Home | Songs By Year | Songs from 1970
Breezin' (song)
Buy Breezin' (song) now from AmazonFirst, read the Wikipedia article. Then, scroll down to see what other TopShelfReviews readers thought about the song. And once you've experienced the song, tell everyone what you thought about it.
Wikipedia article
{{Infobox song
| name = Breezin'
| cover =
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = Gbor Szab and Bobby Womack
| album = High Contrast
| B-side = Azure Blue
| released = April 1971
1972
| recorded = December 1970
| studio =
| venue =
| genre = Crossover jazz, Soul jazz
| length = 3:11 (Album full length)
3:03 (Edit single version)
| label = Blue Thumb Records
| writer = Bobby Womack
| producer = Tommy LiPuma
| prev_title =
| prev_year =
| next_title =
| next_year =
| misc =
}}
'"Breezin'"' is an instrumental song composed by American singer and musician Bobby Womack. It was originally recorded in December 1970 by the influential Hungarian jazz guitarist Gbor Szab, in partnership with Womack himself. The song was originally released in 1971 on Szab's album 'High Contrast'. The song was released as a single in April 1971 in the United States and in 1972 in the Netherlands. The single reached No. 43 on the R&B chart the same year. "Breezin'" was produced by Tommy LiPuma.
Bobby Womack did write some lyrics for the song but these were never officially released. However, Womack performs the song himself with the lyrics he could remember on his Raw DVD released in 2010.
Gbor Szab version (1971)
Track listing
The "Breezin'"s full length on the Szab's album 'High Contrast' is 3:11. The length of only 3:03 is an edited version of the single.Chart position
Personnel
*Gbor Szab Electric guitar, Acoustic guitar*Bobby Womack Songwriter, Electric rhythm guitar
*Jim Keltner Drums
*Felix "Flaco" Falcon Congas
*Phil Upchurch Bass
*Rene Hall String arrangements
*Carmelo Garcia Percussion
*Bruce Botnick Audio engineer
*Tommy LiPuma Tambourine, Gourd percussion, record producer
George Benson version (1976)
{{Infobox song
| name = Breezin'
| cover =
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = George Benson
| album = Breezin'
| B-side = Six To Four
| released = September 1976
| recorded = January 1976
| studio =
| venue =
| genre = Smooth jazz, Soul jazz
| length = 5:40 (Album full length)
5:20 (Edit single version)
| label = Warner Bros. Records
| writer = Bobby Womack
| producer = Tommy LiPuma
| prev_title = This Masquerade
| prev_year = 1976
| next_title = The World Is a Ghetto
| next_year = 1977
| misc =
}}
Five years after Gbor Szab's original recording, the song became even better known for a successful re-recording by singer and guitarist George Benson, whose 1976 cover was the title track of his album 'Breezin'. His version was recorded in January 1976 and released as a single in September of the same year, entering the American charts in October. Like Szab's original, Benson's cover was produced by Tommy LiPuma. The album and single were released by Warner Bros. Records.
Track listing
7" singleThe "Breezin'"s full length on the Benson's album 'Breezin' is 5:40. The length of only 5:20 is an edited version of the 7" single.
12" single
Chart history
Personnel
*Songwriter Bobby Womack*Lead Guitar, Vocals George Benson
*Bass, Rhythm Guitar Phil Upchurch
*Conductor, Arranged By Claus Ogerman
*Drums Harvey Mason
*Flute - Bennie Maupin
*Electric Piano, Keyboards Ronnie Foster
*Percussion Ralph MacDonald
*Piano, Clavinet Jorge Dalto
*Producer Tommy LiPuma
Other versions
The song was also recorded twice by saxophonist and arranger Hank Crawford: first in 1980 with guitarist Calvin Newborn for their collaborative album 'Centerpiece', and again in 1996 for his album 'Tight'. Additionally, Masayoshi Takanaka recorded a city pop version of the song, released on his 1978 album 'On Guitar'.
References
Buy Breezin' (song) now from Amazon
<-- Return to songs from 1970