Jazz Guitar Today Spotlight: Guitarist Gregg Belisle-Chi
JGT contributor Joe Barth talks to Gregg Belisle-Chi, one of the most forward-thinking young jazz guitarists around.
The latest Downbeat magazine poll voted him number four as a Rising Star Guitarist of the Year. Originally from central Washington state, Gregg currently makes his home in New York City.
JB: You grew up in Richland, Washington. What inspired you to play jazz guitar?
GB: There were two experiences I distinctly remember. One was taking guitar lessons at a local music store when I was about twelve or thirteen. At that time, I was all about Nirvana and Jimi Hendrix, the standard fare for a teenager in the 90s/early 2000s and a child with parents who listened to Classic Rock music. But at this music store, they had transcription books covering all sorts of genres and topics. One day I just happened to pick up a book of all of Charlie Christian’s solos and, staring at the pages of all these melodies and chord changes that seemed so foreign and mysterious to me, I remember feeling like the floor had opened up beneath me and I was falling into something completely unknown. That was really exhilarating to me.
From there I was just fascinated by anything “jazz guitar.” One of the first records I got was Joe Pass Virtuoso 2…his recording of “Joy Spring” on that record kept me up all night. I must have listened to it twelve times in a row. That was the other experience. From then on I was just all about the music.
JB: You studied music at the Cornish Institute, then with trumpeter Cuong Vu at the University of Washington in Seattle. What did you appreciate most about that era of your development?
GB: During my time at Cornish, I made two really important connections. The first and most important was my wife, who I met in music theory class my first year of college. We’ve been together ever since. That theory class was taught by the late Jim Knapp, who had a really interesting Big Band called the Jim Knapp Orchestra that played all of his original compositions and arrangements. Jim was a real master of harmony and wrote really beautiful music with a lot of personality and emotion. I had a lot of great teachers at Cornish, including Julien Priester and Jay Thomas (both horn players, funny enough), but Jim was a real mentor. A year or two after I graduated, he started writing for string orchestra with harp and guitar, which he asked me to play. We did a series of concerts collaborating with Bill Frisell, who I became friends with and who’s also been a real guiding light for me.
During my time at the University of Washington I studied with Cuong Vu, who I’ll always attribute as my greatest teacher. He’s not just an incredible musician, composer, and improviser; he’s also an amazing instructor and communicator. He was really able to articulate ideas and concepts to me that stuck and changed my way of thinking. But I think most importantly, he was able to see something in me that I couldn’t see in myself, a personality or an identity that I was sort of hiding. At that time, I think I was hiding a lot of things that I had loved early on in music; rock music and distorted guitars, and he was like, “ALL of it needs to be brought forward.” That was really valuable for me to hear and learn.
JB: To you, in shaping your current sound and approach, what are three of the most influential jazz guitar albums and why?
GB: Number one is Science Friction by Tim Berne. I heard that record when I was eighteen, and it blew my head off. It was funky, raw, sophisticated; it had a lot of attitude, and it had a real relentless feeling to the music. Guitarist Marc Ducret on that record is just phenomenal; his approach to the instrument is so unique and personal, his rhythmic feel and pocket are just massive, and his sound is incredible. That record showed me that there were way more possibilities open to me as a guitarist and improviser than just a semi-hollow body guitar with a clean tone playing over standards.
Ben Monder’s Dust was another big eye-opener for me. I had first heard Ben on the Maria Schneider record Concert in the Garden, and on the first track he takes this gorgeous unaccompanied guitar solo. After hearing that, I sort of hunted down all things Ben Monder. I found Dust at a local record store in Richland and bought it because it had “I’ll Remember April” on it. I thought the rest of the tracks were just standards I didn’t know. Turns out I was totally wrong. Ben’s writing on that is totally out of this world. Again, I keep using this word, but to me it’s what draws me in the most; it was just so personal. Like, no one else in the world would have or could have written and played that music except for him.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Wes Montgomery’s Smokin’ at the Half Note. That was one of the first records I got from a teacher when I started learning about jazz. At the time, it was sort of a bridge between the rock/blues guitar playing that I loved in Jimi Hendrix and T-Bone Walker and jazz. Like, the first track “No Blues” is so swinging and driving. It had the same kind of exciting energy, tension-building, and release that the music I loved had. So, it helped bridge the gap for me. Now, I just don’t see gaps between “genres” like that anymore. But Wes was a Master of Development. The way he builds his solos is so inspiring.
JB: After relocating to New York, talk about your experiences of performing with saxophonist Tim Berne and his approach to rhythm and phrasing.
GB: Playing in Tim’s bands for the past five years has been one the greatest privileges of my life. As I mentioned earlier, Science Friction andwere seminal bands and records in my growth as a musician.
It’s funny that you mention ‘phrasing’ because Tim and I talk a lot about that very thing. During COVID, I transcribed his entire solo saxophone record, “Sacred Vowels.” So I REALLY got to know his phrasing- how he takes an idea and develops it, how he uses dynamics and different inflections to make lines pop and sing. It’s like learning the mannerisms and rhythms of the way someone speaks. So, when Tim and I started playing together a lot, I found it really natural to play unison lines with him. I think we have a really special way of playing melodies together.
Then, the rhythm thing…his rhythmic writing is obviously very strong and unique. So, when we’re playing tunes that have really angular and rhythmically contrapuntal lines going on, you have to be really strong and assertive in your place and part, and you have to really commit to the beat and subdivisions, but you also have to really listen and feel how the parts are working together. So, it’s really about listening, reaction, commitment. Playing with him and drummer Tom Rainey has been so much fun and so gratifying. I’m really fortunate to be a part of that musical universe.
JB: Tell us about your CDs Book of Hours and Enso.
GB: Those were the first two records I recorded in New York as a band leader. I’m very proud of them, and I love all the musicians involved in the making of those records. “Book of Hours” is a through-composed piece for a quartet of guitar, keys, electric bass, and drums, about 45 minutes long. “Enso“ is a trio record where I was exploring some longer-form compositional ideas. I feel like I really learned the discipline of writing when I was working on that music, how to sit down and focus on themes and development and form.
JB: Is your newest album Koi?
GB: My newest album is called “Slow Crawl“, which is a follow up to “Koi“. Both of them are solo acoustic records of Tim Berne’s music. Koi was a COVID project that I recorded in my home studio when I was living in the Hudson Valley during the pandemic. Tim and I got connected after I did the “Sacred Vowels” transcription project, and he suggested I do a solo record of his music, which was an opportunity I jumped on immediately. He sent me piles of tunes that I combed through and experimented with, seeing what could work on the acoustic guitar. I would record some things and send them to him. He would call me, and we’d talk about it…”Try this, try that.” I really got into Tim’s harmonic world working on that record. Slow Crawl is an extension of Koi. I recorded that here in Brooklyn at a great studio called Grand Street Recording with my friend/engineer Ken Rich. My friend Sam Decker, a wonderful musician I play with regularly, stepped in as a producer and helped me arrange the music, offering insights and ideas that opened me up to new ways of playing and improvising.
JB: You used to play “big-box archtops” but now play more Strat-style guitars. Tell us what it is about the solid body that appeals to you?
GB: The real reason I started playing a Strat-style guitar was that I walked into a guitar store here in Brooklyn and saw this Japanese Fender that had the most amazing Champagne Sparkle finish on it. I had a Gibson 335 at that time, and I sold it for way less than it was worth and bought that Strat, which was like $900 or something. Come to think of it, all my guitars have been relatively cheap. I traded an amp for an American Telecaster that I play regularly, and I have another Japanese Telecaster that Reid Anderson just gave me. My acoustic was a wedding present from my dear friend Chris Symer. I suppose there are technical and aesthetic reasons why I prefer a solid-body guitar, but at the end of the day I try not to think about the instrument that much. Each guitar, whether it’s acoustic or electric or hollow, semi-hollow, or solid, has unique and interesting properties, and I’ve used them all for different projects. It’s really about what the music needs. If the music needs a beat-up 12-string electric through a blown-out speaker mic’d up with a walkie-talkie, then that’s what I’m going to play.
JB: New York is a town with scores of good guitarists. I know you are still young, but what’s the best piece of advice you’d give younger guitarists for building a career in music?
GB: It’s a hard question to answer because everyone is so different and has different priorities, goals, and aspirations. I can only speak for myself and what has worked for me to get to where I am, which is a place others may or may not want to be in. But I think what I tend to fall back on is this idea of doing what feels natural. It feels natural to me to write my own music, to collaborate with the musicians that I do, to explore this or that musical idea, or chase this sound or that sound. If something doesn’t feel natural, like going to jam sessions and playing standards, it’s not an indictment on going to jam sessions and playing standards; it’s just something that doesn’t feel natural. Sometimes those are good situations and challenges to put yourself in and you can really grow from those experiences. And sometimes, at least for me, it’s my spirit or body telling me that my energy wants to be put somewhere else. The experiences and situations I naturally gravitate toward tend to give me energy back, not just take energy.
I think a lot of people fall into the trap of doing something because they feel like they must, that it’s some kind of requirement, or maybe a rite of passage. That can create a lot of frustration, sadness, and, regrettably, some resentment about something that you love. It’s okay to be honest with yourself and be part of the things you want to be involved in. There doesn’t have to be any guilt attached to this or that; just focus on the things you love and enjoy, and that give you energy. I think that being a part of whatever that is for you is more important than any career.
