Anthony Wilson

The Anthony Wilson profiled here should not be confused with the late British pop/rock producer and A&R man Anthony Howard Wilson (b. February 20, 1950, d. August 10, 2007), who was the founder of Factory Records and was known for his work with New Order, Happy Mondays, and Joy Division, among others. Nor should he be confused with the well-known BBC session producer Tony Wilson or the Vancouver, Canada-based jazz guitarist Tony Wilson. However, this Anthony Wilson is also a jazz guitarist, although he isn't from Western Canada, but rather, Los Angeles -- and his father is the legendary pianist/bandleader/composer Gerald Wilson. This Anthony Wilson followed in his father's footsteps in that he pursued a career in music and made jazz (specifically, hard bop and post-bop) his main focus -- and even though he made a name for himself playing guitar rather than acoustic piano, it is clear that Gerald Wilson's bandleader/arranger perspective rubbed off on his son in a major way. Gerald Wilson is famous not only for his piano playing, but also for leading and arranging bands and for composing; similarly, Anthony Wilson is known for his guitar playing as well as for his arranging, bandleading, and composing skills. Anthony Wilson has cited Wes Montgomery and Kenny Burrell as major influences on his guitar playing, while pointing to Duke Ellington, Gil Evans, Tadd Dameron, Oliver Nelson, and Marty Paich as some of the people who have influenced him as a bandleader and arranger. Ellington was fond of saying that his band was his "instrument," and one of the things Wilson learned from the Duke was the way in which bandleading and arranging can be as important to self-expression as playing an actual instrument. That said, Wilson's considerable skills as a guitarist should not be...