By: Rick Landers
Jazz guitarist Ben Tyree epitomizes the new generation of jazz artists with his eclectic mix of styles, featuring hard percussive funk armed with arrested guitar riffs, giving his performances fitful spurts, as well as more traditional seamless melodic reveries that broaden his sonic reach.
Tyree earned his jazz stripes in clubs, as well as in the more traditional academic surrounds of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, D.C., along with studies at the highly respected Music Department at Howard University.
As a hip-hop jazz fusion artist, Ben pulled together Miscellaneous Flux in 1999 with poet Rashad Dobbins to explore and develop an experimental cauldron of sound, winning the group a 2002 Best Hip Hop/Rap Group/Duo award at the 17th Annual Washington Area Music Awards. In 2003, the group would receive four more music award nominations, including Best Urban Contemporary Instrumentalist.
Moving to New York City in 2002, Ben continued to refine his jazz concepts on the guitar and make a name for himself by appearing at some of the top jazz clubs in town, including The Iridium, The Apollo, The Blue Note and Lincoln Center. In between he would make excursions back to D.C. to play at The Kennedy Center and D.C.’s famous Blues Alley.
Tyree’s latest endeavor is his BT3 ensemble is a rush of jazzy sci-fi funk that he performs with Stephanie Rooker (vocalist), Lawrence Qualls (drums) and saxophonist, V. Jeffrey Smith. BT3 recently released its debut album re:Vision
Guitarist Ben Tyree
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Rick Landers: Your new album mixes it up with jazz, funk and even a bit of rap-techno going on. Where did your music journey begin and when did you begin to be pulled in by the magnet of jazz guitar?
Ben Tyree: My musical journey began when I was very young in my hometown of Washington, D.C. I was always exposed to a variety of musical genres through my family, and somehow had an insatiable curiosity and interest in all music. As a child, I remember seeing electric guitarists on TV and hearing them on the radio and knew that was for me. The sounds they made. Their command of an audience and the whole image of it was what initially captivated me.
Some of the earliest music I remember listening to was Beethoven, Rachmaninov, Erroll Garner, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, The Police, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, and everything in between. My parents were also very encouraging and supportive of me having my own record collection, most of which I still have.
I was way into classical music as a child, so I started with piano and violin through a weekly music and arts program that the public schools had at the time. After my mother took me to see Frank Zappa, my first concert, when I was seven or eight, I knew I needed to ardently lobby for a guitar.
My first failed attempt was at the age of 3 or 4, making a guitar out of a piece of cardboard and rubber bands, then my father finally bought me a real one when I was 11. From then on I played and played. I formed a band that played original music where I would also sing, and we eventually began performing at bars and making money by the time I was 15.
I was addicted to music and this eventually brought me to jazz while in high school. Long story short, I studied in school and on my own, any style that touched my heart and that I could feel in my body. Between classes in high school, student DJ’s would play album cuts while we scuffled between classes. I remember many playing jazz cuts, and more and more I could feel myself swinging, personally and musically.
As far as jazz guitar specifically, I was really inspired early on by players such as John McLaughlin, Pat Martino, George Benson, Wes Montgomery, Mike Stern and Ron Affif. These were all the guys I began to study in earnest. But, I was mostly into non-guitarists like John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Clifford Brown, Charlie Parker and Bud Powell.
These artists have probably informed my own style more so than any of the guitarists that influenced me. So, my music tends to include elements of jazz, classical, rock, funk and hip hop and the new CD reflects all of that.
Rick: Growing up in the D.C. area, what local artists grabbed your interest or were you more into radio and Internet outlets to find new or interesting music?
Ben: When I was coming up, there was no Internet, so my interests were fed through hanging out at jazz and blues clubs, listening to the radio and exchanging cassette tapes with peers and teachers. I was exposed to a lot of great music at a very young age.
As far as local artists, there were only a few that really grabbed me early on, like I would go see my guitar teacher Tom Newman, who would make us mix tapes of all the jazz guitar greats, at clubs when I was a teenager and he was playing all these different styles and using a bunch of cool effects. That was a huge influence on me. I wanted to do what he was doing.
You know he would be playing an R&B tune and start soloing clean, playing blues lines, then slipping into bebop and by then end he’d be shredding with distortion and other effects and I just thought that was so cool. I felt like he was telling me with his playing, “Look, this is all the same shit!”
We also got to check out a lot of national acts in D.C. Like when I was really young I got to see Pat Metheny and Mike Stern a bunch, which was very inspiring. Then I saw John McLaughlin when I was 17 with Dennis Chambers and that was it.
Rick: Are you formally trained in music theory and jazz or are you self-taught?
Ben: Both. You know I went to a performing arts high school, the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, where I studied jazz and classical guitar very seriously. Then I continued those studies at Howard University. During and since, I studied and continue to study a lot on my own.
I would say that since college, I ‘ve become largely self-taught, re-exploring theory and the guitar. I’ve had some lessons with Mike Stern and Paul Bollenback in the past five years, but other than that I’ve been on my own.
Rick: BT3 sounds like a lot of the songs are driven by the percussion style, with the guitar licks responding in a way that fuses them together. Do you consider percussion to be the backbone of the music or do you develop a song by changing or reworking tunes until you get a good groove going?
Ben: Well, I consider myself a percussionist at heart. I think every musician should as well. My music is very rhythmic and I have always felt a great affinity and connectivity with drummers. The drummer for BT3, Lawrence Qualls, is very sensitive and empathetic to my style of composing and playing. He really locks well with what I do and gets inside the music. When I play, I generally try to establish a connection with the drummer first.
So, one could say that the BT3 material is largely percussion driven, however all the guitar parts come to me first, then I write the baselines and bring both to Lawrence. That’s how the material is developed. Mostly, I write all the pieces and then we just work them out in rehearsal.
As my style of guitar playing is inherently very rhythmic and percussive, it can be very stimulating for drummers to work out their own ideas within the context of my work. Well, at least I like to think so.
Rick: Are you an exclusive Stratocaster player or do you play around with other guitars? What does the Stratocaster offer up?
Ben: I have only been playing a Strat for like 2 1/2 years but I’ve owned and played many guitars in my life. First of all, I only practice on an acoustic guitar and think that this is the best way to truly connect with the essence of the instrument. I’ve pretty much done this my whole life. I also played a Les Paul for a long time, and before that various different hollow bodies strung with 12 or 13-gauge flatwounds.
The sound I get from the Strat is what turns me on right now. The range of tone I can get from this instrument really appeals to me. I think for a long time I was a jazz snob and avoided even acknowledging the Strat, but luckily, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve become more open minded and viscerally aware.
I really just want to go for a certain sound and feeling and you just can’t get that range of tone from any other guitar. It just sounds so round and delicious. So, right now I primarily play a Strat unless I’m doing my acoustic stuff.
New York Guitarist Ben Tyree
Rick: Why did you move to New York and what do you prefer about the music scene there compared to Washington, D.C.?
Ben: I always wanted to live in New York ever since I was a young kid. There’s something about the energy there. I always felt like I was in the center of the universe when in New York. As a teenager, I would drive to New York as much as I could and just hang out. Most of the people I went to high school with ended up there too. I could safely say that the majority of all the people I have ever known in my life now live in New York.
As far as the music scene, I’ve always known I would meet the right musicians in New York, and I have. There’s just so much electric, creative energy in the air to be absorbed. It’s very stimulating. Everyone up there trying to make their own way in music and the arts is aware of this, and ideally able to exchange this energy and use it to grow. I’m not saying that DC doesn’t have that, but it’s different. It’s more of a subjective preference, but the energy of New York is what it does for me.
Also, pretty much all of the artists I’ve ever wanted to work or make connections with are in New York. Since moving there in 2002, I’ve worked with most of them, and continue to cultivate stimulating creative relationships with artists new to me.
Rick: Some musicians love jazz and are purists, while some decide to do rock gigs because there tends to be more work opportunities and probably a bit more money to be had, so they can keep their jazz alive more by playing rock. Is that something that you’ve found to be true or is New York a good spot for jazz players?
Ben: That’s a tricky question. I try to stick to working with artists where there’s mutual creative stimulation. I’ve been lucky so far. I think there’s a way to forge your own path and be successful but one has to be extremely focused, tenacious and diligent. Luck has much to do with it, but in my experience luck favors those who are prepared.
To answer your question, I’m in no way a purist, but I do draw lines.There are things I will and will not do and it’s simply a matter of preference. You know, I play with some artists who play mostly rock music and I really enjoy it. If I didn’t enjoy it, I wouldn’t bother. But, as I’m not a purist, I couldn’t imagine a purist wanting to work with me, but stranger things have happened and I‘ve been able to successfully wear both hats: that of a purist and that of a non-purist.
I think, however, that it’s not as black and white as your question possibly assumes. You’d be surprised by how much money you can make playing creative jazz in New York and worldwide and how broke you can be playing rock. It just depends on so many factors including the people you’re surrounded by.
I see this as a journey and music is the vehicle. Jazz has played a huge role, as has rock music. The idea of keeping something alive by doing something different is a phenomenon that intrigues me. I’ve seen myself and many others get trapped by that logic and, personally I do not wish to go that route.
To keep the music dynamic and alive, I must engage it from as many angles as possible. I can’t assume that by playing rock for money will help me keep jazz alive or vice versa. I play music whether it’s my own or not.
By this logic, one could assume that by becoming an electrician, which is a highly respectable vocation, they can help keep their art alive. Possibly, in many cases, this is legitimate, however I believe my path is in the process of engaging the art form non-dogmatically and very dynamically, thus revealing a path and career that works in service of the music.
Sorry to be so verbose, but this is something I think about often. I find that to be an extremely stimulating question and, as far as I am concerned, my answer is open to complete revision. As far as New York goes, it’s hit or miss and really depends on the dues you’ve paid and who you’re allied with. New York can be great for some and a nightmare for others. It has literally been both for me, but mostly the former as of late.
Ben Tyree With His Acoustic Guitar
Rick: Making it in music is a tough road and developing career strategies often means not just being a guitarist or a performer, but an “all a rounder,” where you also have to teach, do clinics, and sometimes bag groceries to keep paying the bills. What mix of revenue streams do you think musicians need to consider to be able to survive and still thrive as a musician?
Ben: Great question. I think I covered that a bit with what I just said, but it’s definitely essential to have a multi-pronged strategy to surviving as a musician and artist and having a rewarding career. If it were up to me, I’d just play guitar all day long, and I try to build that into my day. I need to play a lot and am in no way apologetic for that. But, at the moment I don’t have representation, a tech, accountant, or booking agent. So, these are all things I have to do myself. It’s been cool, I guess, but it can get overwhelmed.
It’s very important to be open and dynamic as far as career strategies. I’ve been able to do a lot this way, but we literally need all the help we can get. It’s like the Wild West out there, every man and women for themselves. But it’s also very exciting and so much is possible now.
I’m not sure about bagging groceries, but if that’s what you have to do to make it, then by all means do so. Only the individual can make that call. I am always open to teaching and doing clinics, as well as doing side gigs with other artists, recording and selling my own music. I absolutely love doing all of these things. There are many opportunities for those who stay open, prepared and in the game. It’s quite exciting and terrifying at the same time.
Rick: You’ve got some cool tracks on the new album, and at the moment I’m getting into “Acquisition.” Do you have any favorites that you like playing or are there audience favorites that you always play at live performances?
Ben: Thanks, I like “Acquisition” too. It’s just a blues but has a very bebop inspired melody that I came up with when I was deep into studying Bud Powell. I was way into him for quite some time. Anyway, I like all of them, but I would say audiences really respond to the more up-tempo stuff.
There’s that end section of “Acquisition” where we go into an electro avant-garde, drum and bass improv that gets really fast when we do it live and audiences really respond to that. Also, “Drop Back” has a lot of energy and audiences get into that. I really like some of the slower pieces like “A Song of Hope” and “The Search,” where the arrangements are very lush and dynamic.
I guess there are things I like about all of the pieces. When we perform live, I always try to arrange the set to have a dynamic arc that can grab the audience. The song order on the CD is already like that, but there are other ways to arrange the material to cast a different mood for the set.
Rick: I saw that you’ve been playing at some pretty cool hot spots in the City, like the Iridium. Tell us about that place and what’s it like playing on the same stage that Les Paul played for decades?
Ben: Oh, yeah, the Iridium is cool and it’s obviously a tremendous honor to play the same stage that Les Paul frequented. I even got to meet him a few times. One time backstage at B.B. King’s in Times Square and again as an ASCAP awards ceremony at Lincoln Center. He was an amazing human being, so full of love, warmth and gratitude.
I remember him saying upon receiving an award, “I am just happy to be on the earth.” And that really hit me. I just thought it was perfect. That’s a reflection of the kind of person he was.
I told him once that I had “one of his guitars”, my 1982 Les Paul Standard which I love, and expressed my love for it and he said to me very charismatically with his hand on my shoulder, “I used to fall asleep next to that mother!” And we both laughed. It was just like in this brief moment together we shared this special love for music and the guitar that is universal.
It was a very humbling and wonderful experience. One time, my dad and I went to see him at the Iridium and it was just great. Not just the music, but his whole sense of humor was so all-pervasive and potent. What an experience.
But yeah, the Iridium is an important landmark as are many great clubs in New York City. I also play the Blue Note quite often and the Bitter End, The Apollo, The Stone, Joe’s Pub, The Knitting Factory. I’ve played at all of those places a bunch and also a whole lot of newer venues that are great too.
One of my all-time favorites was a legendary underground club called Tonic that closed a couple years ago. That place was great. I was lucky to have played there with so many amazing artists before they closed. This was where I first played with Burnt Sugar and Vernon Reid and I used to see MMW there a lot too. It was a great venue that helped to keep the legendary New York City downtown scene alive.
Rick: Besides releasing the new record, what else is going on to keep Ben Tyree’s music and name “out there?”
Ben: Well, I just finished a solo acoustic guitar CD that I’m going to try to release in the Spring or Summer of 2011. It’s comprised of all original material, half of which utilizes alternate tunings. I just love how it came out! So that’s exciting.
Also, I work with a number of great artists in New York. One of which, Stephanie Rooker and the Search Engine, just released an album on December 14 called The Only Way Out is In
The guitar playing is great and the tunes are a lot of fun to listen to. I think a lot of people are going to really dig the message and the music. Also, John Medeski, who’s also on the BT3 record, plays on like half of it and really brought the thing to life.
Other than that, I play with the bands Burnt Sugar, The Arkestra Chamber, Soul Understated, as well as loads of R&B vocalists. And basically we’re all plugging away, making great music and doing better all the time.
There’s a lot more that I want to do, as well, and I try to stay open to new projects and stay in touch with the people I want to work with. I just feel this tremendous energy in the air, like anything is possible. And I want to live in that space.
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