George Benson interview page 2

Smitty:  Yes indeed. And I just wanna say for the record before we continue, we have started a….I got a group of fans together and we have started an Al Jarreau coffee fund so that in case you swipe his coffee again in John Burk’s office… (Both laughing.) 

GB:  He perceived that, but that wasn’t the case.

Smitty: Yeah.

GB:  What he did was set up a great scenario for us to get into this record.

Smitty:  Yeah.

GB:  He ordered a coffee before I ordered one, so when he came in the room and he saw me drinking coffee, he said “I bet you that’s my cup he’s drinking.”  (Both laughing.)  And, you know, I said “Oh, Al, don’t start no schtuff” and he said “George, don’t start no schtuff” and, man, that should be the title of the album. We already got a title already.

Smitty:  (Laughs.)  And that’s what happens when great friends get together and do a record.  There are so many other cool things that come along with that and that just makes the music blend so well, when you’ve got that kind of rapport and relationship.

GB:  And neither one of us could possibly know what effect we were gonna have on the world when we hooked up in the mid-seventies, you know, or the late seventies.  We had no idea that what we were doing was gonna be so accepted and given a special place in people’s minds and hearts.

Smitty:  Yes. It’s been such a great ride to this point.

GB:  And then the record sales on top of that because the first thing they told me when I went to New York was jazz artists don’t sell very many records, so don’t expect to sell any records.  I said “What do you mean?”  They said “Well, if you sell ten thousand records as a jazz artist, you’re considered a superstar.”  I said “Ten thousand?!  That’s nothing!” 

Smitty:  (Laughs.)

GB:  And then one day we sold a record, Breezin’, sold ten million copies.  I said “That’s what I’m talking about!”

Smitty:  Yes sir!  And, George, I was among the ten million.  (Both laughing.)  I must tell you because of Breezin’ I must have wore out four or five needles and four or five turntables. I was probably at least four or five in that ten million because I wore out your records.

GB:  That band was one of the baddest bands in history.  It was a collection of really hot guys, young musicians who were raring to show what they could do. And they would accept nothing less than an ovation every time they got finished playing a solo.  They were so used to people standing and applauding when they played. They searched for that every time they played a solo, and even if they didn’t get the applause, they still stood up and bowed anyway.

Smitty:  Yes indeed.  And that’s the way it should be.

GB:  Yeah.

Smitty:  Absolutely. I just want to mention John Burk. What a jewel of a guy to pull you guys together with this idea and really steer you two together and do such a fantastic project. This record should be in everybody’s top two or three albums of the year because it’s that good.

GB:  Well, I hope so.

Smitty: And my hat’s off to all of you cats and John Burk and everybody who had something to do with this record because it’s on a another level. Each of the songs has a whole new level of musicianship and I really love the way you and Patrice Rushen and Al all blend together so well with the vocals and putting this record together with all the other fantastic musicians.

GB:  How ‘bout that solo that Herbie Hancock played on “Tutu”?

Smitty:  Oh, man.

GB:  Knocked me out of my socks.

Smitty:  Yes, Al and I were talking about that.  That is such a bluesy and just a funked up track.  It is unbelievable.  And, you know, Herbie’s in a class all by himself.

GB:  Yeah, that’s true.  (Both laughing.)  Yeah, we really had a ball doing it.  I’ll tell you, Jill Scott came outta nowhere.  She came in the studio and just lit it up with her personality and it was just a matter of finding something that, you know, she was comfortable with and then trying to make it follow her lead.

Smitty:  Yes.

GB:  We let her do that. She came in and just laid down into this vocal and I had the privilege, man, of being a partner in it. I never did that song before (“God Bless the Child”).  I hardly knew it. But she was so good and I said “Man, let me see if I can get a piece of this before Al grabs it.”