Gregory Green, known professionally as Grant Green Jr., is a

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

guitarist and the eldest son of jazz guitarist

Grant Green Grant Green (June 6, 1935 – January 31, 1979) was an American jazz guitarist and composer. Green has been called one of the "most sampled guitarists." Biography Grant Green was born on June 6, 1935, in St. Louis, Missouri, to John and ...

. He is a member of the group Masters of Groove with

Bernard Purdie Bernard Lee "Pretty" Purdie (born June 11, 1939) is an American drummer, and an influential R&B, soul, funk and jazz musician. He is known for his precise time-keeping and his signature use of Tuplet, triplets against a half-time backbeat: the P ...

and

Reuben Wilson Reuben Wilson (April 9, 1935 – May 26, 2023) was an American jazz organist in the soul jazz tradition. Widely sampled and influential among acid jazz musicians, he is best known for his album ''Got to Get Your Own''. Biography Wilson was bo ...

. Born in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

on August 4, 1955, Green Jr. began playing guitar at the age of fourteen. In 1969, he moved to

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

with his father, who died ten years later. His neighbors were

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

's parents. https://jazzguitartoday.com/2021/04/growing-up-in-the-shadow-of-a-giant/#:~:text=And%20I%20listened%20to%20a%20lot%20of%20Stevie%20Wonder%E2%80%94his%20parents%20were%20my%20next%2Ddoor%20neighbors%2C%20so%20I%20knew%20Stevie. He has worked with

Richard "Groove" Holmes Richard Arnold "Groove" Holmes (May 2, 1931 – June 29, 1991) was an American jazz organist who performed in the hard bop and soul jazz genre. He is best known for his 1965 recording of "Misty". Career Holmes's first album, on Pacific Jazz ...

Leon Thomas Amos Leon Thomas Jr. (October 4, 1937 – May 8, 1999), known professionally as Leon Thomas, was an American jazz and blues vocalist, born in East St. Louis, Illinois, and known for his bellowing glottal-stop style of free jazz singing in the ...

Jimmy McGriff James Harrell McGriff (April 3, 1936 – May 24, 2008) was an American hard bop and soul-jazz organist and organ trio bandleader. Biography Early years and influences Born in Germantown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, McGriff started playing pia ...

Lou Donaldson Louis Andrew Donaldson Jr. (November 1, 1926 – November 9, 2024) was an American jazz Alto saxophone, alto saxophonist. He was best known for his soulful, bluesy approach to playing the alto saxophone, although in his formative years he was he ...

, and Lonnie Smith.

Discography

As leader

* ''Back to the Groove'' (Paddle Wheel, 1997) * ''Jungle Strut'' (Venus, 1997

998 Year 998 ( CMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Spring – Otto III retakes Rome and restores power in the papal city. Crescentius II (the Younger) and his followers ...

* ''Introducing G.G.'' (Jazzateria, 2002) * ''Thank You Mr. Bacharach'' (ZMI Records, 2022) * ''Thank You Mr. Bacharach Vol 1 and 2'' (ZMI Records, 2023) With

and

* ''The Masters of Groove - Meet Dr. No'' (Jazzateria, 2001) * ''The Masters of Groove - Meet DJ-9'' (Jazzateria, 2006) * ''The Godfathers of Groove'' (18th & Vine, 2007) ote: originally released as ''The Masters of Groove''* ''The Godfathers of Groove 3'' (18th & Vine, 2009)

As sideman

With Reuben Wilson * ''Organ Blues'' (Jazzateria, 2002) *'' Movin' On'' (Savant, 2006)

References

External links

Official site
Living people 1955 births Jazz musicians from St. Louis Guitarists from New York City Jazz musicians from New York City African-American jazz guitarists American jazz guitarists 20th-century American guitarists The Quark Alliance members 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American musicians {{US-jazz-guitarist-stub