Jon Eberson

Jon Eberson
Birth name	Jon Arild Eberson
Born	(1953-01-06) 6 January 1953 Oslo
Origin	Norway
Genres	Jazz
Occupation(s)	Jazz musician, Guitarist, Composer
Instruments	Guitar
Associated acts	Jon Eberson Group Ebersson/Zanussi/Lofthus Trio Jazzpønk Ensemblet Radka Toneff Quintet
Website	www.jonebersongroup.no

Jon Arild Eberson (born 6 January 1953 in Oslo, Norway) is a Norwegian Jazz guitarist and composer, son of jazz guitarist Leif Eberson (1925-1970), father of the keyboardist Marte Maaland Eberson, and known from bands such as «Moose Loose» (1973–77), «Radka Toneff Quintet» (1975–80) and «Blow Out» (1977–78).

Career

Eberson had his debut recording as guitarist on Ketil Bjørnstad's debut album Åpning (1972). In 1980 he formed the Jon Eberson Group, supported by vocalist and lyricist Sidsel Endresen. The group attracted great attention with releases such as Jive Talking (1981) that was awarded Spellemannprisen and City Visions (1984), but was split in 1986. The following year he released the Eberson Pigs and Poetry with Endresen, and he has continued to be noticed in a variety of contexts like the Jazzpunkensemblet.

Eberson is a versatile guitarist working in the border line between jazz and rock. He released the album Dreams That Went Astray (2001), closely followed by the album Jazz for Men, along with bassist Carl Morten Iversen, and the album Mind the Gap, with bassist Bjørnar Andresen and drummer Paal Nilssen-Love. Eberson, who also is Associate Professor of guitar at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo, was awarded the Norwegian Buddy Prize for 2001.

In 2013 the great Norwegian guitar master celebrated his 60'th anniversary with a solid comeback at the Oslo Jazzfestival, presenting a firework of a band named Eberson Funk Ensamble including buckets of new compositions and a brilliant quintet across generations. The line up is constituted by the grand 58 years old drummer Pål Thowsen, bassist Sigurd Hole and saxophonist Kim-Erik Pedersen both Jazz graduates from the Norwegian Academy of Music where Eberson is a key educator, and last but not the least, his keyboardist daughter Marte Maaland Eberson, with a backgrounds including jazz studies at the Grieg Academy in Bergen.

Honors

• 1981: Spellemannprisen in the class Jazz rock for the album Jive Talking, together with Sidsel Endresen
• 2001: Buddyprisen

Early days

Started his career early 1970, with these projects:

• Magni Wentzel until 1976
• «Moose Loose» 1973-77
• Radka Toneff 1975-80
• Ketil Bjørnstad 1974, 78 and 79
• Knut Værnes 1979
• Pål Thowsen 1979
• «Blow Out» 1977-78
• Jon Balke 1978-79

Since 1980 he has been in charge of his own groups:

• jazz quartett 1980-81
• «Jon Eberson Group» with Sidsel Endresen 1980-90 (later «Jon Eberson/Sidsel Endresen Group»)
  • Jive talking 1980
  • Jazzrock 1981
  • Polarities 1981-82
  • City visions 1983
  • Stories 1985
  • Pigs and poetry 1987

At the same time, he took part at

• «Oslo Rhythm&Blues Ensemble» 1980-82
• «Jazzpønk Ensemblet» 1982-85
• Trio including Bjørn Kjellemyr and Svein Christiansen 1983-86
• «Chipahua» 1984-86

The turn of the millennium

2001:

• Dreams That Went Astray (Jazzland Recordings), within Jon Eberson Group featuring Beate and Pål Strangefruit (Nyhus)
• Jazz For Men (Curling Legs), duo with Carl Morten Iversen
• Standards (Curling Legs), duo with Carl Morten Iversen
• Mind The Gap (Curling Legs), trio with Bjørnar Andresen & Paal Nilssen-Love

2002:

• The Rest Is Rumours (Curling Legs), with Pål Thowsen
• Twelve O'Clock Tales (Curling Legs), duo with Hilde Marie Kjersem

2003:

• Tri Ó Trang Plays Jon Eberson (Curling Legs), with Eberson & Per Oddvar Johansen

2004:

• Evening songs (Taurus Records), with Roger Johansen
• Love Is Blind (Curling Legs), within «Metropolitan»

2006:

• Bring it on (Jazzaway Records), by Ebersson/Zanussi/Lofthus Trio
• Levende På Fyret (Live At The Lighthouse) (Ivereber Records), duo with Carl Morten Iversen

2009:

• Born To Be Slow (NorCD), with Rob Waring and Carl Morten Iversen

2010:

• Comfort Call (Shipwreckords ), with Hilde Marie Kjersem & Sigurd Hole

2011:

• The Coarse Sand & The Names We Wrote (JEG Records), within Jon Eberson Group

2012:

• El Doom & The Born Electric (Rune Grammofon), within «El Doom & The Born Electric»

2014:

• Do The Dance (JEG Records), within Eberson Funk Ensemble

External links

• Jon Eberson Biography by Johs Bergh on Store Norske Leksikon

Awards
Preceded by Sidsel Endresen	Recipient of the Buddyprisen 2001	Succeeded by Nils Petter Molvær