Cherokee
Joe Pass, 1973, from Virtuoso. Solo by Joe Pass.
Solo guitar at a fast tempo, with Pass supplying melody, bass line and chords at once.
On Virtuoso, Joe Pass tackles Cherokee alone at a fast tempo, and the performance shows why the album changed ideas of what solo jazz guitar could do. He supplies melody, walking bass lines and chord hits at the same time, switching between them so quickly that the music feels like a small band. His single-note runs are clean and bebop-driven, and the harmonic movement never loses its shape. It set a benchmark for unaccompanied jazz guitar. Listen for the bass notes Pass slips under his melodic lines, often on the low strings between phrases, which keep the time and harmony clear even though no rhythm section is playing, and for how smoothly he moves between these roles.
Cherokee by Joe Pass is ranked #335 in our consensus of 79 guitar-solo lists. The solo is played by Joe Pass and the song was released in 1973. It appears on 1 lists, placing as high as #73 (Guitar Tricks).
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Sources
Who played the guitar solo on Cherokee?
Joe Pass played the solo on Joe Pass's Cherokee (1973).
Where does Cherokee rank among the greatest guitar solos?
#335 in the GreatestSolos consensus of 79 published lists; it appears on 1 of them.