"Breezin'" is an instrumental song composed by American singer and musician Bobby Womack. It was first recorded in December 1970 by the influential Hungarian jazz guitarist Gábor Szabó, in partnership with Womack himself. This version was included on Szabó's album High Contrast and was released as a single in April 1971 in the United States and in 1972 in the Netherlands, reaching No. 43 on the R&B chart. "Breezin'" was produced by Tommy LiPuma.
Bobby Womack wrote some lyrics for the song that weren't used in Szabo's instrumental version but Womack does perform the song with lyrics on his DVD Raw, released in 2010.[1]
Gábor Szabó version (1971)
Track listing
"Breezin'"s full length on Szabó's album High Contrast is 3:11, while the single version is edited to 3:03.
Five years after Gábor Szabó's original recording, the song became even better known for a successful rerecording by singer and guitarist George Benson, whose 1976 cover was the title track of his album Breezin'. His version was recorded in January 1976 and released as a single in September of the same year, entering the American charts in October. Like Szabó's original, Benson's cover was produced by Tommy LiPuma. The album and single were released by Warner Bros. Records.
Track listing
7" single
"Breezin'"s full length on Benson's album Breezin' is 5:40 while the single edit is 5:20.
The song was also recorded twice by saxophonist and arranger Hank Crawford: first in 1980 with guitarist Calvin Newborn for their collaborative album Centerpiece[5] and again in 1996 for his album Tight.[6] Additionally, Masayoshi Takanaka recorded a city pop version of the song, released on his 1978 album On Guitar.[7]
^Molanphy, Chris (31 July 2021). "What a Fool Believes Edition". Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia (Podcast). Slate. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
