Craig Chaquico

Craig Chaquico - Panorama - The Best of Craig Chaquico (2000)
Genre: Smooth Jazz | Label: Higher Octave | 2000 | CBR 320kbps; 168 Mb | 1:13:27

When former Jefferson Starship guitarist Craig Chaquico (cha-KEY-so) reinvented himself as a pop instrumentalist in 1993 (the year he released Acoustic Highway, his solo debut), he brought the still-fledgling contemporary instrumental genre one of its freshest sounds in years. Chaquico blended skillful pop-rock-blues songcraft with studio savvy to produce a lush, layered acoustic sound so full-bodied that at times he seemed to be leading a guitar choir. His initial hit, the title track from that first disc (and the concluding piece on this best-of package), remains one of the most cheerfully infectious tunes in this category. Other selections on Panorama, a retrospective that samples his first five recordings, also capture the hip, lyrical joyfulness of Chaquico's early work ("Native Tongue," "Sacred Ground," "Return of the Eagle"), where new melodic ideas might pop up at any point in the composition. Elements of smooth jazz began surfacing on his third disc, A Thousand Pictures, and that trend has persisted ever since, draining some of the organic, free-spirited spark from Chaquico's music. The two new tunes found on this disc, "Café Carnival" (a Latin big-band production) and "Beyond Words," suggest that pattern still prevails, and while Chaquico can make smooth jazz sound pretty good (try "Sweet Talk"), that easy-listening glaze is an unnecessary crutch for such an imaginative player. Nevertheless, Panorama is an attractive package; just a touch too sweet in places.

This is a monumental video by one of today's most beloved guitarists. Craig Chaquico (ex-Jefferson Starship guitarist) takes this opportunity to share the secrets of his sublime acoustic guitar technique. In this 92-minute video, Craig covers electric guitar styles on acoustic, such as hammer-ons, pull-offs and right-hand tapping as well as pentatonic 'box' patterns, bending, extracting melodies from chords, three-note chord patterns, thumb-style 'slapping', sympathetic string vibrations, using octaves and doubles stops and playing whole tunes on a single string.

Craig Chaquico, platinum-selling guitarist with Jefferson Starship and chart-topping Smooth Jazz solo artist, takes a walk on the bluesier side of the street with the release of his Blind Pig Records debut, Fire Red Moon.From the radio-friendly opening track, Lie To Me, (with vocal by Noah Hunt of the Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band) to the thunderous conclusion of Robert Johnson s Crossroads, Chaquico explores the thoroughfares and backalleys where blues and rock intersect…..

This is a monumental video by one of today's most beloved guitarists. Craig Chaquico (ex-Jefferson Starship guitarist) takes this opportunity to share the secrets of his sublime acoustic guitar technique. In this 92-minute video, Craig covers electric guitar styles on acoustic, such as hammer-ons, pull-offs and right-hand tapping as well as pentatonic 'box' patterns, bending, extracting melodies from chords, three-note chord patterns, thumb-style 'slapping', sympathetic string vibrations, using octaves and doubles stops and playing whole tunes on a single string.