Jazz guitarist extraordinaire John Pisano, renowned for his stable rhythm, melodic solo traces and generosity, died May possibly 2 at his dwelling in Studio City with his wife Jeanne by his aspect. He was 93 yrs old.
Pisano’s profession spanned 7 a long time and incorporated sharing the phase or recording studio with many jazz luminaries, such as Chico Hamilton, Herb Alpert, Peggy Lee, Frank Sinatra, Benny Goodman, his longtime pal Joe Go, and almost each and every notable guitarist in the business enterprise as host for 22 several years of his Guitar Night at Spazio Cafe in Sherman Oaks.
Bob Bakert, editor of Jazz Guitar These days, reported, “A finer gentleman I’ve never achieved. John was a consummate gentleman and a gracious, really caring person. It was usually about the audio and camaraderie and his appreciate for his fellow musicians. John was a master craftsman.” Bakert mentioned that Pisano’s Guitar Evening tradition life on in distinguished guitarist Frank Vignola’s Guitar Night time at Birdland in New York, an intentional tribute to Pisano.
Vignola mentioned, “At the age of 5, one particular of the initial recordings I read was Joe Pass’ ‘For Django.’ My guitar instructor, Jimmy George, and my father applied to tell me to pay attention to the rhythm guitarist, John. I got to know him and history with him in the early 2000s when I performed a scarce touring visual appearance with Les Paul. He had me about to his house, made me a pizza and we recorded all afternoon. What a swinging guitar participant. Later, when on tour with Vinny Raniolo, we played Guitar Night time.
John Pisano and Chris Conner in 2017.
(Bob Barry / Jazzography)
“This completely motivated me to aspire to having a Guitar Evening in New York City. After COVID, Ryan Paternite arrived at out to me … inquiring if I would contemplate a weekly Guitar Night time, ‘like John Pisano’s,’ as he place it. I was pleasantly astonished that he realized of John and how wonderful his Guitar Night time was. I promptly jumped at the chance, and we’ve been there just about 3 decades now, just about every Wednesday night time participating in to close to offered-out crowds weekly.
“What a excellent individuality, individual, player, songwriter and pizza maker.”
“John initially commenced his common and ongoing (above virtually two decades) Guitar Evening series as a way to continue to keep his chops in superior shape and to continue to be influenced via encounters with other guitarists,” said Anthony Wilson, a guitarist and composer who is acknowledged for a physique of function that moves fluidly across genres and is a recurrent guest at Guitar Evening.
The regular gig immediately grew to become a hub for the guitar community in L.A. and was finally a demanded cease for the many mentioned gamers who traveled right here from close to the region as very well as from points past. Pisano grew really naturally into his role as the dean of this big intergenerational team of guitarists, guitar designers and builders, and guitar fanatics, web hosting the evenings with a heat, generous spirit, and participating in with a wide-open sense of musical curiosity that invited various ways to the instrument and constantly retained the songs important and absorbing, Wilson remembers.
Pisano was born on Staten Island, N.Y., on Feb. 6, 1931. His to start with impact musically was his father, Americo Pisano, who played guitar but never ever skillfully, in accordance to John’s on the net biography. He started out finding out piano at about the age of 10, but under no circumstances genuinely cared to observe. It was about 13 when he started off enjoying guitar.
He created promptly on the instrument, showing as much innate talent as musical knowing. Then he read Charlie Christian, a pioneer of jazz guitar, and not lengthy immediately after Django Reinhardt, which deepened his like for the guitar. He was also released to the jazz radio station WOV in New York and heard Charlie Parker. “Birdland had a stay broadcast about 3 or 3:30 in the morning. I keep in mind recording people today off the radio like Tadd Dameron and Fats Navarro with an acetate disc recorder that I owned,” he wrote.
John Pisano in 2013
(Bob Barry / Jazzography)
In 1952, immediately after remaining in the U.S. Air Drive for about 8 months, Pisano auditioned for the Air Force Band. It was the only authorization for a guitarist in the Air Pressure, and he received the gig, which included a great deal of recruiting broadcasts.
Pisano mentioned that he by no means considered himself to be a qualified musician right until he begun actively playing with the U.S. Air Pressure band. He was also participating in with the Crew Chiefs, an formal Air Force group that did some touring, such as a 1955 Bob Hope U.S.O. display in Greenland and a spot on “The Steve Allen Show” in Los Angeles.
When he still left the provider, Pisano was scheduling to show up at the Manhattan School of New music. Shortly right before he begun his research, saxophonist and pal Paul Horn, who was then doing work with the Chico Hamilton band, called to say that Jim Hall was about to depart the band. Horn persuaded Hamilton to audition Pisano, who joined the band and finished up remaining in California. Hamilton’s band could be explained as a chamber jazz quintet and generated several profitable albums, including the new music for the movie “The Sweet Odor of Achievement.”
Pisano still left the Hamilton band circa 1956 and did some session do the job whilst he analyzed songs at Los Angeles Town Faculty. In 1958, Pisano recorded two albums of guitar duets with Billy Bean, “Makin’ It,” and “Take Your Pick,” which have been equally very well-been given.
Pisano achieved Go in 1962, when he asked Go to fill in for him with Pat Cavanaugh’s band even though Pisano went on tour with Peggy Lee. Move was continue to at Synanon but he was now a thing of a legend and quite properly known throughout guitar and jazz circles. Their first recording jointly, “For Django,” in 1964, has come to be a touchstone among the jazz guitarists. They went on to document very well about a dozen albums jointly such as “Whitestone,” which Pisano co-produced “Ira, George and Joe” in 1981, on which Pass played a 12-string guitar and “Duets” in 1991, an album of abundant interaction and complicated harmonies.
John Pisano, Jim Fox and Dave Stone in 1999.
(Bob Barry / Jazzography)
Often preserving occupied, in addition to his session get the job done, Pisano joined Herb Alpert’s Tijuana Brass in 1967. He contributed tunes to the band’s repertoire and recorded with numerous artists who have been on Alpert’s A&M history label. Pisano performed on all the early Sergio Mendes hits, and some tunes with Burt Bacharach. Throughout that period, he was always traveling and recording. He was with Alpert’s band for about 4 decades right before the band folded.
“John was unquestionably a father determine to me, equally individually and musically, encouraging me and exhibiting me astounding matters on the instrument at a vital point in my improvement as a musician,” said Wilson, “I relished the numerous opportunities I had to participate in with him and understand from him, from everyday sessions at residence that included his popular selfmade pizzas, to many Guitar Evenings, recording studios and live performance halls.”
Aside from a excellent trainer, Wilson also describes John as a lifelong pupil. The two from time to time took classes with each other — normally joining “life-changing” tandem two-hour periods with the famous guitar teacher Ted Greene. Wilson added, “As a duo spouse John was genuinely impressive, usually furnishing the exact form of accompaniment necessary — the proper chord, the suitable rhythm, the ideal truly feel — with a sensitivity that seemed to be a musical reflection of his character, which was empathetic, encouraging, and nurturing — like the finest sort of mate, you normally understood John had your again.”
Pisano is survived by his spouse, Jeanne, a singer who performed with John as the Traveling Pisanos, his son Christopher and daughter Alyssa. The family members asks that in lieu of bouquets, donations be manufactured in Pisano’s honor to the Los Angeles Jazz Society.
