Jazz great George Benson [ tickets ] follows the recent release of a new studio set and a comprehensive best-of album with a round of summer tour dates.

Currently on tour in Europe, the guitarist soon returns to North America for a string of shows that kicks off in Saratoga Springs, NY, on Sunday (6/27). So far, dates for the outing stretch into late August.

R&B singer Will Downing will appear at many of Benson's July and August dates, and saxophonist Dave Koz also joins the bill for Benson's July 30 stop in Colorado. Details are shown below.

On June 8, Benson released his latest studio album, "Irreplaceable." A best-of set titled "Greatest Hits of All" followed one week later.

"Emotions" features 10 new cuts that Benson co-wrote with producer Joshua P. Thompson; Thompson also contributed guitar, keyboard, bass and strings to the set. Other musicians featured on the album include singers Joe, Lisa Fisher, Chyna and Latrelle, along with bassist Richard Bona, guitarist/keyboardist Joe Thomas, harmonica player Gregoire Maret and beat programmer Ali Jackson.

Though his recording career dates back to the mid-'50s, Benson didn't rise to fame until the 1976 release of "Breezin'." The album, which is considered a departure from his previous works, spawned the Top 10 hit "This Masquerade." As was the case with that breakthrough album, Benson said in a statement that his hope is to surprise people with the material on "Emotions."

"I'm just trying to wake some people up, give them something that they wouldn't expect," he said. "Just like in '76 when I recorded 'Breezin'' and everybody expected instrumentals at 8,000 notes per second like I'd done in the past. I dropped a vocal, 'This Masquerade,' on 'em instead! So, we're coming in strong from the left this time. When the DJ says, 'That was George Benson,' folks will be like, 'What?' They're not gonna believe it ... and that's what we want."