Jesse Cook

Jesse Cook
Jesse Cook
Background information
Born 1964
Instruments Guitar
Years active 1995–present
Labels Narada Productions

Jesse Cook is a Toronto-based guitarist, born in Paris to Canadian parents. Like other guitarists of his style of music, he incorporates funky jazz, latin & world music into his playing. Cook is also well known for the energy of his live shows. He has contributed to the Afro Celt Sound System album Seed, and often has other popular recording artists contribute vocals on his own albums. He has recorded on the Narada label.

Contents

Biography

Born in Paris on 29 November 1964 to photographer and filmmaker John Cook and television director and producer Heather Cook, Jesse Cook spent the first few years of his life moving between Paris, Southern France and Barcelona. As a toddler he was fascinated by the guitar and tried to emulate the sound he heard coming from his parents' recordings of Manitas de Plata, a famous Gypsy guitarist from the region of Southern France known as the Camargue.

After his parents separated, Cook and his sister accompanied his mother to her birth country, Canada. Recognizing the musical aptitude of her son, lessons followed at Toronto’s Eli Kassner Guitar Academy. Kassner's other famous pupil was classical guitarist Liona Boyd.

While Cook was still a teenager, his father retired to the French city of Arles in the Camargue where his neighbor just happened to be Nicolas Reyes, lead singer of the flamenco group the Gipsy Kings.

During frequent visits to Arles, Jesse Cook became increasingly fascinated by the “Camargue sound”, the rhythmic, flamenco-rumba approach that could be heard on many corners and cafés in the “gipsy barrio”.

Back at home, he continued his studies in classical and jazz guitar in some of North America’s most prestigious music schools, including the legendary Berklee College of Music in Boston. He has often quipped that he later attempted to unlearn it all while immersing himself in the oral traditions of Gypsy music. This helped him widen his range of musical tastes.

Cook in 2006

The 1995 Catalina Jazz Festival was a turning point in his career. His debut album 'Tempest' had been independently released in Canada. Within a month, a deal with American company Narada allowed them to be booked at the Catalina Jazz festival. Originally the band was to perform during the twenty minute intermissions in a little bar downstairs from the main stage. His performance was well appreciated, so appreciated in fact that Cook was invited to give a performance on the main stage. Shortly afterwards, Tempest entered the American Billboard charts at #14.

Cook has recorded seven studio albums, two live DVDs and has traveled the world exploring musical traditions that he has blended into his style of rumba flamenco. In addition to headlining concerts and festivals, he has opened for such legends as B.B. King, Ray Charles and Diana Krall. He has performed with Welsh soprano Charlotte Church on the Tonight Show and toured with legendary Irish band, The Chieftains.

His music has been featured on several episodes of Sex in The City, The Chris Isaac Show and several Olympic Games.

In 2001, Cook won a Juno Award in the Best Instrumental Album category for “Free Fall.” In 2009, he was Acoustic Guitar Magazine's Player's Choice Award silver winner in the Flamenco category (gold went to Paco de Lucia). He is a three-time winner of the Canadian Smooth Jazz award for Guitarist of the Year and numerous other awards.

Discography

  • Tempest (1995)
  • Gravity (1996)
  • Vertigo (1998)
  • Free Fall (2000)
  • Nomad (2003)
  • Montreal (2004)
  • Ultimate Jesse Cook (2005)
  • Frontiers (2007)
  • The Rumba Foundation (2009)

Compilation appearances

References

External links


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Jesse Cook — est un guitariste de nouveau flamenco né en 1964 à Paris de parents canadiens. Il a rejoint Toronto à l âge de trois ans. A 10 ans, il est admis à l académie Eli Kassner de Toronto. Il poursuit sa formation musicale au Royal Conservatory puis à l …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Nomad (Jesse Cook) — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Nomad. Nomad (Jesse Cook) Album par Jesse Cook Sortie 2003 Durée 46:00 Genre …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Nomad (Jesse Cook album) — Nomad Studio album by Jesse Cook Released September 2, 2003 Genre New Flamenco/Jazz/World Music/New Age …   Wikipedia

  • Nomad (Jesse Cook) — Infobox Album | Name = Nomad Type = Album Artist = Jesse Cook Released = 2003 Genre = New Flamenco/Jazz/World Music Length = 46:00 Label = Narada World Producer = Jesse Cook Last album = Free Fall (2000) This album = Nomad (2003) Next album =… …   Wikipedia

  • Gravity (Jesse Cook album) — Infobox Album | Name = Gravity Type = Album Artist = Jesse Cook Released = September 24, 1996 Recorded = Coach House Music, Canada Genre = New Flamenco/Jazz Length = 46:10 Label = Narada Equinox 08361 63037 2 7 (Canada) Producer = Jesse Cook… …   Wikipedia

  • Frontiers (Jesse Cook album) — Infobox Album Name = Frontiers Type = studio Artist = Jesse Cook Released = 2007 Recorded = Genre = Length = Label = Producer = Reviews = Last album = This album = Next album = Frontiers is the sixth album by Jesse Cook. According to Cook s… …   Wikipedia

  • Free Fall (Jesse Cook) — Infobox Album | Name = Free Fall Type = Album Artist = Jesse Cook Released = 2000 Genre = New Flamenco/Jazz Length = 55:38 Label = Narada World Producer = Jesse Cook Last album = Vertigo (1998) This album = Free Fall (2000) Next album = Nomad… …   Wikipedia

  • Vertigo (Jesse Cook album) — Infobox Album | Name = Vertigo Type = Album Artist = Jesse Cook Released = 1998 Genre = New Flamenco/Jazz Length = 50:01 Label = Narada Producer = Jesse Cook Last album = Gravity (1996) This album = Vertigo (1998) Next album = Free Fall (2000) |… …   Wikipedia

  • Jesse Draper — en The Valley Girl Nombre real Jessica Cook Draper Nacimiento 5 de enero de 1986 (25 años) Estados Unidos …   Wikipedia Español

  • Jesse Draper — as The Valley Girl Born Jessica Cook Draper January 5, 1986 (1986 01 05) (age 25) …   Wikipedia

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