Leonard Harold Breau (August 5, 1941 – August 12, 1984) was an American-Canadian guitarist. He blended many styles of music, including

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 ...

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whi ...

, classical, and

flamenco Flamenco (), in its strictest sense, is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extremadura a ...

. Inspired by country guitarists like

Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), known as "Mr. Guitar" and "The Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nashville sound, the country music ...

, Breau used

fingerstyle Fingerstyle guitar is the technique of playing the guitar or bass guitar by plucking the strings directly with the fingertips, fingernails, or picks attached to fingers, as opposed to flatpicking (plucking individual notes with a single plect ...

techniques not often used in

jazz guitar Jazz guitar may refer to either a type of electric guitar or a guitar playing style in jazz, using electric amplification to increase the volume of acoustic guitars. In the early 1930s, jazz musicians sought to amplify their sound to be he ...

. By using a

seven-string guitar The seven-string guitar adds one additional string to the more common six-string guitar, commonly used to extend the bass range (usually a low B) or also to extend the treble range. The additional string is added in one of two different ways: by ...

and approaching the guitar like a

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

, he opened up possibilities for the instrument.

Biography

Early life

Breau was born August 5, 1941, in Auburn, Maine, and moved with his family to

Moncton Moncton (; ) is the most populous city in the Canadian province of New Brunswick. Situated in the Petitcodiac River Valley, Moncton lies at the geographic centre of the Maritime Provinces. The city has earned the nickname "Hub City" because of ...

, New Brunswick in 1948. His francophone parents, Harold Breau and

Betty Cody Betty Cody (August 17, 1921 – July 1, 2014) was a Canadian-born country music singer. Her notable singles include the 1952 RCA releases "Tom Tom Yodel" and " I Found Out More Than You Ever Knew", and "Please Throw Away The Glass" released b ...

, were professional country and western musicians who performed and recorded from the mid-1930s until the mid-1970s. From the mid to late 1940s they played summer engagements in southern New Brunswick, advertising their performances by playing free programs on radio station CKCW

. Lenny began playing guitar at the age of eight. When he was twelve, he started a small band with friends, and by the age of fourteen he was the lead guitarist for his parents' band, billed as "Lone Pine Junior", playing

Merle Travis Merle Robert Travis (November 29, 1917 – October 20, 1983) was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and guitarist born in Rosewood, Kentucky, United States. His songs' lyrics often discussed both the lives and the economic exp ...

and

instrumentals and occasionally singing. He made his first professional recordings in Westbrook, Maine at Event Records with

Al Hawkes Al Hawkes (December 25, 1930 – December 28, 2018) was an American musician, founder of Event Records, and pioneer of the American Bluegrass music, bluegrass movement. He received state and national accolades, including being recognized as a mem ...

at the age of 15 while working as a

studio musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a t ...

. Many of these recordings were released posthumously on the album '' Boy Wonder''. The Breau family moved to

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749 ...

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

in 1957 and their new band performed around the city and province as the CKY Caravan. Their shows were radio broadcast live on Winnipeg's

CKY CKY may refer to: *CKY (band), American rock band, formerly "Camp Kill Yourself" ** ''CKY'' (video series), named after the band **CKY crew, people involved in the video series and related projects *CKY-DT, a television station in Winnipeg, Manitob ...

on Saturday mornings from remote locations.

Jazz career

Around 1959 Breau left his parents' country band after his father slapped him in the face for incorporating

jazz improvisation Jazz improvisation is the spontaneous invention of melodic solo lines or accompaniment parts in a performance of jazz music. It is one of the defining elements of jazz. Improvisation is composing on the spot, when a singer or instrumentalist inv ...

into his playing with the group. He sought out local jazz musicians, performing at Winnipeg venues Rando Manor and the Stage Door. He met pianist Bob Erlendson, who began teaching him more of the foundations of jazz. In 1962, Breau briefly preformed in the Toronto-based jazz group

Three 3 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 3, three, or III may also refer to: * AD 3, the third year of the AD era * 3 BC, the third year before the AD era * March, the third month Books * '' Three of Them'' (Russian: ', literally, "three"), a 1901 ...

with singer and actor

Don Francks Don Harvey Francks (February 28, 1932 – April 3, 2016), also known by his stage name Iron Buffalo, was a Canadian actor, musician and singer. Career Don Harvey Francks was born on February 28, 1932, and was adopted shortly after his birth. H ...

, and Eon Henstridge on acoustic bass. Three performed in Toronto, Ottawa, and New York City. Their music was featured in the 1962

National Film Board The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary fi ...

documentary ''Toronto Jazz''. They recorded a live album at the Village Vanguard in New York City and appeared on the

Jackie Gleason John Herbert Gleason (February 26, 1916June 24, 1987) was an American actor, comedian, writer, composer, and conductor known affectionately as "The Great One." Developing a style and characters from growing up in Brooklyn, New York, he was know ...

and

Joey Bishop Joseph Abraham Gottlieb (February 3, 1918 – October 17, 2007), known professionally as Joey Bishop, was an American entertainer who appeared on television as early as 1948 and eventually starred in his own weekly comedy series playing a talk ...

television shows. Returning to Winnipeg a few months later, Breau became a session guitarist, recording for

CBC Radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined belo ...

and

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French- ...

, and contributed to CBC-TV's ''Teenbeat'', ''

Music Hop ''Music Hop'' is a Canadian music television series that aired on CBC Television from 1963 to 1967. Premise Pop and rock music was featured in this series for youth, essentially a Canadian version of '' American Bandstand''. Production The fi ...

'', and his own '' The Lenny Breau Show'' filmed in Winnipeg. In 1963 and 1964, Breau appeared at David Ingram's Fourth Dimension at 2000 Pembina Highway in

Fort Garry Fort Garry, also known as Upper Fort Garry, was a Hudson's Bay Company trading post at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers in what is now downtown Winnipeg. It was established in 1822 on or near the site of the North West Company' ...

, a suburb of Winnipeg. Every Sunday night was a party open to all. Other regulars at the club on Sunday nights included

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Fu ...

and his band

The Squires The Squires or Neil Young & The Squires were a Canadian band formed in 1963 in Winnipeg. It was one of the first bands of singer-songwriter Neil Young. Recordings Young formed the Squires in 1963, and the group played at community clubs, high ...

, and

Randy Bachman Randolph Charles Bachman (; born September 27, 1943) is a Canadian guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He was a founding member of the bands The Guess Who and Bachman–Turner Overdrive. Bachman recorded as a solo artist and was part of a num ...

, who was heavily influenced by Breau, in particular in the jazz guitar style of his

The Guess Who The Guess Who are a Canadian rock band formed in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 1965. The band originated in 1962 and achieved an international hit single with a cover of " Shakin' All Over" in 1965 under the name Chad Allan and the Expressions. After ...

hit "Undun". In 1967, recordings of Breau's playing from ''The Lenny Breau Show'' found their way to

. The ensuing friendship resulted in Breau's first two albums, ''

Guitar Sounds from Lenny Breau ''Guitar Sounds from Lenny Breau'' is an album by Canadian jazz guitarist Lenny Breau that was released in 1968. History Breau befriended Chet Atkins, which resulted in Breau's first two albums for RCA. Atkins and Breau also collaborated on ''Sta ...

'' and ''

The Velvet Touch of Lenny Breau – Live! ''The Velvet Touch of Lenny Breau – Live!'' is a live album by Canadian jazz guitarist Lenny Breau that was released in 1969.RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

, accompanied by fellow Winnipegers

Ron Halldorson Ron Halldorson (born 1943) is a Canadian jazz musician, arranger, and producer from Winnipeg, Manitoba, best known for his work with guitarist Lenny Breau. Beginning his career as a country musician in the 1950s, Halldorson switched to jazz in the ...

and Reg Kelln. Breau did not record again for nearly 10 years, though he continued to do session work in Winnipeg. Breau left Winnipeg in 1976 and spent the last few years of his life in the United States, living in Maine, Nashville, Stockton, California, and New York City, eventually settling in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

in 1983. These years he spent performing, teaching, and writing for ''

Guitar Player ''Guitar Player'' is an American popular magazine for guitarists, founded in 1967 in San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and politica ...

'' magazine. A few more solo albums were issued during his lifetime, in addition to albums recorded with fiddler

Buddy Spicher Buddy Spicher (born July 28, 1938 in DuBois, Pennsylvania; pronounced “Spiker”) is an American country music fiddle player. He is a member of The Nashville A-Team of session musicians, and is Grammy-nominated. He was nominated as Instrumental ...

and

pedal steel The pedal steel guitar is a console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all steel guitars, it can ...

guitarist

Buddy Emmons Buddy Gene Emmons (January 27, 1937 – July 21, 2015) was an American musician who is widely regarded as the world's foremost pedal steel guitarist of his day. He was inducted into the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame in 1981. Affectionately known by ...

. Breau had problems with drugs beginning in the 1960s which he managed to control during the last years of his life. On August 12, 1984, his body was found in a swimming pool at his apartment complex in Los Angeles, California. The coroner reported that Breau had been strangled. Breau's wife, Jewel, was the chief suspect, but she was not charged. He is interred in an unmarked grave at

Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery Forest Lawn Memorial-Parks & Mortuaries is an American corporation that owns and operates a chain of cemeteries and mortuaries in Los Angeles, Orange, and Riverside counties in Southern California. History The company was founded by a group of ...

Posthumous honors

Many live and "lost" recordings have been issued since Breau's death, and most of his previously released albums have also been reissued. Due to efforts by

of Guitarchives, Paul Kohler of Art of Life Records, Tim Tamashiro of

and others, a new generation of listeners has access to his music. A documentary titled ''The Genius of Lenny Breau'' was produced in 1999 by Breau's daughter, Emily Hughes. This

Gemini Award The Gemini Awards were awards given by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television between 1986–2011 to recognize the achievements of Canada's television industry. The Gemini Awards are analogous to the Emmy Awards given in the United States ...

-winning film includes interviews with

Ted Greene TED may refer to: Economics and finance * TED spread between U.S. Treasuries and Eurodollar Education * ''Türk Eğitim Derneği'', the Turkish Education Association ** TED Ankara College Foundation Schools, Turkey ** Transvaal Education Depart ...

Pat Metheny Patrick Bruce Metheny ( ; born August 12, 1954) is an American jazz guitarist and composer. He is the leader of the Pat Metheny Group and is also involved in duets, solo works, and other side projects. His style incorporates elements of progr ...

George Benson George Washington Benson (born March 22, 1943) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist. A former child prodigy, Benson first came to prominence in the 1960s, play ...

Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...

, and Bachman, as well as family members. George Benson said, "He dazzled me with his extraordinary guitar playing... I wish the world had the opportunity to experience his artistry." The biography ''One Long Tune: The Life and Music of Lenny Breau'' by Ron Forbes-Roberts was published in 2006 containing interviews with nearly 200 people and a comprehensive discography. CBC Radio presented a documentary on Lenny Breau titled ''On the Trail of Lenny Breau'' (the title is in reference to Breau's parents' song "On the Trail of the Lonesome Pine"). It was first broadcast on September 13, 2009, as part of a regular weekly program called ''

Inside the Music ''Inside the Music'' is a Canadian radio program, which began airing on CBC Radio One and CBC Radio 2 in 2007. Hosted by Patti Schmidt, the program airs documentaries about musicians, frequently but not exclusively Canadians. It covers the inspi ...

''. It was narrated by Breau's son, Chet.CBC Music: Inside the Archives
The one-hour feature was produced in Montreal by John Klepko. Breau was inducted into the

Canadian Music Hall of Fame The Canadian Music Hall of Fame was established in 1978 by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) to honour Canadian musicians for their lifetime achievements in music. The award presentation is held each year as part of the ...

in 1997.

Technique and guitars

Breau's fully matured technique was a combination of Chet Atkins's and Merle Travis's

fingerpicking Fingerstyle guitar is the technique of playing the guitar or bass guitar by plucking the strings directly with the fingertips, fingernails, or picks attached to fingers, as opposed to flatpicking (plucking individual notes with a single plectr ...

and

Sabicas Sabicas (proper name: Agustín Castellón Campos) (16 March 1912 – 14 April 1990) was a Spanish flamenco guitarist of Romani origin. Biography Sabicas was born in Pamplona, Spain, and began playing guitar at the age of five and made his perfor ...

-influenced

, highlighted by right-hand independence and flurries of artificial

harmonics A harmonic is a wave with a frequency that is a positive integer multiple of the '' fundamental frequency'', the frequency of the original periodic signal, such as a sinusoidal wave. The original signal is also called the ''1st harmonic'', ...

. His harmonic sensibilities were a combination of his country roots, classical music, modal music, Indian, and jazz, particularly the work of pianist

Bill Evans William John Evans (August 16, 1929 – September 15, 1980) was an American jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His use of impressionist harmony, interpretation of traditional jazz repertoire, block ch ...

. Breau often adapted Evans's compositions, such as "Funny Man", for guitar. Breau said in relation to this, "I approach the guitar like a piano. I've reached a point where I transcend the instrument. A lot of the stuff I play on the seven-string guitar is supposed to be technically impossible, but I spent over twenty years figuring it out. I play the guitar like a piano, there's always two things going on at once. I'm thinking melody, but I'm also thinking of a background. I play the accompaniment on the low strings." He had two custom

s made, one classical and one electric. At the time, no company made a string that could be tuned to the high A on his

classical guitar The classical guitar (also known as the nylon-string guitar or Spanish guitar) is a member of the guitar family used in classical music and other styles. An acoustic wooden string instrument with strings made of gut or nylon, it is a precursor o ...

. Breau used fishing line of the correct gauge until the La Bella company began making a string for him. The electric guitar was made by Kirk Sand, also with the first string being a high A.

Discography

* ''

The Velvet Touch of Lenny Breau – Live! ''The Velvet Touch of Lenny Breau – Live!'' is a live album by Canadian jazz guitarist Lenny Breau that was released in 1969.RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

, 1969) * ''

'' (RCA Victor, 1969) * '' Minors Aloud'',

with Lenny Breau (

Flying Fish The Exocoetidae are a family of marine fish in the order Beloniformes class Actinopterygii, known colloquially as flying fish or flying cod. About 64 species are grouped in seven to nine genera. While they cannot fly in the same way a bird d ...

, 1978) * '' Five O'Clock Bells'' (Adelphi, 1979) * ''

Lenny Breau Leonard Harold Breau (August 5, 1941 – August 12, 1984) was an American-Canadian guitarist. He blended many styles of music, including jazz, country, classical, and flamenco. Inspired by country guitarists like Chet Atkins, Breau used finger ...

'' (Direct Disk Labs, 1979) * '' The Legendary Lenny Breau... Now!'' (Sound Hole, 1979) * ''

Standard Brands Standard Brands was a packaged foods company, formed in 1929 by J. P. Morgan with the merger of: * Fleischmann Company *Royal Baking Powder Company * E. W. Gillett Company of Canada (1929) - Toronto-based baking goods company (maker of Magic Bak ...

'' with Chet Atkins (RCA Victor, 1981) * '' Mo' Breau'' (Adelphi, 1981) * '' When Lightn' Strikes'' (Tudor, 1982) * ''

Legacy In law, a legacy is something held and transferred to someone as their inheritance, as by will and testament. Personal effects, family property, marriage property or collective property gained by will of real property. Legacy or legacies may refer ...

'' with David Young (Relaxed Rabbit, 1984) * '' Quietude'' with Dave Young (Electric Muse, 1985) * '' The Living Room Tapes, Vol. 1'' with Brad Terry (Livingroom, 1986) * '' Last Sessions'' (Adelphi, 1988) * '' The Living Room Tapes, Vol. 2'' with Brad Terry (Musical Heritage Society, 1990) * '' Live at Bourbon St.'' with Dave Young (Guitarchives, 1995) * '' Chance Meeting'', Tal Farlow with Lenny Breau (Guitarchives, 1997) * '' Cabin Fever'' (Guitarchives, 1997) * '' Boy Wonder'' (Guitarchives, 1998) * '' Live at Donte's'' (String Jazz, 2000) * '' Pickin' Cotten'' with Richard Cotten (Guitarchives, 2001) * '' The Hallmark Sessions'' (Art of Life, 2003) * '' The Complete Living Room Tapes'' with Brad Terry (Art of Life, 2003) * '' At the Purple Onion'' with Don Francks and Eon Henstridge (Art of Life, 2004) * ''Mosaic'' (Guitarchives, 2006) * '' LA Bootleg 1984'' (Linus Entertainment, 2014)

References

External links

*
The Genius of Lenny Breau
(PDF document) Retrieved July 3, 2009. * *
Entry at thecanadianencyclopedia.ca
{{DEFAULTSORT:Breau, Lenny 1941 births 1984 deaths 1984 murders in the United States American emigrants to Canada American male guitarists Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) Canadian jazz guitarists Canadian male guitarists Canadian male jazz musicians Guitarists from Maine Musicians from Winnipeg People from Auburn, Maine Seven-string guitarists 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century Canadian male musicians 20th-century Canadian guitarists People murdered in Los Angeles Deaths by strangulation in the United States Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductees