Jim Hall

The guitarist, composer and arranger died in his sleep Tuesday at 83. Hall was known for a subtle, lyrical playing style, a gift for innovation and collaborations with a host of talented musicians in a career that stretched for more than seven decades. Hear an interview from 1989.

Jazz guitarists Jim Hall and Pat Metheny talk about their recent collaboration on the album "Jim Hall & Pat Mentheny" (Telarc) Hall emerged on the jazz scene in the late 1950's and went on to performed with such artists as Ella Fitzgerald, Sonny Rollins, Bill Evans, Art Farmer and Itzhak Perlman. Metheny's recording career took off in the 1970's and became so successful...that Guitar Player magazine called him the "Jazz Voice of the 80s." This newest recording is being hailed as a cross-generational summit of two exceptional jazz guitarists.

Jazz guitarist Jim Hall. In the 50s, Hall was part of the West Coast jazz scene. Several years later he was touring South America with Ella Fitzgerald when the Bossa Nova craze hit. That music's been a lasting influence on Hall. In the 70s, Hall recorded with free-jazz player Ornette Coleman and made several albums with jazz's best bassists. In all, Hall's made more than 100 albums, his latest, with his quartet, is called "All Across The City." It's on the Concord jazz label.