Guitar legend Charlie Hunter is widely considered one of the top jazz bandleaders in the United States. As the "hip-hop" or "acid jazz" movement of the mid-1990s gained momentum in the United States, Charlie Hunter was leading it in the San Francisco Bay Area. Young groups of avant-garde jazz musicians were mixing traditional jazz with hip-hop, funk, and rock. Hunter was the first out of the pack of groups of the area to be released on CD. "We study the past and practice the present," Hunter told Down Beat in 1994. That blend of past and present was what Hunter used to push his award-winning trio towards many successful releases and tours. His inventive use of a custom guitar earned him astute musicians as fans, and his talent for creating infectious hip-hop dance grooves have made Hunter's live shows legendary. Charlie Hunter has release 17 studio albums in the last two decades. Hunter will be joined by Erik Deutsch (keyboards) and Tony Mason (Drums).