Jazz Musician. He was born in Auburn, Maine and took up guitar at age 7. His early influences were jazz and country but he also incorporated flamenco, classical and folk along with his stunning octave harmonic arpeggios. In 1961, Breau left for Toronto, Ontario, Canada and created the jazz group Three with singer/actor Don Francks and Eon Henstridge on acoustic bass. The group performed in many U.S. and Canadian cities and also appeared on U.S. network television on both the Jackie Gleason and Joey Bishop shows. Breau then returned to Winnipeg and became a regular session guitarist recording for CBC Radio and CBC Television. Along the way, he was achieving much praise from legendary players like Chet Atkins who once called him 'the greatest guitar player in the world'. Although Breau's playing was stellar, he developed a serious substance abuse problem which plagued him for many years. He continued gigging throughout the '70s and '80s and was found dead at his Los Angeles home in 1984. The official cause of death was strangulation but police were unable to find a suspect and the case remains unsolved.
Jazz Musician. He was born in Auburn, Maine and took up guitar at age 7. His early influences were jazz and country but he also incorporated flamenco, classical and folk along with his stunning octave harmonic arpeggios. In 1961, Breau left for Toronto, Ontario, Canada and created the jazz group Three with singer/actor Don Francks and Eon Henstridge on acoustic bass. The group performed in many U.S. and Canadian cities and also appeared on U.S. network television on both the Jackie Gleason and Joey Bishop shows. Breau then returned to Winnipeg and became a regular session guitarist recording for CBC Radio and CBC Television. Along the way, he was achieving much praise from legendary players like Chet Atkins who once called him 'the greatest guitar player in the world'. Although Breau's playing was stellar, he developed a serious substance abuse problem which plagued him for many years. He continued gigging throughout the '70s and '80s and was found dead at his Los Angeles home in 1984. The official cause of death was strangulation but police were unable to find a suspect and the case remains unsolved.
Bio by: Soorus
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