If you want solo sounds to be as effective as the real thing, you have to give up your left hand to the bender. Plain and simple.

Scoops, natural (non LFO or sampled) vibrato, big bend ups and downs (that's why a pedal doesn't work), timbral changes... All these things happen with a real player from note to note (and most of the really juicy stuff occurs at chord change boundaries, so there goes your LH). Unless you are willing to go to SMF's, I'm afraid that convincing solos will always be at least one step removed from reality...

I always prefer a non-vibrato sound for solos, as the speed of the vibrato changes depending on the tempo of the music (can't sample that!) and the emotional content of the line. A pitch strip allows you to do VERY convincing vibrato, as well as trills and note jumps without re-triggering the envelopes and sample starts. Trouble is, no arrangers have them yet.... I would have thought at least Korg would have (being on their WS's).

But analyze real players carefully, and you start to realize just how much of whet they play has at least SOME pitch variation. Sampled vibrato, even if done for every note, won't get you that. It's a nice dream, but it won't satisfy you unless you finally give up on that arranger chord cuing, IMO.