George Benson

George Benson is a guitarist and vocalist whose crossover success bridged jazz and popular music. The guitarist’s career demonstrates sustained commercial achievement across more than 750 releases, from early soul-jazz work in the 1960s to later smooth jazz and R&B recordings. Born George Washington Benson in Pittsburgh’s Hill District, he began performing at age four as “Little Georgie Benson” and recorded his first single at nine for RCA’s Groove Records. After dropping out of Connelley Vocational High School, Benson joined organist Jack McDuff’s group in 1961, developing his bebop-influenced guitar style over several years. Talent scout John Hammond signed Benson to Columbia in 1965, resulting in albums including “It’s Uptown” (1966) and “The George Benson Cookbook” (1967) with organist Lonnie Smith. The guitarist appeared on Miles Davis’s “Miles in the Sky” (1968) before moving to Verve and A&M, where he recorded “Shape of Things to Come” (1968) and “The Other Side of Abbey Road” (1970). Signing with Creed Taylor’s CTI Records led to jazz recordings with Ron Carter, Freddie Hubbard, and Hubert Laws through the early 1970s. Producer Tommy LiPuma brought Benson to Warner Bros., where “Breezin’” (1976) became his commercial breakthrough, featuring the hit “This Masquerade.” “Weekend in L.A.” (1978) documented his live performances, while Quincy Jones produced “Give Me the Night” (1980), yielding further pop success. Beyond crossover achievements, Benson maintained parallel work in jazz contexts throughout his career, recording with McCoy Tyner and continuing concert performances into the 2020s. The discography spans labels including Prestige, Columbia, A&M, CTI, Warner Bros., and Concord, documenting a progression from hard bop through soul-jazz into smooth jazz and contemporary R&B that earned ten Grammy Awards and NEA Jazz Master recognition in 2009.