At the recent Hua Hin Jazz Festival I had the chance to sit down and chat with Lee Ritenour. I last interviewed him three years ago so it was great to find out what he’s been up to. This year, Lee Ritenour marks his 50^th year playing the guitar but he is still sounding as fresh as ever. The full interview will appear in print but here’s a snippet to accompany a few shots of Lee at rehearsal and on stage.

Lee Ritenour’s discography reads like the Who’s Who of Rock and Roll. At a young age this prodigious jazz guitarist established a solid reputation as a one of L.A.’s most sought-after session men. From Sonny Rollins to Steely Dan, Pink Floyd to Aretha Franklin, Ritenour’s fluid and distinctive sound has appeared on over 3,000 recordings, the first of which was with the Mamas and Papas at the tender age of 16.

 ‘I knew very early on exactly what I wanted to do,’ asserts Ritenour. ‘I started studying guitar when I was eight years old. By the time I was 12 I was very serious about it and knew I wanted to be a professional musician.’

Recognising the youngster’s talent and his fondness for Wes Montgomery, Ritenour’s father was supportive of his ambition and ensured that he had excellent teachers.

‘I grew up in L.A. It may not be the best jazz town, San Francisco and New York are both much better but it is great for teachers. It is also hard to beat simply for the amount of musicians who live there,’ he says.

The laid-back and affable West Coast musician honed his craft as a session man during the seventies but it is his early years which he cites as being the most influential period for the development as Ritenour as a musician.

‘I think the most valuable time was from about 13 until into my early twenties. I probably formulated everything that I have worked on since then during these years,’ explains Ritenour.

Check out Rit’s new album, Six String Theory with a host of guest guitarists including BB King, Taj Mahal, Steve Lukather, John Scofield, Mike Stern, and more.

Hua Hin, a beach resort town 200 kilometres south of Bangkok, recently held its ninth annual jazz festival. In the past, I have been extremely critical of the festival due to poor organisation and lacklustre line-ups. You could certainly be forgiven for believing that most live jazz performed in Thailand is in the Kenny G mould of non-jazz as promoted by the appalling radio station, Smooth FM. Either that or it tends to sound like a gaggle of geese being worried by a sheepdog. Although the Hua Hin Jazz Festival has a long way to go if it wants to get serious, things are looking up.

This year, thousands gathered on Hua Hin’s beach to enjoy a line-up that featured virtuoso guitarist Lee Ritenour who gave a stellar performance. The superb Korean guitarist Jack Lee performed his own set and played a few numbers with Ritenour as well as inviting fellow Korean and vocal artist Hye Mi onto the stage. Other highlights included sax man Eric Marienthal with the outstanding Jeff Lorber on keyboards, bassist Jimmy Haslip, and drummer Joel Taylor.

The Hua Hin Jazz Festival has the potential to be a truly great event on the music calendar. Next year marks the tenth anniversary of the festival so hopefully the organizers will pull out all the stops and turn into in an event of international standing.

Here’re a couple of shots from Friday and Saturday night. You can see more in the Music Gallery.

Jeff Lorber on keyboards accompanied Eric Marienthal and also played some of his own compositions.

Renowned Korean jazz fusion guitarist Jack Lee in action at the Hua Hin Jazz Festival.