The Other Side of Abbey Road George Benson Artist

Just three weeks after the U.S. release of {|the Beatles|}' swan song, {|Abbey Road|}, {|Creed Taylor|} ushered {|George Benson|} into the studio to begin a remarkably successful {|pop|}-{|jazz|} translation of the record (complete with a parody of t... Read more

Just three weeks after the U.S. release of {|the Beatles|}' swan song, {|Abbey Road|}, {|Creed Taylor|} ushered {|George Benson|} into the studio to begin a remarkably successful {|pop|}-{|jazz|} translation of the record (complete with a parody of the famous cover, showing {|Benson|} with guitar crossing an Eastern urban street). It is a lyrical album, with a hint of the mystery and a lot of the cohesive concept of {|the Beatles|}' original despite the scrambled order of the tunes. {|Benson|} is given some room to stretch out on guitar, sometimes in a bluesy groove, and there are more samples of his honeyed vocals than ever before (oddly, his voice would not be heard again by record-buyers until he signed with {|Warner Bros.|}). {|Don Sebesky|}'s arrangements roam freely from {|baroque|} strings to a full-throated {|big band|}, and {|Freddie Hubbard|}, {|Sonny Fortune|}, and {|Hubert Laws|} get some worthy solo space. Yet for all its diversity, the record fits together as a whole more tightly than any other {|George Benson|} project, thanks to his versatile talents and the miraculous overarching unity of {|the Beatles|}' songs. One wonders if {|the Fab Four|} liked it, too. ~ Richard S. Ginell Less