Originally Posted by
sgcim
The 'Guitars Pure and Honest' LP is the only other recording of Barnes and Pizzarelli's guitar duo (other than the 'Town hall Guitar Concert' LP I mentioned, which only has a few cuts of the duo) that seemed to be playing everywhere in NY in the early 70s.
I must have seen them play half a dozen times in one year.
imho, it was the best thing either guitarist was ever involved in, because they focused on their respective strengths- Barnes single string solos, and Bucky's accompaniment prowess and chord solos.
*Dad would say that, while he was happy with most of the work he did with Bucky, his best duo work, and his happiest collaboration, was with Carl Kress. In fact, when Carl died at the end of their 1965 Japan tour, part of Dad died, too. It had a terrible effect on all of us...which I will write about in the memoir.
I should let you all know that Dad and Bucky did make amends to each other before Dad died; they'd known each other for so long, and had worked together harmoniously so many times (that's Bucky on the 1962 Bach Fugue recording, playing the second guitar part), it didn't make sense not to make up. Dad's problem with the duo was Bucky's desire to play the Top Ten hits of the day, which Dad hated for their lack of melodic strength (exception: he loved "Here, There and Everywhere," which he and Bucky played in a medley with "Eleanor Rigby," at Town Hall in 1971...probably my favorite Barnes-Pizzarelli performance). When I was prepping the production of the Bach Fugue CD, I met with Bucky at Nola Sound in NYC so I could play back the digitally remastered recording of the session and the final mix (it was the first time he'd heard it since '62), and the engineers recorded our conversation about the Fugue, and about Dad. They truly loved and respected each other...they just had a massive difference of opinion when it came to the duo's repertoire, which is something that never happened between Dad and Carl, who were musical brothers.
The arrangements, probably by Barnes...
*With very few exceptions (maybe none, I'll have to check), Dad was always the arranger on every recording, and in every group and partnership, he led.
...were very intricate, and the blend of Bucky's 7 string electric and Barnes' more treble sounding axe was perfect. As good as the other duos GB and BP were involved in, this duo was superior in terms of sound and arrangements.
*I've already weighed in on what would be Dad's opinion. My late mother and I shared that opinion, by the way...we loved the exposure Dad and Bucky were getting, but we'd witnessed the personal and professional Barnes-Kress dynamic, which was as good as it gets.
Their breakup was witnessed live in concert at the Hotel Pierre...
*Their long-standing gig was in the St. Regis Room of the St. Regis Hotel on 55th and 5th, not the Pierre, which is at 61st and 5th.
by Whitney Balliet, and included in one of his books. Barnes started yelling at Bucky in the middle of a song, and Bucky said something back to him.
Julian Lage Trio, Amsterdam, April 17 2024
Today, 02:19 AM in The Players