Mick Goodrick

One of many significant guitarists to be featured at one time or another with vibraphonist Gary Burton's groups (including Larry Coryell, John Scofield, and Pat Metheny), Mick Goodrick did not achieve the fame of his peers due to his focusing on a career as a jazz educator. Goodrick, however, had his own distinctive sound. He started on guitar when he was 12, inspired to play jazz during Stan Kenton's summer camps, and in 1967, he graduated from Berklee College. He also taught at Berklee before spending a period with Burton (1973-1976), recording extensively with the vibist. He became a teacher in the Boston area, most notably at the New England Conservatory, and toured with Charlie Haden's Liberation Orchestra in 1985; he worked with Jack DeJohnette's Special Edition in the late '80s. Goodrick recorded as a leader much too infrequently, with an ECM date in 1978 and sessions in the '90s for CMP, Novus, and Ram. Mick Goodrick died on November 16, 2022, from Parkinson's Disease; he was 77 years of age. ~ Scott Yanow, Rovi