MP3 Stillway and Bonham - JAZZ: Ragtime

Furious pickin' abounds in this collection of acoustic guitar duets that weave through the traditions of ragtime, gypsy jazz, Hawaiian, and more.

13 MP3 Songs
JAZZ: Ragtime, EASY LISTENING: Background Music



Details:
"Part Django Reinhardt and part Rev. Gary Davis, tied up with a ragtime bow..." The Oregonian

"Tasteful licks and solid compositions make Stillway and Bonham a guitar pickers' feast." Sing Out


The music of Stillway & Bonham is inventive and well-rooted in the great tradition of the guitar troubadors like Django Reinhardt, Blind Blake, and Johnny Winter - sliding resonator lap steel licks float like mirages above fresh, brassy fingerstyle guitar.
Stillway and Bonham are a paradox, at once a living lexicon of old-time guitar culture but also an original act with a modern twist. Perhaps it's their diversity in backgrounds - lap steel guitarist Ben Bonham is a stalwart of the old school, very much a product of the great Hawaiian steel sound, while acoustic guitarist Jamie Stillway got her start first in classical guitar and later in her pursuit of the ragtime style.
The resulting blend is a richly musical combination of styles. Bonham's choice of pre-electric 'Spanish' or 'taro patch' tuning (open G) brings an immediate rural essence to the sound, but his lightning slide technique brings much more a great jazz trumpeter to mind than a slide guitar mostly associated with hillbilly music.
Stillway's aggressive comping style, developed by her interest in ragtime and the Hot Club of Paris sound, both pushes the beat and glues the music together, but it's her blazing solos that provide the heartbeat of the band, adventurous melodic outings that sometimes recall the frenetic phrasing of jazz violinist Stephan Grapelli.
Watching the pair work on stage is a treat for audiences, as the players push each other to play better, faster lines. "We're having an experience with each other that we really like and we're doing it for the audience, so they get involved with what's going on" Bonham says. "It's always a jam. We push each other, we never know what's going to happen next. People respond to that, and it's infectious, the fact that we're flying by the seat of our pants."

- Ed Ivey, SF writer/musician