ghost of miles Posted April 7, 2008 Report Posted April 7, 2008 It's been reported on a couple of listservs that saxophonist Phil Urso passed away earlier today. Quote
Guest Bill Barton Posted April 7, 2008 Report Posted April 7, 2008 (edited) R.I.P. I was saddened to hear this news. Here's a link to an interesting article that I found surfing around earlier today: The Philosophy of Urso And the obit: Phil Urso obituary EDIT: I just noticed that there's another thread here. Edited April 7, 2008 by Bill Barton Quote
Shannon Dickey Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 Oh, man! I am CRUSHED!! I've known Phil for over 18 years and just heard the news. I am going to call his daughter right now. Phil was sooo underrated. Many's the time I spent at his house, looking and reading wonderful letters That Mulligan, Baker, Elliot Lawrence....ET all sent him over the years. Phil, you will be missed!!! I just spoke to him about 2 months a go, and he sounded out of sorts, told me he had "finally hung it up". Love you Phil! Quote
sidewinder Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 Sorry to hear this. Another link with a fabulous jazz past goes. RIP Quote
king ubu Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 Sad news I'm not very familiar with Urso, not even sure I have anything besides the Chet Baker recordings. Quote
EKE BBB Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 David: Chris opened a previous discussion here. Quote
mmilovan Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 (edited) I'm very sorry to hear this, he was really fine musician... one of those last Pres' disciples has gone... R.I.P. Phil! Edited April 8, 2008 by mmilovan Quote
JohnS Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 Very sad news. A consistently fine player. Quote
JohnS Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 Very sad news. A consistently fine player. Quote
Niko Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 rip, will pull out the oscar pettiford debut album tonight... Quote
AllenLowe Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 (edited) great article, Bill, thanks - funny thing is I have a whole set of front dentures, and I have no trouble playing with them in or out - Edited April 8, 2008 by AllenLowe Quote
Brad Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 Great underrated player. Philosophy of Urso is indeed a great LP. Quote
king ubu Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 great article, Bill, thanks - funny thing is I have a whole set of front dentures, and I have no trouble playing with them in or out - well, unless you'd want to play yer guitar with yer teeth, I assume... Quote
AndrewHill Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 RIP. Thanks for the article Bill. I have very little with him on it (Pictures of Heath aka Playboys) but I enjoy his contribution on that and Chet's Big Band date as well. Quote
AllenLowe Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 actually - sorry to distract from Urso - I play alto also - Quote
king ubu Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 actually - sorry to distract from Urso - I play alto also - I know that, but how can you play alto without teeth? Quote
AllenLowe Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 I actually like it - less resistance - Quote
JSngry Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 I find it sad that some of the local Denver players "resented" him. Sad, but not necessarily surprising... Quote
Guest Bill Barton Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 (edited) great article, Bill, thanks - funny thing is I have a whole set of front dentures, and I have no trouble playing with them in or out - RIP. Thanks for the article Bill. I have very little with him on it (Pictures of Heath aka Playboys) but I enjoy his contribution on that and Chet's Big Band date as well. You're welcome. I found it a little curious that an online search of the Denver Post site came up with that vintage article but didn't come up with an obituary. Go figure... Edited April 9, 2008 by Bill Barton Quote
Peter Friedman Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 Sad news about Phil Urso. I have heard most of his recorded work. My favorite things with Urso are on Chet Baker & Crew, and Picture Of Heath/Playboys. Saw Phil play live a few years ago in L.A. and unfortunately, he was not (in my view) playing well. It would be nice to see his Savoy sessions reissued. Another of the Grey Boys (a Pres term) has left us. Quote
Denis Posted April 8, 2008 Report Posted April 8, 2008 Terribly saddened by his passing. So many silent horns. How about that. YouTube - Elevation by Elliot Lawrence Denis Quote
BruceH Posted April 9, 2008 Report Posted April 9, 2008 Not completely unexpected, but still very sad news. RIP Quote
BillF Posted April 9, 2008 Report Posted April 9, 2008 Naturally, I've been checking out the Urso in my record collection and, apart from the Chet Baker albums already mentioned, I've found a Capitol LP with a couple of tracks from Phil's stint with Herman in 1950. ""Music to Dance To" (Cohn)and "Sonny Speaks" (Berman) were recorded in Nashville on June 25th 1950 with Bob Graf, Phil and Buddy Wise on tenors. The tenor solos on each track are credited to Graf. Quote
ghost of miles Posted April 9, 2008 Author Report Posted April 9, 2008 Nice Urso tribute from Ted Gioia up at Jazz.com. Quote
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