| Breezin' | |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Gábor Szabó and Bobby Womack |
| Album: | High Contrast |
| B-Side: | Azure Blue |
| Released: | April 1971 1972 |
| Recorded: | December 1970 |
| Genre: | |
| Length: | 3:11 (Album full length) 3:03 (Edit single version) |
| Label: | Blue Thumb Records |
| Producer: | Tommy LiPuma |
"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]
"Breezin'"s full length on Szabó's album High Contrast is 3:11, while the single version is edited to 3:03.
| Year | Side | Song | Length | Interpreter | Writer/Composer | Producer | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | A-side | "Breezin'" | 3:03 | Gábor Szabó, Bobby Womack | Bobby Womack | Tommy LiPuma | High Contrast | |
| 1971 | B-side | "Azure Blue" | 4:12 | Gábor Szabó, Bobby Womack | Gábor Szabó | Tommy LiPuma | High Contrast |
| Breezin' | |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | George Benson |
| Album: | Breezin' |
| B-Side: | Six To Four |
| Released: | September 1976 |
| Recorded: | January 1976 |
| Genre: | |
| Length: | 5:40 (Album full length) 5:20 (Edit single version) |
| Label: | Warner Bros. Records |
| Producer: | Tommy LiPuma |
| Prev Title: | This Masquerade |
| Prev Year: | 1976 |
| Next Title: | The World Is a Ghetto |
| Next Year: | 1977 |
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.
"Breezin'"s full length on Benson's album Breezin' is 5:40 while the single edit is 5:20.
| Year | Side | Song | Length | Interpreter | Writer/Composer | Producer | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | A-side | "Breezin'" | 5:20 | George Benson | Bobby Womack | Tommy LiPuma | Breezin' | |
| 1976 | B-side | "Six To Four" | 5:06 | George Benson | Phil Upchurch | Tommy LiPuma | Breezin' |
| Year | Side | Song | Length | Interpreter | Writer/Composer | Producer | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | A-side | "Breezin'" | 5:40 | George Benson | Bobby Womack | Tommy LiPuma | Breezin' | |
| 1976 | B-side | "This Masquerade" | 8:03 | George Benson | Leon Russell | Tommy LiPuma | Breezin' |
| Chart (1976–77) | Peak position | |
|---|---|---|
| Canada RPM Adult Contemporary[4] | 16 | |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 63 | |
| US Billboard Easy Listening | 13 | |
| US Billboard Hot Soul Singles | 55 |
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]
