Nick Brignola

[Larry Kart]

Knew of him for years and had run across him as a sideman but recently bought my first Brignola leader date, his final one I believe -- "Tour De Force" (Reservoir). Wow. His agility, rich sound, and  sense of swing were no surprise, but the sheer quality of his thinking was -- his lines would be terrific no matter what horn he played, although some of his ideas do seem baritone specific, which is as it should be. I've ordered three more Brignola CDs. 

[Kevin Bresnahan]

My favorite is "On A Different Level". Just a fantastic recording from end to end.

"Flight Of The Eagle" is also very very good.

On both of these dates, Nick sticks to his bari throughout, which is part of the reason they are my favorites. I am a sucker for the bari and Nick was quite the player. I am so lucky that I got to see him many times. I got to see him go toe to toe with Cecil Payne one night. That was memorable.

[soulpope]

  On 2/18/2019 at 3:34 PM, Kevin Bresnahan said:

My favorite is "On A Different Level". Just a fantastic recording from end to end.

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What a Rhythm Section ....

[T.D.]

  On 2/18/2019 at 3:34 PM, Kevin Bresnahan said:

My favorite is "On A Different Level". Just a fantastic recording from end to end.

"Flight Of The Eagle" is also very very good.

 

... I am so lucky that I got to see him many times. I got to see him go toe to toe with Cecil Payne one night. That was memorable.

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On a Different Level was the first Brignola recording I bought, only a few years ago. Fantastic, completely blew me away and I've since bought most of the Reservoirs. OaDL remains my favorite. The lineup is stellar as noted above.

I seriously considered the Beehive Mosaic mainly because it had two Brignola sessions, but wound up having too many reservations to go for that mega-set.

I was in school in the Albany area in the late '70s-early '80s, had many opportunities to see Brignola (and separately JR Monterose, iirc) live. I knew next to nothing about jazz at that time and regrettably never went. 

Edited February 18, 2019 by T.D.
snippage

[Larry Kart]

  On 2/18/2019 at 3:43 PM, soulpope said:

What a Rhythm Section ....

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Thanks for the recommendation. The bass-drum team on "Tour de Force" -- Eddie Gomez and Bill Stewart -- is superb ... and normally I'm not a Gomez fan; he's brilliant here. Nick feeds on Stewart's characteristic looseness, if looseness is the right word, 

[Brad]

Do you have his recordings for Bee Hive, Burn Brigade and Baritone Madness. 

[Larry Kart]

  On 2/18/2019 at 5:39 PM, Brad said:

Do you have his recordings for Bee Hive, Burn Brigade and Baritone Madness. 

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No, but I have heard "Baritone Madness."

[clifford_thornton]

Yeah, he's fantastic, and for the vinyl hunters out there, his records are often overlooked and cheap.

In addition to the Bee Hive dates, titles on Interplay and Sea Breeze are excellent. That private press date on Priam is cool too.

[Kevin Bresnahan]

On the CD "On A Different Level", the track "Backwoods Song" is a Bari/Bass duet. It is sublime. I am not a huge bass fan, but this track will often get the "repeat" button pressed. Go to 31:00 on this video:

 

[Brad]

  On 2/18/2019 at 5:39 PM, Brad said:

Do you have his recordings for Bee Hive, Burn Brigade and Baritone Madness. 

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Burn Brigade sizzles. 

[cliffpeterson]

I have lived in the Albany area since 1989ish.  Heard Nick in different configurations at different venues.  He had many stories to tell.  Although he was known for his baritone work, as you can see or hear he played many different reeds.  At local concerts he might bring along 5 or 6 different instruments.  He was very competitive.  Supposedly when Nick was younger if a nationally known musician on a specific instrument, e.g., Phil Woods and his alto, played around Albany Nick would show up with that same axe to take on that musician (Woods confirmed this story).  Nick was not shy-he might stop playing to tell somebody chatting while he was playing to shut the f***k up.   

The Priam lp was financed by a local businessman. Years, maybe decades, after the release of that lp Nick got his hands on crates of that lp.  Sold the lp one at a time each for hundreds of dollars to Japanese collectors.   

[Justin V]

Those Bee Hive albums are nice.  That Mosaic is the largest Mosaic I've bought new because it is such a treasure trove that I couldn't resist.  I also like Spring Is Here, a lush date with the Metropole Orchestra, and What It Takes, a Reservoir date with Randy Brecker, Kenny Barron, Rufus Reid and Dick Berk.

An album well worth tracking down is Lover: Music of Rodgers and Hart by Dick Berk's Jazz Adoption Agency.  Besides Brignola and John Patitucci, it has lesser-known musicians like pianist Tad Weed, saxophonist Dave Pozzi, trombonist Mike Fahn and trumpeter Jeff Bunnell.  I caught Weed locally probably 10 or 11 years ago and he was impressive.  I never managed to see him play again before his untimely death last year.

[cliffpeterson]

 

 

 

 

[sgcim]

  On 2/19/2019 at 10:59 AM, cliffpeterson said:

I have lived in the Albany area since 1989ish.  Heard Nick in different configurations at different venues.  He had many stories to tell.  Although he was known for his baritone work, as you can see or hear he played many different reeds.  At local concerts he might bring along 5 or 6 different instruments.  He was very competitive.  Supposedly when Nick was younger if a nationally known musician on a specific instrument, e.g., Phil Woods and his alto, played around Albany Nick would show up with that same axe to take on that musician (Woods confirmed this story).  Nick was not shy-he might stop playing to tell somebody chatting while he was playing to shut the f***k up.   

The Priam lp was financed by a local businessman. Years, maybe decades, after the release of that lp Nick got his hands on crates of that lp.  Sold the lp one at a time each for hundreds of dollars to Japanese collectors.   

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That confrontation between Nick and Phil Woods must have been a doozy! Do you have any more details? 

[Matt]

His first album "This is it!" was re-released earlier this year. I think it a great album.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C4JKM8W3

https://www.freshsoundrecords.com/nick-brignola-albums/56562-this-is-it.html

Edited August 29, 2023 by Matt

[clifford_thornton]

Agree, it's excellent. Funny story about him flogging copies to collectors for hundreds of dollars (I think of it as maybe a $40 LP). 

[Kevin Bresnahan]

  On 8/29/2023 at 12:14 AM, Matt said:

His first album "This is it!" was re-released earlier this year. I think it a great album.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C4JKM8W3

https://www.freshsoundrecords.com/nick-brignola-albums/56562-this-is-it.html

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If it was a legit issue, I'd pick it up. Until then, I'll keep listening to my beat up LP.

[clifford_thornton]

Dead stock copies surface from time to time; can't see a luxe reissue being absolutely "necessary" at this point, but it's an awesome record and shouldn't be too impossible to find in some form or another.