Recording prolifically and almost exclusively for Blue Note Records (as both leader and sideman) Green performed well in hard bop, soul jazz, bebop and Latin-tinged settings throughout his career. Critics Michael Erlewine and Ron Wynn write, "A severely underrated player during his lifetime, Grant Green is one of the great unsung heroes of jazz guitar ... Green's playing is immediately recognizable -- perhaps more than any other guitarist." Critic Dave Hunter described his sound as "lithe, loose, slightly bluesy and righteously groovy". He often performed in an organ trio, a small group with an organ and drummer.
Apart from Charlie Christian, Green's primary influences were saxophonists, particularly Charlie Parker, and his approach was therefore almost exclusively linear rather than chordal. The simplicity and immediacy of Green's playing, which tended to avoid chromaticism, derived from his early work playing rhythm and blues and, although at his best he achieved a synthesis of this style with bop, he was essentially a blues guitarist and returned almost exclusively to this style in his later career. Green used a Gibson ES-330, then a Gibson L7 with a Gibson McCarty pickguard/pick-up, an Epiphone Emperor (with the same pick-up) and finally had a custom built D'Aquisto. George Benson said he would turn all the bass and treble off the amp, and max the midrange. This way he could get his signature punchy, biting tone.
Green was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He first performed in a professional setting at the age of 12. His influences were Charlie Christian, Charlie Parker, Ike Quebec, Lester Young, Jimmy Raney, Jimmy Smith and Miles Davis, he first played boogie-woogie before moving on to jazz. His first recordings in St. Louis were with tenor saxophonist Jimmy Forrest for the Delmark label. The drummer in the band was Elvin Jones, later the powerhouse behind John Coltrane. Grant recorded with Elvin again in the early Sixties. Lou Donaldson discovered Grant playing in a bar in St. Louis. After touring together with Donaldson, Grant arrived in New York around 1959-60.
Lou Donaldson introduced Grant to Alfred Lion of Blue Note Records. Lion was so impressed with Grant that, rather than testing Grant as a sideman, as was the usual Blue Note practice, Lion arranged for him to record as a bandleader first. Green's initial recording session went unreleased until 2001, however, owing to a lack of confidence on Green's behalf.
Despite the shelving of his first session, Green's recording relationship with Lion and Blue Note was to last, with a few exceptions, throughout the Sixties. From 1961 to 1965, Grant made more appearances on Blue Note LPs, as leader or sideman, than anyone else. Grant's first issued album as a leader was Grant's First Stand. This was followed in the same year by Green Street and Grantstand. Grant was named best new star in the Down Beat critics' poll, 1962, and, as a result, his influence spread wider than New York. He often provided support to the other important musicians on Blue Note, including saxophonists Hank Mobley, Ike Quebec, Stanley Turrentine and Harold Vick, as well as organist Larry Young.
Sunday Mornin' , The Latin Bit and Feelin' the Spirit are all loose concept albums, each taking a musical theme or style: Gospel, Latin and spirituals respectively. Grant always carried off his more commercial dates with artistic success during this period. Idle Moments (1963), featuring Joe Henderson and Bobby Hutcherson, and Solid (1964), featuring the Coltrane rhythm section, are acclaimed as two of Grant's best recordings.
Many of Grant's recordings were not released during his lifetime. These include Matador, in which Grant is once again in the heavyweight company of the Coltrane rhythm section, and a series of sessions with pianist Sonny Clark. In 1966 Grant left Blue Note and recorded for several other labels, including Verve. From 1967 to 1969 Grant was, for the most part, inactive due to personal problems and the effects of heroin addiction. In 1969 Grant returned with a new funk-influenced band. His recordings from this period include the commercially successful Green is Beautiful and the soundtrack to the film The Final Comedown. Grant was also a huge influence on guitarists, from George Benson to Stevie Ray Vaughan. Still to this day guitarists try to get his signature sound, Idle Moments is considered one of the top 100 jazz albums of all time.
Grant left Blue Note again in 1974 and the subsequent recordings he made with other labels divide opinion: some consider Green to have been the 'Father of Acid Jazz' (and his late recordings have been sampled by artists including US3, A Tribe Called Quest and Public Enemy), whilst others have dismissed them (Michael Cuscuna wrote in the sleeve notes for the album Matador that "During the 1970s he made some pretty lame records").
Grant spent much of 1978 in hospital and, against the advice of doctors, went back on the road to earn some money. While in New York to play an engagement at George Benson's Breezin' Lounge, Grant collapsed in his car of a heart attack in New York City on January 31, 1979. He was buried in Greenwood Cemetery in his hometown of St. Louis, Missouri, and was survived by six children. Since Green's demise, his reputation has grown to legendary status and many compilations of both his earlier (post-bop/straight ahead and soul jazz) and later (funkier/dancefloor jazz) periods, exist.
Street of Dreams
Grant Green Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Come on and trade in your old dreams for new
Your new dreams for old
I know where they're bought
I know where they're sold
Midnight, you've got to get there at midnight
And you'll be met there by others like you
Brothers as blue
Love laughs at a king
Kings don't mean a thing
On the street of dreams
Dreams broken in two can be made like new
On the street of dreams
Gold, sliver and gold
All you can hold is in the moonbeams
Poor, no one is poor
Long as love is sure
On the street of dreams
Midnight, look at the steeple, it's midnight
Unhappy people, it's ringing with joy
It's ringing with cheer
'Cause yesterday's gone
Tomorrow is near
Midnight, the heart is lighter at midnight
Things will be brighter the moment you find
More of your kind
Smiling on the street of dreams
Love laughs at a king
Kings don't mean a thing
On the street of dreams
Dreams broken in two can be made like new
On the street of dreams
Gold, sliver and gold
All you can hold is in the moonbeams
Poor, no one is poor
Long as love is sure
On the street of dreams
The song "Street of Dreams" by Grant Green talks about a place where people can go to trade their old dreams for new ones. The lyrics suggest that this place can be found at midnight, and that it is a place where people who are feeling down can go to meet others like them. The street of dreams is presented as a place where people can find hope, where their dreams can be made new again, and where love is the most important thing.
The imagery of the song is quite powerful, with references to the steeple ringing with joy and cheer, and the idea that gold, silver, and love can be found in the moonbeams. The lyrics suggest that on the street of dreams, nobody is poor as long as they have love, and that kings don't mean a thing - only the power of love can truly uplift people.
Overall, the song "Street of Dreams" presents a hopeful message - that no matter how down people may feel, there is always a place where they can find hope, love, and new dreams.
Line by Line Meaning
Midnight, you heavy laden, it's midnight
It's midnight, when your burdens weigh heavy on your heart
Come on and trade in your old dreams for new
Let go of old dreams and make room for new ones
Your new dreams for old
Trade your new dreams for the old ones you gave up before
I know where they're bought
I know the place where dreams can be bought
I know where they're sold
I know where dreams can be sold
Midnight, you've got to get there at midnight
You must arrive exactly at midnight
And you'll be met there by others like you
You'll be greeted by people who share your dreams and struggles
Brothers as blue
People who are also feeling sad or depressed
Smiling on the street of dreams
They'll be happy and smiling in the place where dreams come true
Love laughs at a king
Love can conquer anything, even something as great as a king
Kings don't mean a thing
Even the most powerful rulers are powerless in the face of love
Dreams broken in two can be made like new
Dreams that have been shattered can be mended and restored
Gold, sliver and gold
Anything you could possibly desire can be found
All you can hold is in the moonbeams
The impossible is possible
Poor, no one is poor
Money doesn't matter in the street of dreams
Long as love is sure
All that matters is love
Midnight, look at the steeple, it's midnight
Look at the church spire, it's midnight
Unhappy people, it's ringing with joy
People who were unhappy before will be joyful when they hear the church bells ringing
It's ringing with cheer
The bells are ringing with happiness
'Cause yesterday's gone
Leave the past behind
Tomorrow is near
The future is bright
Midnight, the heart is lighter at midnight
At midnight, you'll feel a weight lifted from your heart
Things will be brighter the moment you find
Life will be better as soon as you find what you're looking for
More of your kind
More people who share your dreams
Smiling on the street of dreams
You'll find them happy and smiling in the street of dreams
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Songtrust Ave, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Sam Lewis, Victor Young
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
jasonpfinch
Grant Green's got about 20 albums in my '60s jazz top ten.
Arther Ladett
@Quinn W. Johnson He has some great stuff with the organist John Patton, if you haven't checked it out yet.
Quinn W. Johnson
I hope you know about albums he is a sideman on. I've never heard a side he plays that I don't like. I love his version of So What. I love the call and response and it was like finding a diamond in the rough, the first time I heard it.
TheBirdBrothers
have you heard Solid? one of those ones they didnt release but eventually did, v nice
Chinsy Mcgee
Got about 2 in my all time best of any genre
HKGuitar
This is one of my all time favorite because it got a style. No horns, no piano, no double bass, no fast swing, no ballad, no most popular standards, and yet it sounds really authentic.
africanchina1
that's exactly why it sounds authentic
Landyn Colt
instaBlaster.
HighFlyingBird89
@eric searcy That's Larry's left hand.
eric searcy
I agree but I do hear some bass though