Originally formed in 1973, the Great Guitars was a jazz supergroup comprised of three master guitarists: Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, and Barney Kessel. Together, these three giants of six-string jazz toured the globe sporadically and recorded four live albums together between 1973 and 1992.

Herb Ellis departed from the group in the mid-1980s and was replaced by Grammy-nominated guitarist, Member of the Order of the British Empire, and ArtistWorks fingerstyle guitar instructor, Martin Taylor, who performed alongside Byrd and Kessel as a member of the Great Guitars for nearly a decade. Unfortunately, the group disbanded for a few years shortly after Kessel suffered an untimely stroke that ended his career in 1992.

30 years later, Martin Taylor has revitalized the ensemble and reformatted the lineup to usher in the Great Guitars of the 21st century. In the spirit of the group’s original structure, Martin has partnered up with three of his fellow six-string jazz virtuosos: John Jorgenson, Bruce Forman, and Frank Vignola. Together these four master guitarists are continuing Byrd, Ellis, and Kessel’s legacies and sharing the beauty of jazz guitar with the world.

LEARN MORE: Want to learn how to play fingerstyle jazz guitar from a master musician like Martin Taylor? Try some free online guitar lessons now!

In fact, Taylor, Jorgenson, Forman, and Vignola have announced a United States tour, which will officially begin on April 29, 2022. They will be hosting twelve shows in cities throughout the country and will be performing across the US through May 18, 2022:

4/29/22 — University of Vermont: Burlington, VT

4/30/22 — The Egg: Albany, NY

5/1/22 — Shalin Liu Performance Center: Rockport, MA

5/2/22 — Sellersville Theatre: Sellersville, PA

5/3/22 — The Birchmere: Alexandra, VA

5/6/22 — ECC Center: Elgin, IL

5/7/22 — Sheldon Concert Hall: St Louis, MO

5/10/22 — WYO Theatre: Sheldan, WY

5/13/22 — Ellen Theatre: Bozeman, MT

5/14/22 — Lone Tree Arts Center: Lone Tree, CO

5/17/22 — Dimitriou's Jazz Alley: Seattle, WA

5/18/22 — Dimitriou's Jazz Alley: Seattle, WA

Click here to purchase your tickets today!

In addition to being virtuosic guitarists, Taylor, Jorgenson, and Vignola are also wonderful educators who teach as masterfully as they play. Taylor teaches a comprehensive fingerstyle jazz guitar course through ArtistWorks, while Jorgenson and Vignola both host guitar courses through our sister company, TrueFire.  

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Have you always wanted to learn how to play fingerstyle jazz guitar? Through our comprehensive electric guitar lessons online and Video Exchange Learning platform here at ArtistWorks, you can learn from internationally renowned players, like Martin Taylor, and get personal feedback on your playing.

Martin’s course starts with the basics and teaches everything from beginner guitar to advanced fingerstyle techniques, classic jazz standards, improvisation methods, and beyond. So, whether you’re a beginner, intermediate, or advanced player, all levels are welcome and all students will grow and improve their skills as guitarists and musicians.

Try out some free sample music lessons here and see what makes ArtistWorks courses some of the best online music lessons around!

READ MORE:

Fingerstyle Jazz Guitar Lesson: The Art of Phrasing with Martin Taylor

ArtistWorks Jazz Allstars: How to Prepare for a Gig

Jazz Guitar Lesson: Tips for Transcribing with Dave Stryker