Les Sabler

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Montreal is a culturally rich and diverse Canadian city that has always had a fervent ardor for jazz. In the 1970s, legions of the musical art form’s legends – Charles Mingus, Art Blakely, Freddie Hubbard, Stanley Turentine, Cannonball Adderly, Keith Jarrett, George Benson, Grover Washington Jr. and a 16-year-old Pat Metheny – played club dates there. A Concordia University music student named Les Sabler attended many of those gigs. “Seeing those shows was my real (music) education. Montreal had a big jazz scene, including some terrific local players, who also influenced me,” said the guitarist. “Initially I studied piano, but I felt I could really express myself when I picked up the guitar. I could literally feel the notes. I taught myself to play and didn’t have any formal music training until I got to college.” For Sabler and his fellow students, the thriving local jazz scene and record bins were their instructors. They carefully studied recordings by the jazz greats, with Sabler paying close attention to the work of the guitarists. “We felt we had to know everyone out there. I was particularly fond of the artists on the CTI Records label. Artists like George Benson, Larry Carlton, Lee Ritenour and Wes Montgomery put out well-crafted recordings that resonated with me. I was also inspired by blues artists like John Lee Hooker,” Sabler recalled. During those formative years, Sabler would get together with his mates to jam. “Much like the New York City jazz scene, the musicians in Montreal would get together to play, build chops, and establish credibility. Mostly it was just for the sheer love of playing. One thing that I learned then that I still strive for today is maintaining the highest standards.” In the autumn of 2007, Sabler released his fourth album, Sweet Drive, which just might become a primer for young contemporary jazz musicians to study. Sweet Drive confirms that Sabler has remained true to his commitment to maintain lofty standards. It’s a varied, soulful body of contemporary jazz, R&B and adult pop music that delivers a master’s class level of musicianship, performance and production on a dozen thoughtfully composed and carefully selected songs, including a few timeless classics. Produced by Brian Bromberg, Sweet Drive is comprised of eight original compositions and four covers. Accomplished musicians Jeff Lorber, Eric Marienthal, Ricky Peterson, Vinnie Colaiuta, Alex Acuna and Gary Meek played on the record while the Jerry Hey orchestrated horn section added warmth, fullness and explosive energy to the tracks. “I wrote most of the songs on my first three albums, but for this one, I went through my record collection looking for great songs that hadn’t been recorded before with smooth jazz arrangements,” explained Sabler. One of the songs that he found on an old Quincy Jones album was the Stevie Wonder penned “You’ve Got It Bad Girl,” which opens Sweet Drive. On the track, Sabler plays electric guitar accompanied by Meek’s feisty flute. The title cut, written by Sabler’s frequent collaborator Allon Sams, is a buoyant pop escapade on which Marienthal’s sax shares the wheel with Sabler’s guitar.

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