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Great interview! Jimmy tells it like it is. Although I shouldn't be going near a guitar according to the great man's philosophy.
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04-02-2020 04:41 AM
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What a refreshing, honest interview. Jimmy tells it like it is.
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Apologies if this has been posted before; I just found it last night. Aside from his throwing out an impromptu stream of great musical ideas left and right, this vid is also high in entertainment value :-)
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There was a problem with your link, let's see if I can fix it - doesn't want to link from here but this is the url:
Originally Posted by starjasmine
www. youtube.com/watch?v=K8agfBQ9-BY
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The link works fine, you just have to watch it on YouTube, not here.
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Bumping this thread. This vid came up in my YT feed last night. The masterful solo playing alone is worth a watch. But what I really loved was his explanations of how he learned to play back in the day before the current jazz ed pedagogy existed, how he came up with the fingerings and why he uses them, his philosophy on vertical vs horizontal harmony and improvisation, and the great stories he told (like when Buddy Rich yelled at him for "playing Berklee scales" when he never attended Berklee and had no idea WTF Buddy was ranting about, or another story about what it was like coming up as a young player who practiced like mad so the old guys wouldn't yell "you suck!" on the bandstand.) Originally Posted by MarkRhodes
Amazingly, no F-bombs either. This is "nice-patient-teacher Jimmy." I had no idea he could be like that. And I am a huge fan of today's "unfiltered Jimmy".Last edited by starjasmine; 02-14-2025 at 07:36 PM.
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Nice! This might not make sense but I consider him sort of like a musical counterpart to Martin Taylor. Both are übertalented and found their own path in jqzz guitar. Jimmy wasn’t always dealt the best cards in life but I consider both as living proof of what’s possible on guitar by bringing advanced technique, depth and beauty seamlessly together. And they know every tune you’d care to call out, in any key and both as accompanyists and solo performances. You could drop them in any jazz setting and they’d shine. Amazing musicians.
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That's a pass from me then.... Originally Posted by starjasmine
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Jimmy Bruno has now announced his retirement from
the music business.
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Jimmy still playing and sounding great but i guess he has had enough.His take on the dying jazz scene and lack of gigs seems to be denied by a lot of people on this forum.All i will say is thanks Jimmy for all the great and inspiring music you made.You will be missed.
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Jimmy Bruno is 71. The music business sucks, especially for jazz musicians and has been getting worse every year. I would say that his retirement might even be a bit overdue.
His contribution to the art of jazz guitar is solid. He and I have had a few online interactions on his Facebook page (we share a lot of the same views, and we are both native Philadelphians). His albums are all worth having.
Jimmy, if you are reading this, enjoy that well deserved retirement Paisano!
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For me Jimmy Bruno is an extraordinary musician and artist.
But I believe that a person who (for various reasons) accumulates resentment and aggression is right to retire.
There is too much negative energy around us and the world doesn't need another Jazz Musician angry at everyone.
Ettore
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I watched that video last night, and thought it was funny in parts, and kind of sad in others. I've never aspired to being a gigging musician and play this music for a hobby and a release, however this video squashed any aspirations as to playing out regularly. I mean if a great like Jimmy is tired of it, why would I want to throw my tiny hat in the ring? Originally Posted by David B
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I still remember watching Jimmy Bruno playing a live gig in a duo with Jack Wilkins, best Jazz guitar duo I've ever heard.
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Too bad for us because we don't need one less of the greats, but probably best for him. I thought it was endearing how he was mad lol. Not to make light of his circumstances. Something about the greats' playing, even if they are greats from after the golden age. Jimmy and Tony came up in the 70s, right after the golden age. Sounds so authentic.
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I just watched the vid.
Thoughts: it's OK for anyone to retire at 71, health problems or no. Daniel F-ing Day Lewis has retired, for gods sake. The BEST actor in the world retires at age 60. (He retired for 3 years from '97-00 and actually worked as a shoemaker!)
I will probably retire at age 65 in a few years. I won't miss high-powered hospital medicine very much I think. But then, I'm not an artist. If I could play guitar like Jimmy Bruno...
I don't understand why Jimmy says he doesn't enjoy playing jazz the way he plays it and "doesn't like guitar music at all." This seems sad to me. Imagine Horowitz saying at age 71, I don't like this classical shit anymore, I'm gonna take classes and become a master gardener (which is what my partner wants to do, but I digress).
From what I saw he's pretty funny, as usual. He leans into the cranky guy persona a little much for my taste, but that's his personality.
Another digression--last night's SNL 50th anniversary tribute. There were a lot of older people there who were still funny and still performing--Steve Martin, Martin Short, Bill Murray. There were some people from past years who apparently were not invited because they became complete nutters. You know who they are.
OTOH there's a documentary short nominated for an Oscar, The Only Girl in the Orchestra, about Orin O'Brien, the first female to play (double bass) in the NY Philharmonic. She is now retiring--at age 87. But will continue her very busy teaching career.
So you can have a talent and nurture it and lean on it as you get older, or you can get distracted or consumed by other things. I guess there's a middle path there as well.
IDK. I understand what he's saying about the music performing business. Would bug me too if I were in his shoes. It's really a younger person's game these days, even in the best of circumstances. I don't see him not playing for any length of time. I would hope maybe he could play out occasionally with Frank Gambale and some of the other guys, even if it's not regular gigs.
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Yes, Jimmy is a great teacher, very nice and patient with students. In his personal life he has opinions, and personally I think it's great he speaks his mind and is NOT afraid to drop an F-bomb or cuss once in a while. That's called keeping it real, sometimes cussing is appropriate. What? Are we still men, or has the PC culture turned all of you boys into a bunch of panty-wearing pansies? Now that's not a 'politically correct" statement, and personally, I don't give a fuck. Jimmy would probably like that one, LOL. Originally Posted by starjasmine
I also heard him say in one of his rants that he doesn't discriminate against people who are of different ethnicities and does not like people who do. He said he's found there are good people and there are jerks in all races. With that viewpoint, he's alright with me.
He's an outstanding guitarist and a fantastic teacher. The first time I heard him on the radio, I was totally impressed and went out and bought a bunch of his albums. I'm still impressed with his amazing playing.Last edited by AdroitMage; 02-17-2025 at 04:54 PM.
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You okay?
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This is actually not that unusual, many older players get bored with their own playing after listening to it for so many years. A friend of Joe Pass said that Joe felt that way near the end of his life, and was listening to guitarists with playing styles quite different than his, e.g., Danny Gatton. Makes you wonder if/how Joe's playing would have changed if he'd survived his battle with cancer. Originally Posted by Doctor Jeff
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His take on the jazz scene is spot on, $75 to play a dry cleaners grand opening sounds good to me, a nobody in year 2 of my professional musician journey. Originally Posted by nyc chaz
To hear he’s getting the same gig offers, it’s disheartening.
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Yeah I don't think too many people disagree with that. There's still incredible jazz being played in the big music markets, but the money is all in a handful of the big clubs for a handful of the big names. And that money is pretty modest, all things considered. Originally Posted by AllanAllen
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In one of his YouTube videos, when he was talking about gigging, he said that one thing is he doesn't like to travel, so because of that, it's harder for him to book as many gigs. If you don't like to travel, then it is going to be hard to make big coin as an artist. The reality is that if you intend to make money as a jazz musician, one of the sacrifices you are going to have to make is giving up your 'comfortable' hometown lifestyle. You're going to have to become a 'road warrior' and be on the road and away from your comfortable home, extended family, your young kids who are in school, and your hometown a lot. That's a big sacrifice that some people aren't willing to make.
Look at Martino, for example; he was on the road A LOT playing gigs. Look at Metheny; for over 40 years, he's been on the road a good 3/4 of that time. That adds up to over 30 years on the road. That's a big sacrifice that gets overlooked, that touring musicians have to make. You've got to be willing to give up your nice 'comfortable' routine in your beautiful, comfortable home and your friends and family in your hometown and be on the road for months at a time, year after year. From the things he said, Jimmy didn't seem like he was willing to completely make that sacrifice.
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well no one can speak for him but I guess between him almost dying, then losing his wife and the crappy state of the music biz must've just been an accumulation of negativity that made him come to this decision.
he said in the video that he doesn't like guitar or jazz anymore but that could be just a byproduct of everything else I suppose.
in the comments to the video he said he won't be performing but will continue to teach, provided potential students have a basic grasp of the guitar, he's not taking on any beginners.
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It’s okay if you want to wear panties. Originally Posted by AdroitMage
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LOL, do you baby, thats what I say. You prolly don't think about it, but every time you go to the mall some guys are shopping there who are wearing panties. I guarantee it. Originally Posted by AllanAllen
Hey, man, it's just the truth.
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