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Eric Gale

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Not to be confused with Eric Gales.
Eric Gale
Gale in Montreux, Switzerland, 1976
Gale in Montreux, Switzerland, 1976
Background information
Born(1938-09-20)September 20, 1938
Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York
DiedMay 25, 1994(1994-05-25) (aged 55)
Baja California, Mexico
GenresJazz, smooth jazz, crossover jazz, jazz fusion
OccupationMusician
InstrumentGuitar
Years active1960s–1990s
LabelsCTI, Kudu, Columbia, Elektra/Musician, Klik
Formerly ofStuff, Fania All-Stars

Eric Gale (September 20, 1938 – May 25, 1994) was an American jazz and jazz fusion guitarist.

Biography

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Eric Gale was born in Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York[1] to an American mother and British father. His grandfather was English so he spent his holidays visiting family in the UK, which allowed him to look at the world through a different perspective. He was fluent in German and Spanish. Gale started playing the guitar at age 12.[2]

He attended private, all-boys Catholic schools and was exceptionally skilled at math. He skipped junior high school and, while in high school, frequently visited John Coltrane's home where he sat in on jam sessions, and was given after-school snacks by John Coltrane's wife, which he appreciated.[3] Gale received his Masters in chemistry at Niagara University.[4] While a professor at Penn State University he made the momentous decision to pursue a musical career instead of a Ph.D. in Chemistry, which displeased his mother. In the late 1960's, Van Morrison recorded "Brown Eyed Girl", which was originally titled "Brown Skinned Girl". You can hear Eric's catchy rifts in the session, but the radio stations requested the title be changed to "Brown Eyed Girl", as the original was considered too controversial for the times. Soon after, Frank Sinatra approached Eric to work on the hit song "My Way," as mentioned in Sinatra's autobiography.[5] Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway's "Where Is the Love" (1972), Phil Upchurch and George Benson.[6] to name a few.

Roberta Flack called Gale and begged him to come back home to New York to help her with her Killing Me Softly (1973) album. Gale was reluctant, so she flew the band members to him instead. After some persuading, they ended up returning to the United States. A close, intelligent friend of his, Flack worked together with Gale on her Killing Me Softly album.[7] He had just finished recording his Negril album with Cedric Brooks, Richard Tee, the Wailers, along with Peter Tosh on vocals, in Kingston, Jamaica.[8] He flew out to Montego Bay, Jamaica, to clear his mind and reconnect with nature, then was able to finish an album in Kingston with his friends who understood the inexplicable injustice of politics. This was mentioned in Aston "Familyman" Barrett's autobiography.[citation needed]

Gale often worked as a session musician, recording with musicians such as Bobby Lewis, King Curtis, Quincy Jones, Roberta Flack, Van McCoy, Jesse Belvin, Maxine Brown, Bobby Timmons, George Benson, Lena Horne, Joe Cocker, The Drifters, The Flamingos, Ashford & Simpson, Illinois Jacquet, Billy Joel, Herbie Mann, David "Fathead" Newman, Patti Austin, Mongo Santamaria, Paul Simon, Nina Simone, Jimmy Smith, Clark Terry, Fania All-Stars, and Jackie Wilson.[9] In the 1970s he became a studio guitarist for CTI Records, recording with Bob James, Stanley Turrentine, and Grover Washington Jr., and was a member of the R&B band Stuff with Steve Gadd and others.[10] His first of many albums as a solo act was released by Kudu.[10] Gale played guitar on Van McCoy's hit "The Hustle"(1975) and Grover Washington Jr.'s "Just the Two of Us".[11]

Gale died of lung cancer in 1994 at the age of 55 and is survived by his wife Masako Gale, their three daughters, and three grandchildren.[9][12]

Discography

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As leader

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  • Forecast (Kudu, 1973)
  • Negril (Micron Music; Klik, 1975)
  • Multiplication (Columbia, 1977)
  • Ginseng Woman (Columbia, 1977)
  • Part of You (Columbia, 1979)
  • Touch of Silk (Columbia, 1980)
  • Blue Horizon (Elektra/Musician, 1982)
  • In the Shade of a Tree (JVC, 1982)
  • Island Breeze (Elektra, 1983)
  • In a Jazz Tradition (EmArcy, 1988)
  • Let's Stay Together (Artful Balance, 1988)
  • Utopia (Rooms, 1998, released posthumously)

With Stuff

  • Stuff (Warner Bros., 1976)
  • More Stuff (Warner Bros. 1977)
  • Live Stuff (Warner Bros., 1978)
  • Stuff It! (Warner Bros., 1979)
  • Live in New York (Warner Bros., 1980)
  • Made in America (Bridge Gate, 1994)

As sideman

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With Ashford & Simpson

  • Come as You Are (Warner Bros., 1976)
  • Send It (Warner Bros., 1977)
  • Is It Still Good to Ya (Warner Bros., 1978)
  • Stay Free (Warner Bros., 1979)
  • A Musical Affair (Warner Bros., 1980)
  • Street Opera (Capitol, 1982)
  • So So Satisfied (Big Break, 2015)

With Patti Austin

With George Benson

With Ron Carter

With Hank Crawford

With Fania All-Stars

  • Ella Fue/Juan Pachanga (Columbia, 1977)
  • Ella Fue/Steady (Discophon, 1977)
  • Rhythm Machine (Fania, 1977)
  • Spanish Fever (Columbia, 1978)
  • Cross Over (Columbia, 1979)
  • Commitment (Fania, 1980)
  • Social Change (Dig It, 1981)

With Roberta Flack

With Jun Fukamachi

  • The Sea of Dirac (Kitty, 1977)
  • Evening Star (Kitty, 1978)
  • On the Move (Alfa, 1978)

With Freddie Hubbard

With Bob James

With Quincy Jones

With Gladys Knight & the Pips

  • Still Together (Buddah, 1977)
  • The One and Only (Buddah, 1978)
  • About Love (Columbia, 1980)
  • Touch (Columbia, 1981)

With Yusef Lateef

With Ralph MacDonald

  • Sound of a Drum (Marlin, 1976)
  • The Path (Marlin, 1978)
  • Counterpoint (Marlin, 1979)
  • Universal Rhythm (Polydor, 1984)
  • Surprize (Polydor, 1985)

With Van McCoy

With David "Fathead" Newman

With Esther Phillips

  • Esther Phillips Sings (Atlantic, 1966)
  • From a Whisper to a Scream (Kudu, 1971)
  • Alone Again Naturally (Kudu, 1972)
  • Capricorn Princess (Kudu, 1976)

With Diana Ross

With David Ruffin

With Mongo Santamaria

  • Mongo '70 (Atlantic, 1970)
  • Mongo's Way (Atlantic, 1971)
  • Red Hot (Tappan Zee, 1979)

With Shirley Scott

With Tom Scott

  • New York Connection (Ode, 1975)
  • Blow It Out (Ode, 1977)
  • Intimate Strangers (Columbia, 1978)
  • Apple Juice (Columbia, 1981)
  • Streamlines (GRP, 1987)
  • Flashpoint (GRP, 1988)
  • Them Changes (GRP, 1990)
  • Keep This Love Alive (GRP, 1991)
  • Reed My Lips (GRP, 1994)

With Frank Sinatra

With Johnny "Hammond" Smith

With Richard Tee

  • Strokin (Tappan Zee, 1979)
  • Natural Ingredients (Tappan Zee, 1980)
  • Real Time (One Voice, 1995)

With Stanley Turrentine

With Grover Washington Jr.

With Sadao Watanabe

  • Morning Island (Flying Disk, 1979)
  • Nice Shot! (Flying Disk, 1980)
  • How's Everything (Columbia, 1980)
  • Orange Express (CBS, 1981)
  • Bravas Brothers (1983)
  • Fill Up the Night (Elektra, 1983)
  • Rendezvous (Elektra, 1984)
  • Vocal Collection (Warner, 2009)

With others

References

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  1. ^ Colin Larkin, ed. (1995). The Guinness Who's Who of Jazz (Second ed.). Guinness Publishing. pp. 178/9. ISBN 0-85112-674-X.
  2. ^ Colin Larkin, ed. (1993). The Guinness Who's Who of Soul Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 97. ISBN 0-85112-733-9.
  3. ^ Will, Patrick T.; Kernfeld, Barry (2002). "Gale, Eric". In Barry Kernfeld (ed.). The new Grove dictionary of jazz, vol. 2 (2nd ed.). New York: Grove's Dictionaries Inc. p. 5. ISBN 1561592846.
  4. ^ Eric Gale rockandrollparadise.com Retrieved 13 May 2024
  5. ^ Breihan, Tom (2 April 2018). "The Number Ones: Bobby Lewis' "Tossin' And Turnin'"". Stereogum. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  6. ^ Eric Gale and Phil Upchurch, New directionsinmusic.com, Retrieved 11 April 2025
  7. ^ "Killing Me Softly - Roberta Flack". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
  8. ^ Negril Jamaica Gleaner Online Retrieved 29 May 2024
  9. ^ a b Yanow, Scott (2013). The Great Jazz Guitarists. San Francisco: Backbeat. p. 78. ISBN 978-1-61713-023-6.
  10. ^ a b Feather, Leonard; Gitler, Ira (2007). The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz. Oxford University Press. p. 242. ISBN 978-0-19-507418-5.
  11. ^ Just the Two of Us Sessiondays.com, Retrieved 13 May 2024
  12. ^ "Eric Gale, 55, Dies; Versatile Guitarist". The New York Times. 3 June 1994.
  13. ^ "Billboard". Books.google.com. 1971-08-07. p. 61. Retrieved 2016-07-26.

See also

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