Reviews
Review by Barry Bassis
Jazz guitarist Jimmy Bruno, a member of Philadephia's jazz royalty, has long been recognized for his energetic playing. A child prodigy, by the age of 19, he was touring with Buddy Rich's big band;besides performing, he has his own guitar institute. His latest release,"Maplewood Avenue", captures him in a gentle mood.
This is a chamber jazz outing, with Bruno's guitar complemented by Tony Miceli's vibraphone and Jeff Pedraz's bass. The aim is not perfection but authenticity and so there is no overdubbing and all the songs were recorded in a single take. In fact, Bruno recorded the album in his own home in an attempt to reproduce the classic sound of Rudy Van Gelder's sessions.
To compensate for the absence of drums, Pedras utilizes right hand slap techniques. Bruno penned the title track while the other two contributed the rest, except for Bach's Sonata Trio (given an exuberant and swinging performance). After a hard day's work, just slip this album in your CD player and relax.
Review by Barry Bassis
For those of you who are only familiar with Jimmy Bruno the burner, Maplewood Avenue (Affiliated Artists-3415), the latest album from this fine guitarist, will be a revelation. This is a trio album, with Bruno being joined by Tony Miceli on vibes and Jeff Pedraz on bass. They play eight originals, one by Bruno, three by Miceli and four by Pedraz, with the other track being a Miceli arrangement of a Bach sonata. This is an intimate album, recorded at Bruno's home, and engineered by him. The sound is warm and wonderful. The compositions are ear catching, and the interplay by the trio is wonderfully natural and tight. These are three cats from Philadelphia, and they start out with four tunes named after roads familiar to those from the area. This is, however, an album where titles do not mean much. It is the music and creativity of the artist that matter, and this is the kind of recording that makes you wish that you had been there while it was being captured for posterity. It would have been interesting to observe the concentration that each must have exhibited as they created a unified whole from their distinct talents. The final result is extremely satisfying. If you like your music subtle and engaging, Maplewood Avenue is right for you.
Review by Brad Walseth
As warm as the sunburst burnished wood top of his signature namesake Jimmy Bruno model Sadowsky guitar and as tasty as the blend smoldering in his pipe, veteran guitarist Jimmy Bruno’s 13th release as a leader is an intimate trio setting that welcomes the listener into the bandleader’s comfy and cozy home studio for this recording of eight original songs, all written by the participants, along with one surprising cover. Old school in its loose relaxed feel and avoidance of excessive production techniques (overdubs, edits), the session is enjoyable and features an unusual drumless environment, with the master guitarist joined by bassist Jeff Pedraz and vibraphonist Tony Miceli.
This combo allows for plenty of space and room for the performers to stretch and ample opportunity is given to all three. Pedraz does a fine job providing much of the rhythmic support normally provided by the drummer, while showing a fine sense of melodic invention. Vibraphonist Miceli is a delight, playing gracious and rewarding lines reflecting off of Bruno’s guitar without overplaying. But of course, it is the guitarist’s session and those listeners who love jazz guitar will find much to admire in Bruno’s talents on the six–string electric guitar.
Sporting impressive chops, hard earned from years of playing jazz for little pay in his native Philadelphia, Bruno’s work is a wonder to behold. This is an artist whose background includes winning the Ted Mack Original Amateur Hour (the American Idol of its day) at the early age of 13; stints with Buddy Rich, Frank Sinatra, Lena Horne, Wayne Newton and others; and years spent as a sessions musician in L.A., working with the legendary Tommy Tedesco. Bruno chucked it all away in the ’80s, and returned to Philly, where he played the jazz music he loved in small clubs while further honing his craft. His reputation has only grown with the years, garnering high praise from the likes of people like George Benson. Listening to him play, you can see why. Bruno’s lines are smooth and confident, but don’t sound over–rehearsed. His tasteful phrasing is natural and loose and bubble over with the engaging sounds of years of hard work woodshedding and late nights jamming into the wee small hours. No David Torn–style distortion licks here, Bruno favors a clean dry and warm sound that suits him well. The interplay between the three musicians is respectfully heartfelt and the nuances (strings slapping for example) of a live performance, are all captured by this recording. It is difficult to single out any particular highlight because the results are all so consistently pleasant, but “Upstairs For Coffee” seems to be an especially appropriate number, “Jimmy’s House” skitters energetically, while the Miceli arrangement of a JS Bach Theme for trio is quite nice as an unexpected foray. A rare opportunity for those jazz guitar fans who enjoy players in the more traditional mode, Maplewood Avenue is an inviting thoroughfare, leading to a comfortable nook called Jimmy’s house, where you can sip your hot coffee, light up your pipe and sit back and enjoy the music.
by Philip Booth
Guitarist Jimmy Bruno conspires with vibraphonist Tony Miceli and bassist Jeff Pedraz for elegant, genteel music making on Maplewood Avenue, an uncluttered, drums–free session recorded live at the journeyman six–stringer's home in his native Philadelphia. The sound is pristine, strikingly intimate and decidedly retro–sounding on this set of quiet chamber–jazz originals.
Bruno's warm chord strokes and fluid improvisations on his fat hollow–body Sadowsky are effectively contrasted by Miceli's bright, airy, two–fisted mallets work and Pedraz' full–bodied plucking and bowing on upright. Mid–tempo swing is the style du jour, with a call–and–response section –– Bruno and Miceli answered by Pedraz –– fronting the slinky title track, and a quick, bopish unison line sparking "Pa Turnpike," parts of which suggest the chord changes to "On Green Dolphin Street."
Brazilian colors limn the flowing "Easton Street Bossa," a chunky bass line anchors the blues "Route 611," speedy solo lines course through the sprightly "Jimmy's House," and the three successfully fuse jazz and classical forms on "Bach Sonata Trio." Not bad for three top–shelf players who sound as if they never break a sweat, an illusion borne of musical accomplishment, confidence, an abundance of musical invention and sheer dues–paying experience.
by Tom Greenland
Jimmy Bruno, one of the most technically proficient yet stylistically–nuanced hardbop guitarists to emerge from the lineage of fellow Pennsylvanians Pat Martino and George Benson, remains a guitarist’s guitarist — if not a trendsetter, certainly a standard bearer.
Maplewood Avenue, a trio date with Tony Miceli (vibes) and Jeff Pedraz (bass), shoots for an impromptu–jam–session–in–the–living–room effect, recorded in continuous takes with no overdubbing. Lacking drums, Pedraz provides additional drive with right–hand slap techniques; unfortunately, the bass’ high and low frequencies are separated in the mix (panned right and left, respectively), creating the distracting illusion of a fourth musician. On a positive note, the close mic–ing captures any and all extraneous string noises — every snap, crackle and pop — effectively simulating the ambiance of an intimate venue. Bruno impresses, not so much for his ability to execute intricate ideas at fast tempos, but more because of his careless precision, laced with infinite gradations of tone and attack: on “PA Turnpike” he wields his pick like a natural outgrowth of his hand, negotiating the trickiest of lines with effortless fluidity; on “Jimmy’s House”, a parboiler, even his most audacious gambits land lightly on their feet, connecting and, ultimately, concluding. Miceli and Pedraz, too, are timekeepers of the first order, creating a hip gestalt of relaxed propulsion.
For Jazz Hits, Vol. 1, Bruno called on two accomplished colleagues, veteran Vic Juris and Corey Christiansen (a St. Louis local deserving wider recognition), for a six–string summit meeting. Covering some of the most–played standards in The Real Book, Bruno & Co. show what can be accomplished with talent and plenty of practice: Miles Davis’ evergreen “All Blues” is reinvigorated courtesy of Christiansen’s delta blues–isms rendered, slide–wise, on a solid–metal National resonator guitar; Horace Silver’s “Peace” is reharmonized and contrapuntal; and “Softly (as in a Morning Sunrise)” receives rockmetal colorations Each guitarist has their own sound: Bruno keeps clean and dry metal colorations. Each guitarist has their own sound: Bruno keeps clean and dry, without effects; Juris favors a wet, mid–rangy tone with dollops of chorus and delay; and Christiansen plies the middle ground — damp, slightly washed, with occasional forays into compressed overdrive. Juris is notably inspired on this session, playing with simultaneous cohesion and abandon, bringing it all back home with some wall–banging blues on “Killer Joe”.
by Tamara Turner
With charming discourse between Tony Miceli on vibraphone and Jeff Pedraz on bass, the elegant but gigantic sound of Jimmy Bruno’s guitar is right in line with the integrity of his previous work. With an exquisitely intimate, close–up sound captured in his home recording studio, Maplewood Avenue features both Bruno’s gift for shaping and sculpting the subtleties, the most fragile of nuances, as well as his incendiary ability to sizzle and set a phrase in breathless motion. Whether he’s channeling the contemplative or the combustive, one of the most signature qualities of this disc is his commitment to make every note sing and blossom in the connected context of the larger phrase. In other words, these aren’t just a bunch of notes assembled together in a groovy manner; Bruno sees and recreates all the levels of musicality, the note level, the phrase level and the way every detail makes or breaks the song as a whole. It’s not every day that one finds a musician who can nurture and cultivate the finer details (“Does this phrase turn up or down?” “Does the phrase point to this note or that note?”) while also giving equal attention to the conversation between instruments, the larger picture that emanates from the bottom up. Jimmy is this sort of musician. Extending from that sincerity, his guitar is an extension of his mind, body, heart and wit. Finally, although the album surely showcases his talent, not just in his chops but in his thoughtful musicality, Jimmy gives ample time to both Miceli and Pedraz to take the floor and demonstrate their own prowess and noteworthy musicianship. Any fan of jazz guitar should not miss this release.
by Mark Corroto
What is it about Philadelphia boxers and musicians? And I’m not talking about Rocky Balboa, he’s fictional, rather Joe Frazier and Bernard Hopkins. No one in their right mind would get in the ring with Sonny Liston. Same with musicians, some of the baddest players one could find in late night “cutting contests” were Joe Venuti, Philly Joe Jones, Grover Washington Jr. and, while not born in Philly, both Dizzy Gillespie and John Coltrane can be claimed as sons.
Another Philly musician, Jimmy Bruno has ruled the city for the past twenty years, scorching guitar lines whenever and seemingly wherever. After a stint with Buddy Rich’s band, he settled back in Philadelphia and began a series of recording for Concord records. Where his previous output focused on his burning chops, Maplewood Avenue strives for a more visceral yet laid–back sound.
Bruno’s trio, sans piano and drums, is a stripped–down sound featuring vibraphonist Tony Miceli and bassist Jeff Pedraz. Recorded in a very old–school style as a live trio, with no effects or overdubs, the sound delivers a mid–1960s Prestige or Blue Note feel.
With the composing credits spread out between the trio members, the quiet swing of Bruno’s title track gives way to Pedraz’ “Easton Street Bossa,” a bossa nova that features Miceli’s twinkling vibes backed by the very gentle playing of Bruno and Pedraz. Rare is it for these three to turn to the frenetic. Their intensity is played out in a chamber swing manner. It is only on the aptly named “Jimmy’s House” that the trio favors speed over swing, and even this track holds something back, in a Tal Farlow/Barney Kessel kind of way.
The trio saunters a groovy blues, “She’s A Fox,” and strolls the lovely ballad “Song For Meg” before they take on Johann Sebastian Bach’s intricate “Bach Sonata Trio” as the signature piece of the recording.
Track listing: Maplewood Avenue; Easton Street Bossa; PA Turnpike; Route 611; Upstairs For Coffee; Song For Meg; Jimmy’s House; Bach Sonata Trio; She’s A Fox.
by Karl Stark
Jimmy Bruno, the fleet–fingered jazz guitarist who lives in South Philly, dials it way back for this serene trio session with vibraphonist Tony Miceli and bassist Jeff Pedraz. The whole session has a cool–drink–of–water vibe. It makes for a comfortable ice house even as plenty of emotion is passed around.
This calm is relatively new territory for Bruno, who played in pit bands in Las Vegas in the 1980s and served a stint in Los Angeles before turning to his first love, jazz. He put out at least seven CDs on Concord, and a Roger Sadowsky guitar was named after him recently. Bruno, a teacher at University of the Arts, picks here through such originals as the finger–snapping "Maplewood Avenue" with the usual brassy insouciance.
Pedraz' "PA Turnpike" sounds all nervous and persnickety but with more flow than the original, while the bass line of his "Route 611" at least makes it fun to stop at red lights, which is what one does on that road.
Miceli helps throughout, creating the mellow vibe with his mallets and with such tunes as the winsome "Song for Meg."
By George W. Harris
If you’ve ever seen guitarist Jimmy Bruno live, or have purchased any of his instructional DVDs, you know this guy has chops to burn. He makes the difficult look commonplace and the impossible glibly achievable, which is what makes his most recent release on Affiliated Artists most intriguing. Instead of relying on blinding speed and techniques, this Italian stallion has reigned in his fury and has wisely chosen to emphasize the delicate and intimate on this trio release with vibist Tony Miceli and bassist Jeff Pedraz. Creatively exploring an hours worth of originals, the band highlights teamwork and group interplay on a level of sophistication that is quite laudable. Drummerless, the trio relies on Pedraz’ bass slapping to provide the implied back beat of the songs. Deep and resonant, he lays this foundation perfectly throughout the disc, particularly on the spacious “Route 611”. The rapport between Bruno and Miceli is palpable on the understated “Easton Street Bossa” and the boppishly baroque “Bach Sonata Trio.” The recording itself is marvelously accessible, as close to the front row as you’re going to get. Loose, light and luscious, another acoustic workshop on how it’s done by Philadelphia’s phinest phreter.