# Breezin' (song)

"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, produced by Tommy LiPuma, was included on Szabó's album High Contrast (1971) 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. Womack wrote some lyrics for the song that weren't used in Szabo's instrumental version but he does perform the song with lyrics on his DVD Raw, released in 2010.

## Gábor Szabó version (1971)
### Track listing

"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 (Edit single) | 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 |

### Chart position

| Chart (1971–72) | Peak position |
| Best Selling Soul Singles (Billboard) | 43 |

### Personnel

* Gábor Szabó – electric guitar, acoustic guitar
* Bobby Womack – songwriter, electric rhythm guitar
* Jim Keltner – drums
* Felix "Flaco" Falcon – congas
* Phil Upchurch – bass guitar
* Rene Hall – string arrangements
* Carmelo Garcia – percussion
* Bruce Botnick – audio engineer
* Tommy LiPuma – tambourine, gourd percussion, record producer

## George Benson version (1976)

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'. Benson's 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.

### Track listing
#### 7" single

The full length of "Breezin'" 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 (Edit single) | George Benson | Bobby Womack | Tommy LiPuma | Breezin' |
| 1976 | B-side | "Six to Four" | 5:06 | George Benson | Phil Upchurch | Tommy LiPuma | Breezin' |

#### 12" single

| Year | Side | Song | Length | Interpreter | Writer/Composer | Producer | Album |
| 1976 | A-side | "Breezin'" | 5:40 (Full length) | George Benson | Bobby Womack | Tommy LiPuma | Breezin' |
| 1976 | B-side | "This Masquerade" | 8:03 | George Benson | Leon Russell | Tommy LiPuma | Breezin' |

### Chart history

| Chart (1976–77) | Peak position |
| Canada RPM Adult Contemporary | 16 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 63 |
| US Billboard Easy Listening | 13 |
| US Billboard Hot Soul Singles | 55 |

### Personnel

* Bobby Womack – songwriter
* George Benson – lead guitar, vocals
* Phil Upchurch – bass, rhythm guitar
* Claus Ogerman – conductor, arrangements
* Harvey Mason – drums
* Bennie Maupin – flute
* Ronnie Foster – electric piano, keyboards
* Ralph MacDonald – percussion
* Jorge Dalto – piano, clavinet
* Tommy LiPuma – producer

## Other versions

The song was also recorded twice by saxophonist and arranger Hank Crawford: first in 1980 with guitarist Calvin Newborn for their collaborative album Centerpiece and again in 1996 for his album Tight. Additionally, Masayoshi Takanaka recorded a city pop version of the song, released on his 1978 album On Guitar.