Sheryl Bailey (born May 20, 1966) is an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

guitarist and educator. She teaches guitar at the Berklee College of Music in Boston.

Biography

Bailey grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and started playing guitar at 13. At first she was primarily interested in

rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...

, but she discovered jazz after hearing guitarist

Wes Montgomery John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery (March 6, 1923 – June 15, 1968) was an American jazz guitarist. Montgomery was known for an unusual technique of plucking the strings with the side of his thumb and his extensive use of octaves, which gave him a dist ...

on the radio. She attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, and after college she taught music at

Towson State University Towson University (TU or Towson) is a public university in Towson, Maryland. Founded in 1866 as Maryland's first training school for teachers, Towson University is a part of the University System of Maryland. Since its founding, the university h ...

in Baltimore. In 1998 she moved to New York City to pursue a career as a performer. She released her first album, ''Little Misunderstood'', in 1995 with George Colligan, Vince Loving, and Chris Battistone. In 2001, Bailey she released ''Reunion of Souls'' with guitarist Chris Bergson, Ashley Turner, and Sunny Jain. Stewart Mason of Allmusic called one of the tracks "charming" and one "perfectly sweet" but said the album was "nothing groundbreaking". This was followed by ''The Power of 3'' in 2002 which contained eight tracks all written by Bailey. Allmusic's Rick Anderson said that each track was "a gem" and "more complex than you'd guess at first listen". He said the album was "highly recommended". Her next album was 2004's ''Bull's Eye!''. In 2006, Bailey released ''Live @ The Fat Cat'' and was a headline act at the Pittsburgh Jazz Festival. Her sixth album, ''A New Promise'', was released by MCG Jazz on February 2, 2010 and was a tribute to jazz guitarist

Emily Remler Emily Remler (September 18, 1957 – May 4, 1990) was an American jazz guitarist, active from the late 1970s until her death in 1990. Early life and influences Born in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey,Staff"Emily Remler Dies On Australia Tour; Gui ...

. In the August 10 edition of ''Down Beat'', reviewer Phillip Booth called Bailey "one of the new greats of her chosen instrument". She has taught at Berklee, summer workshops at Stanford University, and the Collective School of Music in New York City.

Discography

As leader

Source:

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bailey, Sheryl 1966 births American jazz guitarists Bebop guitarists Berklee College of Music alumni Berklee College of Music faculty Women jazz guitarists American lesbian musicians Living people Musicians from Pittsburgh Guitarists from Pennsylvania 20th-century American women guitarists 20th-century American guitarists Jazz musicians from Pennsylvania Women music educators 21st-century American women guitarists 21st-century American guitarists American women academics 20th-century LGBT people 21st-century LGBT people