you play.

JBr:  My primary guitar, an early 1970’s L5, is still in NY. I have another L5 from the same era here with me in Japan which I play all the time- even though, in truth, I prefer the one in NY! When I next go to the US and Europe, I’ll have a chance to play my main guitar again!

JBa:  Tell us about what you find so musically rewarding working with the cello quartet.

JBr:  The format of the group was inspired by a group I did 2 tours within Japan. At first, I conceived of the somewhat unique configuration of the group as a guitar-bass-drums rhythm section with the cello added as a solo instrument (along the lines of a trumpet or sax). But after a few nights on tour, I heard this configuration in a new and different way: the strings of the cello, bass, and guitar with percussion- a string jazz trio with percussion. I came back to the US and was ready to put together a group to tour and record, but even though it was highly fashionable many years ago for bassists- Ron Carter, Rufus Reid, Ray Brown, Sam Jones, and others, to pick up the cello and become front line soloists, nobody was playing the cello now. I played a duo concert with the great bassist Mike Richmond and was complaining that I couldn’t find a cellist and it turned out that Mike did! With Lisle Atkinson playing bass in the group, I had a quartet with two great bassists, one of which was actually playing cello! It was an amazing group; we were unique and did three recordings together for Capri Records which I’m very proud of. 

JBa:  What’s the best piece of advice you’d give younger guitarists for building an international career?

JBr:  I don’t know what to tell young musicians these days. When I was coming up there were record companies who promoted our recordings, concerts, and tours. There were jazz magazines that wrote about us and our recordings not as a paid service, but because they loved and were enthusiastic about the music we were making. It’s all changed, I don’t know how musicians of today who are by and large making recordings in their garages get by! My main bit of advice- although not pertaining to building a career- is to play music that moves you, that has meaning and value, and communicate what you love, what’s meaningful to you and to others. If you play from the heart, you may not build an enormous career, but you’ll always have people who love what you’re doing and are interested in what you’re up to. I don’t know if anyone could really ask for much more.

JBa:  What else are you up to lately?

JBr:  Three major things:

1) I run a jazz workshop every year, The Kyoto Jazz Guitar Experience. It’s open exclusively to guitarists living outside of Japan and is limited to 9 guitarists. It’s a 10-day experience and an excuse for anyone who’s ever dreamed of coming to Japan and specifically Kyoto, the most beautiful city in the world, to come. Included are 7 workshops (organ trio, playing in a quartet with piano, duos with guitar, with piano, with bass, music theory, repertoire, and much more), 10 nights hotel with a private room, 5 dinners in amazing local restaurants, 2 nights hearing jazz in wonderful Japanese jazz clubs, 2 tours of Kyoto’s gardens, temples, neighborhoods. The 2025 workshop will take place from May 27 – June 6. Sign-up begins on September 1, 2024. You can find much more information at: https://kyotojazzguitarexperience.com/index.html

2) We were contacted recently by a high-end travel company in the US and are working with them running jazz tours in and around Kyoto (Osaka, Nara, Kobe) as well as everywhere else in Japan. It’s for jazz fans who come to Japan who would like to experience jazz in Japan. We guide jazz fans, and non-jazz fans who are just looking for something interesting and fun to do in the evening, to the coolest jazz clubs to hear the best musicians Japan has to offer. All tours are 100% custom-made, we can also arrange for dinners in amazing local restaurants and a chance to have dinner with some of the musicians we’ll hear play for intercultural discussion of what it’s like to play jazz in Japan, the differences between Japanese jazz and American jazz, etc. For more information: https://jazztourskyotojazztoursjapan.com/

3) Generally: In 2016 I received an artist residence visa and began working with a Kobe based company, Apple Guitars. Although I had the right to live in Japan, for the first few years I used the visa only to come back and forth to and from Japan for tours. But in 2018 I made the move to Kyoto, where I’m presently living.

Although I live in what is called Kansai- the area which includes Osaka, Kyoto, Kobe and Nara- since 2018 I have performed and conducted workshops all over Japan including four or five extensive tours yearly to Kyushu (Fukuoka, Kitakyushu, Oita, Beppu, Kumamoto, Nagasaki, Saga, and others), Shikoku (Takamatsu, Sakaide, Marugame, Matsuyama, Tokushima and others), Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi, Hiroshima, Okayama, Himeji, Okazaki, Tsu, Yokkaichi, Nagoya, Gifu, Kanazawa, Kaga, Matsumoto, Niigata, Toyohashi, Hammamatsu, Fuji, Yokohama, Tokyo, Sapporo- and many small towns in between! With private teaching, a monthly workshop in Kyoto for Japanese musicians on all instruments, a monthly jazz series in Kyoto, annual tours in Australia, tours back in the US and in Europe, and the two activities described above, I manage to keep pretty busy!

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