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bobledrew t1_j2ens53 wrote

I think your terminology is a bit loose here.

Lots of big band guitar players used “electric guitars” — they played guitars that had pickups and amplifiers for additional volume. Most of those guitars were full-depth hollow body guitars with pickups. Think the Gibson ES-175 or a D’angelico archtop. Someone else pointed to Charlie Christian with Benny Goodman in ‘39, but there were other earlier ones.

I think what you’re thinking is electric guitars with more of a rock & roll sound than a jazz sound. You can find examples of that not so much in the big band era, but in the jump blues genre (think Louis Jordan or Louis Prima), where you can here guitar parts that are proto-rock and roll. In fact, Chuck Berry lifted a riff from Carl Hogan, Jordan's guitar player, for Johnny B. Goode.

Here's a sample of Louis Jordan to try out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7M4thNT_EY

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EnderCrystal221 OP t1_j2eoao3 wrote

Yeah that’s what I’m asking for. I don’t know much about guitars so that’s a much better way to put it. It does make sense that guitars would have microphones or other amplifiers in them before the ones played by guys like Les Paul came into common use. They had to be heard over the orchestra somehow lol.

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bobledrew t1_j2es1r9 wrote

For a long time big bands used banjos because they had the volume advantage.

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EnderCrystal221 OP t1_j2es8h8 wrote

That’s fascinating, do you know more stuff by Louis Jordan to try out?

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_randy__bobandy_ t1_j2ejf5n wrote

Metallica in the S&M album

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hoagiemanfive t1_j2fi905 wrote

Yep- beat me too it. Ecstasy of gold intro gets my ass on the treadmill most days.

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threemurs t1_j2ehkmg wrote

Maybe the Brian Setzer Orchestra

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Seacarius t1_j2f2f0q wrote

Interestingly, that's basically why the electrification of guitars started happening.

When guitarists starting joining big bands during the big band era, it was very hard to hear the guitar player over the orchestra.

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EnderCrystal221 OP t1_j2f7iyr wrote

I noticed that there were so few Big Band songs that featured guitars which led me to ask this question. While the guitar isn’t my favorite instrument, it’s certainly a good one and I love a bunch of 1920’s Jazz guitar songs like this of Nick Lucas so I figured I should try to find some electric guitar centric Big Band music. I also really do recommend Nick Lucas if you are interested in Jazz guitar, plus he was a good singer too.

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Standard-Trash-6725 t1_j2ehtt6 wrote

Not from Big Band era, but Brian Setzer Orchestra is pretty much Big Band with guitar.

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gwaydms t1_j2f10ga wrote

Eldorado by ELO

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sendmorechris t1_j2ep0pi wrote

Galactic is a New Orleans jazz/jam rock fusion. It definitely leans more toward Big Band than Orchestral.

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mrxexon t1_j2ex6ds wrote

It was very difficult before electric guitars came along.

You had to mic an acoustic guitar and then compete with a naturally loud orchestra

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canadianmusician604 t1_j2exwwx wrote

Silverchair - Neon Ballroom

Glen Campbell live concert in sioux falls with the South Dakota Symphony

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Title26 t1_j2f1tl8 wrote

Check out Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band.

Jazz Police is a good guitar-centric song of theirs.

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trinaryouroboros t1_j2epp9e wrote

The Paper Bag has something like 50 musicians with all sorts of instruments like that.

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Do_good_badly t1_j2ercvm wrote

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Plays Prog Rock Classics, maybe?

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lndwell t1_j2ff4lf wrote

There’s a band that blends orchestra and death metal, they’re all classically educated and have a dedicated pianist, might not be what you’re looking for, but they do a helluva job

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EnderCrystal221 OP t1_j2fggm3 wrote

It’s definitely not my kind of music but it’s still cool. I’m curious though, how did you get into such heavy music?

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lndwell t1_j2fh0ls wrote

I’ve naturally gravitated toward the heavier genres of music my entire life, I just find the expression and emotion present in furious guitar riffs and screams to work for me better than any singing can. Not to say I don’t appreciate other music, I was just in a musical; and my taste does reach outside the metal bubble. I can’t really provide an explanation, just a feeling honestly.

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EnderCrystal221 OP t1_j2fj3bg wrote

I feel like I’m missing out on a lot of music due to how my music taste is mostly old Crooners, Big Band/Swing, Opera songs, Doo Wop, Soul, Barbershop Quartets, and Traditional Pop music from the 1940’s to about the 1960’s. I love that stuff but it means that I’m stuck to mainly the early 1900’s to 1960’s with only some outliers. I haven’t been able to get into Rock outside of Journey due to a lot of that stuff being boring to me for some reason. It’s not that I like dislike the instruments used, I just really prefer full orchestration, harmonies, or a lot of vibrato in singing. Music with mainly percussion doesn’t do much for me which kills off my interest in a lot of music. Any tips on how to become more open to different music?

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lndwell t1_j2fk7m1 wrote

I think the easiest way to get into broader music is not to quit, no skipping around, no stopping halfway through, you appreciate music when you give it time to digest in your mind. Before I decide if I don’t like something, I make sure I’ve listened to a minimum of at least 7 songs, either in one full sitting or mixed into my usual stuff, one shuffled in during every day of the week. That’s for a completely new genre, while more similar stuff I’ll sit down and listen to an album in its entirety before coming to a conclusion.

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