New Music Tuesday - Mea Culpa

So there I was at work this morning, and a very familiar little guitar riff came on the radio.

"Oh, it's the Manhattan Transfer doing "How High the Moon"from Bop Doo Wop...I'd know Wayne's guitar intro anywhere. How cool they are playing it on the radio..." I thought to myself.

THEN I realized it was really the Les Paul/Mary Ford original recording. And THEN I realized what an incredible job Wayne Johnson, the MT's guitarist had done on their recording. It sounds just like Les Paul. To duplicate such a distinctive sound and way of playing is very difficult, and Wayne's homage is extraordinary.

So, my music assignment today is for you to listen to both of these versions. Also, check out this great site - about a quarter of the way down the page is a photo of the set-up Les Paul used to record the song. Cool.

Since I am on the subject, I think that my favorite guitar solo of all time is "Sing Joy Spring" from the Manhattan Transfer's 1987 Live album. I am also a huge fan of Jon Hendrick's lyrics for the song, but Wayne's solo is sheer perfection to my ears.