Guitarist Eddie Duran was best known as a member of vibist Cal Tjader's groups from 1954 forward and in pianist Vince Guaraldi's ensembles from 1962 onward. What all three musicians had in common was a San Francisco upbringing and marvelous musical taste. Unlike Tjader, Guaraldi and Dave Brubeck, another Bay Area native, Duran preferred to work as a sideman and accompanist, since work in that capacity was plentiful. A licensed barber, he also liked to stick around the Bay Area, accompanying many jazz artists who passed through the city. In the late 1940s and early '50s, he performed with his brothers, Manny and Carlos. By the late 1950s, he played in the CBS Radio Orchestra in San Francisco on radio station KQW. Duran then toured with Benny Goodman in the 1970s and early '80s.
In 1957, Duran recorded one of his three leadership albums—Jazz Guitarist (Fantasy). You may recognize the name and album cover, since I mentioned both recently when I posted on Herbie Steward's Three Horns. On Jazz Guitarist, we hear Duran out in the open, and his playing is spectacular. He was backed by Howard Dudune (cl,ts), Dean Reilly (b) and John Markham (d). The tracks are My Inspiration, Soon, Rise 'n' Shine, My Shining Hour, Taking Life Easy, Why Not, A Room With a View, Skyliner, It Could Happen to You and Sugar.
Also included on the Fresh Sound release of this album are tracks from Ron Crotty's Modern Music From San Francisco in 1955. Crotty was a bassist, and the trio featured Crotty, Duran and Guaraldi. Crotty, of course, was the Dave Brubeck Quartet's early bassist who had to leave the group in 1954 after he came down with hepatitis.
Also included on the Fresh Sound album are the four tracks made by the Ree Brunell Trio in 1956, with Dean Reilly on bass and Duran on guitar backing Brunell, a Bay Area jazz vocalist. These appeared on a compilation from Jazz Records called Intro to Jazz.
What you hear in Duran on all of these recordings is a clear, strong, swinging guitarist who knew where he wanted to go on solos and delivered with a spectacular technique and sound akin to Tal Farlow. Duran should be better known today. It's a shame there aren't many more leadership recordings by him.
Eddie Duran died in 2019.
JazzWax tracks: You'll find Eddie Duran's Jazz Guitarist (Fresh Sound) here.
JazzWax clips: Here's Duran on Taking Life Easy, with Howard Dudune on clarinet...
Here's Rise 'n' Shine from the same album...
Here's Duran in 1980 performing an astonishing Prelude to a Kiss with Benny Goodman loitering, watching and then being blown away...
Here's Duran backing Goodman on Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered...
Bonus: Here's Duran on guitar in the 1950s with leader Luis Miranda on congas, Manny Duran on organ, Carlos Duran on bass and Benny Velarde on timbales...
A special thanks to Dennis Galoway.
