George Freeman (guitarist)

In 1947, shortly after his 20th birthday, Freeman traveled to New York with his high school friend Johnny Griffin – who previously had left Chicago to tour with the Lionel Hampton band – to join the band he was forming with trumpeter Joe Morris.[4] Over the next year, Freeman met and listened to notable artists in the bebop genre. He also gave a solo guitar concert in Philadelphia for an audience consisting of a young Fats Navarro and John Coltrane.

Freeman made his first recordings with the Joe Morris Orchestra in late 1947, first on the Manor label, and then on the fledgling Atlantic label. The band's sound was a blend of R&B and jazz, which contrasted with Freeman's more eccentric, bebop-inspired style of playing. His extended solo feature on Boogie Woogie Joe, recorded in late 1947, has been described by rock music writer "Sampson" as "...the first scintillating guitar workout in rock history."[8][9]

In March 1948, the band recorded a song based on The Hulk, a blues composed by Freeman. For the Atlantic recording, it was renamed Lowe Groovin', a title derived from the name of a Washington, D.C., disk jockey named Jackson Lowe. When the record came out in, the composition was credited on the label to Morris, not Freeman. Freeman quit the band and returned to Chicago in response.[10][9]

Upon his return, Freeman re-assumed his place in the Chicago music scene, often performing with his brothers at the Pershing Hotel. Highlights of this period were collaborations with Charlie Parker – twice in Chicago and once in Detroit – between 1950 and 1951. During these performances, Parker developed a close musical and personal rapport with the Freemans. At one engagement, Von took George's tie and lent it to Parker. Parker never returned it and subsequently wore it in publicity photos, including one on the wall behind the stage at The Jazz Showcase in Chicago.[9] At another point, as a set was scheduled to begin while George was still backstage, Parker rejected the pleas of the audience to start: "No, I'm not going to play anything until George gets back."[4]

An amateur recording of the Parker-Freeman performances in Chicago has been reissued numerous times. In a 2003 release, music historian and annotator Loren Schoenberg said this about Freeman's playing: "There is virtually no precedent for the outrageously experimental music that George Freeman creates throughout this set.... His ... solo [on one tune] is unlike anything I have ever heard, and seems much closer to what John Scofield and Bill Frisell have brought to the jazz guitar in the '90s than to anything from his own contemporaries."[11]

Freeman remained in Chicago throughout the 1950s, but by 1959 he decided to tour again. He traveled the country with tenor saxophonist Sil Austin and vocalist Jackie Wilson for a time, then with organist Wild Bill Davis, and finally with organist Richard "Groove" Holmes, with whom he worked and recorded extensively during the 1960s.[4] Freeman made the introductions that resulted in Holmes' first record, Groove, on which Freeman and tenor saxophone player Ben Webster appeared.[12] Another recording highlight with Holmes was The Groover!, featuring Freeman's unique guitar work extensively along with two of his compositions.[13]

While Freeman was spending most of the 1960s touring with Holmes and others, tenor great Gene Ammons was incarcerated south of Chicago on drug charges that some say were trumped up.[14] Upon his release in 1969, Ammons returned to Chicago and performed with some old colleagues and high school classmates, including Freeman.[15] Ammons immediately asked Freeman to join Ammons on the front line of a new band he was forming, and Freeman accepted.[4] Freeman remained a featured member of the Ammons band, with a few interruptions, until Ammons' untimely death from bone cancer in 1974. The Ammons-Freeman collaboration yielded several recordings, including The Black Cat, the title track of which was written by Freeman (Freeman's original title was George Meets Gene, but the producer in the studio changed it to The Black Cat, remarking to Ammons that he had nothing but bad luck).[16] Ammons' admiration for Freeman's playing is revealed in a Down Beat interview conducted by longtime jazz writer Leonard Feather. Ammons expressed a dislike for avant garde jazz music, and in response, Feather countered that Freeman's solos often fell into that category. Ammons responded: "I agree. But George does it in the realm of what's going on otherwise, as far as the rest of the rhythm and the whole situation, and it sounds good."[17]

The Ammons years were especially fertile for Freeman--and his work garnered widespread acclaim. A 1971 Down Beat issue, entitled MASTERS OF JAZZ GUITAR, showcased Freeman's work along with that of Kenny Burrell and Jim Hall.[18] Other bandleaders who recognized Freeman's unique talents tried to pry him away from Ammons; most were unsuccessful, but Freeman did accept an offer to join organist Jimmy McGriff for a time. That partnership resulted in several albums, including Fly Dude from 1972, which features Freeman's guitar and compositions.[19] Another prominent collaboration from this period was with drummer Buddy Rich and tenorist Illinois Jacquet, a collaboration that also produced an album.[20]

The early 1970s also yielded Freeman's first album as leader, Birth Sign, and several other highly regarded recordings--including Franticdiagnosis from 1972.[21]

As the 1970s progressed, Freeman returned again to Chicago, which has remained the epicenter of his activities ever since.

Freeman resumed his work in local clubs, while at the same time, remained active in the recording studios. His appearance on Johnny Griffin's 1979 album Bush Dance is one of a number of highlights.[22] Another is Freeman's 1995 album Rebellion, on which his brother Von holds down the piano chair.[23]

The 2000s have been an active period for Freeman. He has recorded multiple albums under his own name, including 90 Going on Amazing, a 2005 album produced and recorded by Sirus XM Jazz Director Mark Ruffin and released by Blujazz in August 2017.[24] Freeman's other albums in this period have included collaborations with vocalist Kurt Elling,[25] tenorist (and brother Von's son) Chico Freeman,[26] and guitarist Mike Allemana.[27] In his most recent album, George The Bomb from 2019, Freeman teamed with blues singer and harmonica player Billy Branch.[28]

Freeman also has remained an active performer--playing in New York City and Europe, but mostly, at home in Chicago. Freeman has been a regular fixture at the annual Chicago Jazz Festival, headlining there with his brother Von, his nephew Chico (in 2015), Mike Allemana (in 2017), and Billy Branch (in 2019). Freeman also has played regular engagements in jazz clubs and special events for the Jazz Institute of Chicago and the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians.

Freeman's full calendar of engagements was scrapped in March 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of public events and the closing of jazz clubs. Freeman kept himself busy at home for the next year practicing and composing new music.

In April 2021, as vaccines became available and the Chicago clubs started reopening, Freeman returned to live performances with an engagement at The Green Mill Cocktail Lounge, just in time to celebrate his 94th Birthday on April 10. Freeman remained in demand throughout 2021, headlining the Englewood Jazz Festival on September 18, returning to the Green Mill on October 1-2, and opening the Blues Festival at The University of Chicago’s Logan Center on October 15.

Freeman returned to the Green Mill in Chicago on April 8 and 9, 2022, for his annual birthday weekend. In celebration of Freeman’s 95th birthday on April 10, 2022, Southport Records released Everybody Say Yeah!, a new compilation of recordings that document 26 years of Freeman's music from the Chicago label catalog, unreleased tracks, and a new recording of "Perfume" with fellow guitarist Mike Allemana.

Freeman again entered the recording studio on May 7, 2022, leading an all-star trio session with bassist Christian McBride and drummer Carl Allen.[29] And on June 13, 2022, Freeman led another all-star recording session, this time supported by organist Joey DeFrancesco and drummer Lewis Nash.

• Introducing George Freeman Live with Charlie Earland Sitting In (Giant Step, 1971)
• Birth Sign (Delmark, 1972)
• Franticdiagnosis (Bam-Boo, 1972)
• Man & Woman (Groove Merchant, 1974)
• New Improved Funk (Groove Merchant, 1974)
• Rebellion (Southport, 1995)
• George Burns! (Southport, 1999)
• At Long Last George (Savant, 2001)
• All in the Family with Chico Freeman (Southport, 2015)
• Live at the Green Mill with Mike Allemana (Ears&eyes, 2017)
• 90 Going On Amazing (Blujazz, 2017)
• George the Bomb (Southport, 2019)
• Everybody Say Yeah! (Southport, 2022)

With Gene Ammons

• Hooray for John Coltrane, Gene Ammons (Session, 1970s)
• The Black Cat! (Prestige, 1971)
• You Talk That Talk! (Prestige, 1971)
• Swingin' the Jug (Roots, 1976)

With Richard "Groove" Holmes

• "Groove" (Pacific Jazz, 1961)
• Tell It Like It Tis (Pacific Jazz, 1966)
• Welcome Home (World Pacific Jazz, 1968)
• The Groover! (Prestige, 1968)

With Jimmy McGriff

• Fly Dude (Groove Merchant, 1972)
• Concert: Friday the 13th - Cook County Jail with Eli Lucky Thompson (Groove Merchant, 1973)
• Giants of the Organ Come Together with Richard "Groove" Holmes (Groove Merchant, 1973)
• 100% Pure Funk (LRC, 2001)

With others

• Mickey Fields, The Astonishing Mickey Fields (Edmar, 1960s)
• Johnny Griffin, Bush Dance (Galaxy, 1979)
• Red Holloway, Go Red Go! (Delmark, 2009)
• Illinois Jacquet, Loot to Boot (LRC, 1991)
• Les McCann, Oh Brother! (Fontana, 1964)
• Joe Morris, 1946–1949 (Classics, 2003)
• Charlie Parker, An Evening at Home with the Bird (Savoy, 1961)
• Charlie Parker, One Night in Chicago (Savoy, 1980)
• Buddy Rich, The Last Blues Album Volume 1 (Groove Merchant, 1974)
• Shirley Scott, Mystical Lady (Cadet, 1971)