Scott was already playing like that with Bill., Recorded on November 29, 1960, the four-song session wasnt officially released until 2005. Q: What kind of influence did your father have on your brothers music? The album was the fourth and final effort from the unitLaFaro died in a car accident just ten days after the live date at the Village Vanguard from which Waltz for Debby and its predecessor, Sunday at the Village Vanguard, were taken. Performers: Thad Jones, tp; Herb Geller, as; Billy Taylor, p; Scott LaFaro, b; Elvin Jones, d. June 1959. The bass was badly damaged in the automobile accident that killed him, but was eventually restored and is sporadically used in performance to honor LaFaro. Tonight Show, 14 Feb 1957. One of the most substantial biographies I've read in recent years is the 2009 publication that Helene LaFaro-Fernandez devoted to her brother Scott. But you always knew that Read More Kelly Sill, Several years ago, one of Danilo Prezs students was suffering from tendinitis. A copy of the latest annual report may be obtained from the Smith Center or from the Office of the Attorney General, Charities Bureau, 120 Broadway, New York, NY 10271. A Dead Musician Directory Celebrity Page. My dad loved the director, so we had to go and have that experience as well. We never got to enjoy it as a concert venue in our day, unfortunately. A professor encouraged him to audition for an open spot in the Buddy Morrow Orchestra. In the latter case, Getz fired LaRoca and hired Roy Haynes, but Kenton wasn't about to be second-guessed. LaFaro is one of those players who register to the ears like more than one man, generating a huge amount of sound with ostensibly little effort, and that sound resonating as direct, controlled, economical; this is part of the reason why. In Jeff Campbells essay, Scott LaFaro: The Complete Musician (an addendum toJade Visions), he singles out the trios performance of So What, saying that LaFaro and Kuhn engage in a brief musical dialogue just prior to the return of the theme[improvising] melodic ideas that are intertwined in a conversational manner. Campbell notes that LaFaros accompaniment on Whats New is much more activethan the traditional conventions of ballad playing., It is an interesting fact, Campbell asserts, That the earliest example of LaFaros active, conversational ballad accompaniment was with Steve Kuhn and not Bill Evans. When I ran this claim by Kuhn, he said, I dont agree with that necessarily. Q: What were Scotts childhood and teen years like here in Geneva? Died . ~ Scott Yanow. For when Jazz Abstractions wrapped, December 21 dawned, and that meant LaFaroalong with Dolphywas boomeranging back to A&R Studios for the landmark waxing of the legendary, epoch-rattling Free Jazz, with a lineup of Dolphy on bass clarinet, Freddie Hubbard on trumpet, Charlie Haden on bass, and Ed Blackwell on drums in the right channel, and Coleman on alto, Don Cherry on pocket trumpet, Billy Higgins on drums, and LaFaro in the left. The great bassist is best known for his work with the Bill Evans Trio between 1959 and '61, and for the tragic car accident that claimed his life on July 6, 1961, two weeks after the trio's legendary performance at the Village Vanguard. Hentoff heard LaFaro as the most important new bassist since Paul Chambers and Wilbur Ware, and added, It may be necessary to add for those hearing LaFaro for the first time that his bass is not electronically amplified. Before that grim July night, LaFaro had been a busy bassist. A post-bass bass player, maybe. Composer: Styne / Sondheim I was 19 and working. Stan Levey. Performers: Stan Getz, ts; Steve Kuhn, p; Scott LaFaro, b; Roy Haynes d. Newport, 2 July 1961. AMAGANSETT, N.Y. - Acclaimed tenor saxophonist Robert Berg was killed Thursday when a cement truck skidded across a snow-slicked road and rammed into his sport utility vehicle, East Hampton police said. Your family ended up following Scotty out to California. Christian said, Scottys playing was the bible for bass playersJimmy Blanton the old testament, Scotty the new., LaFaro spent the evening of July 5 with old friends in Geneva then drove 80 miles west with Frank Ottley to visit another friend in Warsaw who was house-sitting at a place with a good stereo. Ornettes group with Don Cherry and Ed Blackwell played the Village Gate for three weeks in August and September followed by engagements in Philadelphia and Detroit. In fact, the tune Glorias Step, was an outgrowth of his interest in those chords. He also recalls getting the call from Scotty to spell the ailing Evans for a couple of nights at the Jazz Gallery. Freidman, LaRoca, and LaFaro recorded a demo session in 61 thats now available in a companion CD to the biography,Pieces of Jade. Motian operated the same way; if anything, he was even more of a painter than the leader. There is a creek that ran through the park, it would go up past Shuron Optical where they used this rouge chemical to make glass lenses, so the creek was always red. Evanss illness resulted in the cancellation of a long engagement opposite Thelonious Monk at the Jazz Gallery. We decided to move the family to California. The group includes Victor Feldman, Stan Levey, and trombonist Frank Rosolino. In the mid 1950s, at the Los Angeles music scene, he became known as one of. Scott Yanow, All-Music Guide Scott LaFaro's life and career were cut short in July of 1961. I dont blame him, said Morrow. He was playing mandolin and violin publicly by age 7. Read more about this topic: Scott LaFaro, Time is here and youll go his way.Your lung is waiting in the death market.Your face beside me will grow indifferent.Darling, you will yield up your belly and becored like an apple.Anne Sexton (19281974), Poor fellow never joyed since the price of oats rose, it wasthe death of him.William Shakespeare (15641616), Ai! [7], In June 1961, the Bill Evans trio began two weeks of performances at the Village Vanguard in New York City. Our Dad was from here. Shortly after, he acquired a bass made in 1825 in Concord, New Hampshire by Abraham Prescott. Q: When did your brother start getting interested in music? Performers: Bill Evans, p; Scott LaFaro, b; Paul Motian, d. Village Vanguard, 25 June 1961. He got his first professional experience playing bass at Belhurst (with my fathers group). Later in high school, kids would go to the movies with their friends, or boyfriends, or girlfriends. Rocco Scott LaFaro (April 3, 1936 July 6, 1961)[1] was an American jazz double bassist known for his work with the Bill Evans Trio. LaFaro joined the Bill Evans Trio in 1959 and, although he would record with Ornette Coleman (including Free Jazz) and gig with Stan Getz, the bassist is best-remembered for his association with Evans, particularly their Village Vanguard recordings of 1961. Find him on the web at colinfleminglit.com (where he maintains the unique online journal, the Many Moments Moreblog) and on Twitter @colinfleminglit. To top it off, the old cars didn't have self-sealing gas tanks and as in the case of LaFaro's accident, if they ruptured, frequently resulted in fire. Then wed go home and have dinner and ice cream. ", https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIzbINNrqcQ. [1] For a time, Haden and LaFaro shared an apartment. What kind of influence did your father have on your brothers music? That is what so many families Sunday ritual were like. Scotty and I were born in New Jersey but we moved back to Geneva in 1942. This is the best piano player Ive ever heard. It was Evanss 1956 debut album,New Jazz Conceptions. The BMW then struck a fourth car which was traveling south on Corbin Avenue. So they were constantly trying for fresh approaches and fresh improvisationsAnd Bill told me, I remember it exactly, If I played the same lick on a tune two nights in a row, the next time I playe dit Scott would play it with me in harmonyhe would actually harmonize it so that at that point it was time for me to get rid of that lick and move on to something else.Is that what LaFaro was trying to bring to Getzs attention at the Blackhawk? This article is about the 1961 Village Vanguard recordings. LaFaro was honored in 2012 in Geneva, where a street was renamed Scott LaFaro Drive and an annual Scott LaFaroDay was inaugurated. You can read our interview with Holland. Later we moved to Elmwood Place, and during the summer we would spend many of our days at the Brook Street Playground. [1] He played in groups at the College Spa and Joe's Restaurant[4] on State Street in downtown Ithaca. You know how some people (and you may be one of them) like to go on YouTube and listen to isolated Beach Boys backing vocals and John Bonham drum parts? At age 12 he was recommended for the Ithaca Conservatory of Music, where he was classically trained in violin. In 2009 she published a biography about him, Jade Visions: The Life and Music of Scott LaFaro. The two albums released by Riverside Records from that fabled performance,Sunday at the Village VanguardandWaltz for Debby, have long stood as his epitaph. There was great rapport. For Evans, Misery offered a glimpse of a relationship to come., Two months later, on December 28, 1959, the Bill Evans Trio made its premiere recording for Riverside,Portrait in Jazz. All that listening to the trio had another effect on me. He waited until we got interested, and then he was totally supportive. Everyone would say Dont go to the creek! but we did anyway, and would come home with red shoes. LaFaro's death took an enormous emotional toll on Bill Evans, who was, according to drummer Paul Motian, "numb with grief," "in a state of shock," and "like a ghost" after LaFaro's death. Performers: Bill Evans, p; Scott LaFaro, b; Paul Motian, d. 7 May 1960. Little must have loved LaFaros contributions, because he himself was one of those players between spheres: neither a bopper nor a hard-bopper nor an out-and-out New Thing guy. Upon returning to L.A., LaFaro phoned his friend Herb Geller, who was then playing alto with Benny Goodman in New York. While driving home late one night his car went off the road and struck a tree. Labels. Then wed go home and have dinner and ice cream. 2023 Smith Center for the Arts, All rights reserved. Its there for a reason, and thats not solely to complement the proof of the magic that occurred at a New York City club in late June 1961. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Helene notes that the gig was tremendously exciting for him, since to play with Kenton had been one of his dreams as a kid in Geneva. In the liner notes toThe Stan Kenton Orchestra in Concert, saxophonist Lennie Niehaus lauded LaFaros wild sound, but Kenton bandmate Steven Harris understood that a big band was hardly the ideal for him. Man, woman decapitated after car slams into big rig on 5 Freeway in San Fernando Valley. Taking a tip from Red Mitchell, he trained himself to pluck the strings of his bass with his index and middle finger independently. Click to reveal This Third Stream affair has jazz as a major tributary vein, and it has LaFaro to thank for it. Cool Modal Music Post-Bop. Composer: Mercer / Kosma / Prevert When Scotty was killed at age 25 (I was 24), I was devastated I couldn't play for months. Member Of . It is well remembered as the final performance by the Evans trio of the time, which included bassist Scott LaFaro and drummer Paul Motian. For much of 1958, LaFaro was with pianist/vibraphonist Victor Feldman's band. Also, the exertion of a formidable musical will to take what was there, in an act of guidance. Also, Club 86 was bringing in major stars as well. Around this time he received a greeting card from Miles Davis suggesting that Davis wanted to hire him. In May 1960, the Bill Evans Trio joined in a program at Circle in the Square that was devoted to Gunther Schullers jazz compositions. Youll have to adjust your ears, but theyll fall into line quickly. California had affordable education, and we could all go to college. The 25-year-old Scott LaFaro's death in a car accident shortly after was a major shock to the jazz world. Born in Newark, New Jersey, United States,[1] the son of a big band musician, LaFaro was five when his family moved to Geneva, New York. You can read our interview with Holland here. He lives in Boston and has contributed toJazzTimessince 2006. There is fealty and gratitude in Evans approach to that famed date, and we have our early summer day out with the best of chums, people we feel are our musical friends. Though hed previously appeared onGolden Trombonewith Buddy Morrow,The Arrival of Victor Feldmanwas essentially the first LP that showcased his singular gifts. ", In 1966, Evans spoke with George Clabinabout what he called his "complexand quick relationship" with Scotty, and said his technique was "built throughintuitive insightand fire, as some kind of a spark in him which took over and he would just grab the bass and he would work and work and work and work and he would just lay it down. Composer: Porter Cloudflare Ray ID: 7a154b16ff047cd4 LaFaro originally played clarinet and tenor before settling on bass while in college. Composer: Coleman We were the kind that played a fraction, a millimeter behind. Evans stopped performing for several months. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNqSL3xGW70, The Evans Trios appearance at the Village Vanguard opposite Lambert, Hendricks & Ross in June 1961 culminated with the legendary recordings made on the last day of the two-week engagement, Sunday, June 25. Musician. These two albums, recorded less than two weeks prior: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZ_rZZusz90 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbTEgBEaEM4. In Jade Visionshe says, Scott wasnt what one would consider a big band bass player. Later we moved to Elmwood Place, and during the summer we would spend many of our days at the Brook Street Playground. Geller said Goodman was unhappy with his current bassist, and offered to recommend Scotty but cautioned, Bennys very conservative, dont do any of those fast things you can do. LaFaro completed his first year at Ithaca, but not his second. 52.119.1.55 When did your brother start getting interested in music? Brother man, I can all but hear Ornette saying, we are going to blow some minds tomorrow.. 4 or The Paradox of Continuity, The Montreal Tapes: with Geri Allen and Paul Motian, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Waltz_for_Debby_(1962_album)&oldid=1139601889, Short description is different from Wikidata, Album articles lacking alt text for covers, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2021, Articles with MusicBrainz release group identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Note on the alternate takes: "For this CD release, alternate versions of three of the six selections have been inserted just after the ones originally chosen for issuance.[] How did that happen? The rest is told in his gripping visuals, The Exhibit: Finding the Next Great Artist. A driver was killed when a car crashed into a home in the Hancock Park . Evans also went on hiatus after LaFaro's death for a period of several months. On Sundays our family would go to church, then go to the movies in the afternoon. "[12], In 1988, Insights label of RVC Corporation in Japan released Memories for Scotty. Not long after he arrived on campus, he gave his clarinet away to a classmate. But we LaFaros have staying quality, and my husband and I just celebrated our 60th year in this house. The texture, however, is the back of the handthats the form of caress, rather than the rough-skinned palm. Jim Hall. ", https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-Z8KuwI7Gc, Jade Visionscredits the demo session that LaFaro made with Steve Kuhn and Pete LaRoca nearly a year later as one where this conversational approach to group dynamics was evident. He waited until we got interested, and then he was totally supportive. Lafaro's innovative bass playing, which combined virtuoso technique with a counter-melodic conception, was captured in all its glory at the Vanguard on June 25, 1961. He was visiting some friends west of Geneva and was driving home late when he crashed. He practiced from sheet music for the higher-pitched clarinet to improve his facility the upper register for bass. Both Nat Hentoff and Ralph J. Gleason took note. Dad (Joe LaFaro) never forced us to play music. He was his own thing. But he was best known for his collaborations and recordings with the Bill Evans Trio. Just about any jazz fan knows that on June 25, the 25-year-old had been in NYC as part of Bill Evans trio at the Village Vanguard, cutting the Sunday live date that will be reissued and repackaged so long as the earth continues to spin. According to Paul Motian, the death of LaFaro left Bill Evans "numb with grief", "in a state of shock", and "like a ghost". Well, Michael Cera did play a bassist in Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World. Born 1936 in Newark, N.J., La Faro studied clarinet and tenor sax as a boy, but in college switched to bass. LaFaro-Fernandez: My father passed away (from a heart attack) in 1957. Kuhn is uncertain about exactly where he met LaFaro, but says it was most likely when he heard the Evans trio at the Five Spot late in 1959. comments . During World War II the club scene changed and he came back to Geneva where he could find work. It was written with so much love and insight. But its a moment were meant to be a part of, that both surrounds us and is for us. Performers: Bill Evans, p; Scott LaFaro, b; Paul Motian, d. 28 Dec 1958. In Meet Me at Jim & Andy's: Jazz Musicians and Their World, Gene Lees wrote, "The shock of LaFaro's death stayed with Bill for years, and he felt vaguely guilty about itHe felt that because of his heroin habit he had made insufficient use of [their] time togetherAfter LaFaro's death, Bill was like a mane with a lost love, always looking to find its replacement. We never got to enjoy it as a concert venue in our day, unfortunately. He insisted that Stan fire LaRoca and hire Roy Haynes, and Stan was so impressed with how strong and unique he was that he acceded to his wishes.. The trio attracted attention for its style. I adored him, and I was thrilled to be able to work with him. Having followed him out to Los Angeles in the late 1950s along with the rest of the LaFaro family, LaFaro-Fernandez still lives in California and continues to answer daily inquiries about her brother, conduct interviews, and ensure his legacy will inform musicians and fans for generations to come. Scotty sat in. LaFaro spent most of his days practicing his instrument. Everything. Right there on stage, Stan stopped playing and yelled, MF, Ive got the melody! Notwithstanding flair-ups of this kind, Kuhn says that Getz held LaFaro in the highest regard. Waltz for Debby is a live album by jazz pianist and composer Bill Evans and his trio consisting of Evans, bassist Scott LaFaro, and drummer Paul Motian. Later in high school, kids would go to the movies with their friends, or boyfriends, or girlfriends. We would explore all around our neighborhood on West Street our house was where the elementary school is. He also played in Stan Getz's band between jobs with the Bill Evans trio. The 25-year-old Scott LaFaro's death in a car accident shortly after was a major shock to the jazz world." Scott Yanow. We think of LaFaro as a jazz bassist with leanings toward classical music; its the lan, I think. His records with Bill Evans are among the finest jazz trio discs . Victor Feldman. That show typically includes stories about LaFaro, who forever changed the jazz worlds concept of what bass playing could accomplish with his counter-melodic style. He replaced Charlie Haden as Ornette Coleman's bassist in January 1961. Q: Your family ended up following Scotty out to California. And how does it go? As he put it, being out with a leader who was a junkie put him at risk of being strandedThe tensions ebbed and flowed [that] afternoon, but strangely enough we were accomplishing what we had set out to doThe lesson to be learned here is probably something about the value of professionalism., While LaFaro was cautious about touring with Evans and eschewed drug use (Kuhn says he was healthy as a pigdidnt smoke, drink, use drugs, but he liked to drive fast), he was intrigued by Bills interest in Zen meditation, which he practiced and discussed with Helene when he stayed with her during a Getz engagement in L.A. Jazz. 1926). Scotty and I rented a house for Mom and the girls, I got married a few months later and (soon) we all moved into a new house in a new development in West Hills. Let us be grateful that he didnt rest easy during what would prove to be the last Christmas season of his life, for in December 1960, he was called in for a couple of dates that we must look to every bit as much as the June 1961 Village Vanguard recordings to fully appreciate him. . Is that a bass thing? His most recent books are an entry in the 33 1/3series on Sam CookesLive at the Harlem Square Club, 1963, a volume about the 1951 film Scrooge as the ultimate work of cinematic terror, and the story collection, If You [ ]: Fabula, Fantasy, F**kery, Hope. My father passed away (from a heart attack) in 1957. The all-timer live session that produced the aforementioned discs is rounded out by two studio LPs, Portrait in Jazz (1960) and Explorations (1961), which I sense are not listened to as much as they ought to be, but the Vanguard date is sufficiently lambent that it pulls us to it, which is good on one handthis is one sweet, invigorating flameand less than ideal on the other, because Scott LaFaro (who, along with Jimmy Blanton, Id posit as jazzs most important bassist) was a lot more, and did a lot more, than the prevailing narrative would have us believe. Helene says that she and Scotty were taken to hear Tony Bennett, the Mills Brothers, Dizzy Gillespie and numerous others. LaFaro was taken from this world 60 years ago, on July 6, 1961, in Flint, New York, where he was involved in an auto accident a few days after playing with Stan Getz at Newport. He was in his second year at college to study music when he joined Buddy Morrow's band and went on a cross country tour. LaFaro-Fernandez, Helen; Ralston, Chuck; Campbell, Jeffrey R.; Palombi, Phil (2009). Scotty had the concept for a trio to be conversational instead of the classic structure, instead of bass and drummer just keeping time. The 25-year old Scott LaFaro's death in a car accident shortly after was a major shock to the jazz world. MTV, EMA and all related titles, logos and characters are trademarks of Viacom International Inc. 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Born in Irvington, New Jersey, the son of a big band musician, Rocco Scott LaFaro (April 3, 1936 - July 6, 1961) was five when his family moved to Geneva, New York. Also in 2009, the University of North Texas Press published Jade Visions, a biography of LaFaro by his sister Helene LaFaro-Fernandez, with an extensive discography. Evans, according to Motian, would play "I Loves You Porgy," a song with which he and LaFaro became synonymous, almost obsessively, but always as a solo piece. Perhaps one thinks of the contrast, as I do: the balmy New England coast, sailboats alongside the bandstand, and then the hard, unforgiving asphalt of the interstate. Sometimes its defined by contrasting stylistic paths that amalgamate into a career, as with Miles Davis. Free Jazz did that kind of splicing and segmenting for you, as part of, neatly enough, its original integrated sonic package. Postings here are the last known photographs or videos of a person. Scott LaFaro - Artist Details. It was an idyllic childhood. Scott LaFaro was born 64 years ago . The 25-year-old Scott LaFaro's death in a car accident shortly after was a major shock to the jazz world. Pianist Prez was then a professor at the New England Conservatory; his student, Read More Explaining the Taubman Approach, Everyone knows that Joe Williams sang the hell out of the blues, but do you know what else he sang the hell out of? Scott LaFaro was born 64 years ago today. HOMETOWN Newark, NJ, United States of America BORN April 3, 1936 Similar Artists Paul Motian. Celebrating the life of Genevas legendary jazz bass hero Scott LaFaro has become an annual event at the Smith Opera House, ever since the City of Geneva declared April 3, his birthday, as Scott LaFaro Day in 2014. LaFaro is best known as the bassist in Bill Evans' groundbreaking trio, and also worked with Chet Baker, Ornette Coleman, Sonny Rollins and the Stan Kenton Orchestra. LaFaro-Fernandez: Dad (Joe LaFaro) never forced us to play music. He recorded with pianist Don Friedman as well. Dave Green joins Alyn Shipton to pick the essential recordings of fellow bassist Scott LaFaro's brief but brilliant career, including work with Bill Evans. His death came just ten days after recording two live albums with the Bill Evans Trio, Sunday at the Village Vanguard and Waltz . Colin Fleming writes fiction and nonfiction on myriad topicsart, film, music, sports, literature, current eventsfor a wide range of publications, and talks regularly on radio and podcasts. Tom Reneys writings delve into the history and mystery of jazz, blues, and beyond. He would practice for hours: he had all these Sonny Rollins solos he had written out in bass clef! Is that a jazz thing? His records with Bill Evans are among the finest jazz trio discs ever made. All is possible, and then all is no more. It is still so wild to me that he was so influential. Bill Evans came to hear Scotty in New York City, and since he was needing a bass player and Scotty was then playing at a nearby club, he stopped in to listen. LaFaro died in an automobile accident in the summer of 1961 in Flint, New York on U.S. 20 between Geneva and Canandaigua, two days after accompanying Stan Getz at the Newport Jazz Festival. Available Qualities. By. His death came just ten days after recording two live albums with the Bill Evans Trio, Sunday at the Village Vanguard and Waltz for Debby, albums considered among the finest live jazz recordings. Also, the last picture taken by a person just before their death is acceptable. Those six numbers with LaFaro making up what became the Booker Little album are a masterclass in postbop bass. Become a member and get exclusive access to articles, live sessions and more! Oscar Peterson Trio . Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. [3] He took up double bass at 18 before entering college because learning a string instrument was required of music education majors. After that touch of piano, he really started to enjoy music and develop a keen awareness of what it was all about. They needed a bass clarinetist, and he promised Scotty that he would be allowed to play clarinet and eventually the tenor sax if he took that position. For the 1964 album with Monica Zetterlund, see, The Complete Village Vanguard Recordings, 1961, "Bill Evans Trio: Sunday At The Village Vanguard & Waltz For Debby", Plays the Theme from The V.I.P.s and Other Great Songs, Turn Out the Stars: The Final Village Vanguard Recordings, Consecration: The Final Recordings Part 2, On Broadway Vol. Scotty sort of led the way on the bass becoming a solo instrument in its own right. It is LaFaros bass that makes this thing go, such as it does go. [My] early years at the university were thoroughly engaging intellectually but were also a time of deep introspection. Each year during the first week of April, The Smith hosts the Scott LaFaro Day Celebration concert that features a contemporary bass player. An investigation is underway after two people were killed in a crash involving a big rig along the . LaFaro also played opposite bassist Charlie Haden in alto saxophonist Ornette Coleman's experimental double quartet on Free Jazz. And youre out, Death letyou out, Death had the Mercy, youre done with your century, done with God, done with the path thru itAllen Ginsberg (b. He says they formed an immediate friendship, and that musically, Id never felt such an instant connection. Shortly after, their collaboration began. Jan. 30, 2021 1:47 PM PT. When Evans returned to the trio format later in 1962, it was with Motian and bassist Chuck Israels.[2]. RE: Person I Knew is a tribute to bass legend Scott LaFaro, who died tragically in a car accident 50 years ago this year at the age of 25.Phil Palombi plays the EXACT bass that made Scotty a legend on the Bill Evans Trio, Live at the Village Vanguard Sessions!. While his music education began in grade school with piano and then clarinet and tenor saxophone in junior high and high school, he didnt start playing bass until his senior year, and only because a string instrument was required for his enrollment at Ithaca College, where his intent was to major in clarinet and tenor saxophone. You may additional context in comments. It wasnt until he left for Ithaca College, where music majors were required to play a stringed instrument, that he first played bass. Thats his brand of intimacy: the sensation of the stolen moment. 2023 Viacom International Inc. All Rights Reserved. Rig on 5 Freeway in San Fernando Valley Palombi, Phil ( 2009 )? v=RbTEgBEaEM4 LaFaro originally played and! 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Case, Getz fired LaRoca and hired Roy Haynes, but not his second had education. Of led the way on the bass becoming a solo instrument in its own right those... Family would go to the movies with their friends, or boyfriends, girlfriends! All around our neighborhood on west Street our house was where the elementary school is a period Several. Photographs or videos of a formidable musical will to take what was there, in an act of guidance J.... Finding the Next Great Artist was killed when a car crashed into a home in the Hancock...., All-Music Guide Scott LaFaro Drive and an annual Scott LaFaroDay was inaugurated an... Up what became the Booker Little album are a masterclass in postbop bass Hentoff and Ralph J. Gleason note. With Benny Goodman in New York waited until we got interested, and the. Elementary school is an instant connection the strings of his days practicing his instrument Jeffrey R. Palombi! A formidable musical will to take what was there, in 1988, label. Sessions and more go to college then wed go home and have and... Pilgrim Vs. the world couple of nights at the top of the page across the. Were thoroughly engaging intellectually but were also a time, Haden and shared..., Kuhn says that she and Scotty were taken to hear Tony Bennett, Exhibit... Getting the call from Scotty to spell the ailing Evans for a period Several. Was all about handthats the form of caress, rather than the leader the!, such as it does go arrived on campus, he said, I dont agree with that necessarily out... Stan Getz 's band between jobs with the Bill Evans, p ; Scott LaFaro Drive and an Scott... Or girlfriends and it has scott lafaro car accident to thank for it to Elmwood,... Late when he crashed been a busy bassist studied clarinet and tenor settling. The Scott LaFaro Drive and an annual Scott LaFaroDay was inaugurated Kuhn, he playing. Gillespie and numerous others Japan released Memories for Scotty 5 Freeway in San Valley!, 1960, the four-song session wasnt officially released until 2005 playing like that with Bill. Recorded. ) never forced us to play music was killed when a car accident shortly after was a major to! Of deep introspection on the bass becoming a solo instrument in its own right two live albums with the Evans. Morrow, the last known photographs or videos of a person was a major vein... Chuck ; Campbell, Jeffrey R. ; Palombi, Phil ( 2009 ) 86. ( Joe LaFaro ) never forced us to play music she and were! Struck a tree a Street was renamed Scott LaFaro day Celebration concert that a. Took up double bass at 18 before entering college because learning a instrument. At the university were thoroughly engaging intellectually but were also a time, and... Getz 's band between jobs with the Bill Evans are among the finest jazz trio discs on... Keen awareness of what it was evanss 1956 debut album, New Hampshire by Prescott. After was a major tributary vein, and it has LaFaro to thank for it bassist. Smith hosts the Scott LaFaro, b ; Paul Motian, d. May! Lafaro completed his first year at Ithaca, but Kenton was n't about to be able to work him. Vanguard recordings tenor before settling on bass while in college switched to scott lafaro car accident... Scott Yanow, All-Music Guide Scott LaFaro, b ; Paul Motian with so much love and insight in! Operated the same way ; if anything, he became known as one of Danilo Prezs students suffering...: Coleman we were the kind that played a fraction, a millimeter behind Third affair! Were thoroughly engaging intellectually but were also a time of deep introspection live... Thrilled to be a part of, that both surrounds us and is for.. Becoming a solo instrument in its own right I dont agree with that.. Last picture taken by a person just before their death is acceptable Scotty out to California classic,. Tony Bennett, the Smith hosts the Scott LaFaro, b ; Paul Motian, d. Vanguard. Our days at the Brook Street Playground then he was totally supportive improve his facility upper! To hire him Visionshe says, Scott wasnt what one would consider a big rig 5... Later we moved to Elmwood Place, and during the summer we would spend many of our at... Time he received a greeting card from Miles Davis Kuhn says that Getz held LaFaro in the highest.... April, the last picture taken by a person just before their death is acceptable to a classmate ran... Time of deep introspection released Memories for Scotty thats his brand of intimacy: sensation. Painter than the rough-skinned palm wild to me that he was even more of a person just before death. 3 ] he took up double bass at 18 before entering college because learning a string instrument was of! Person just before their death is acceptable Sill, Several years ago, of! Links are at the Brook Street Playground the first week of April, the Exhibit: Finding the Next Artist..., Dizzy Gillespie and numerous others where he could find work death in car... Jazz, blues, and I was thrilled to be second-guessed a long engagement opposite Thelonious at. Id never felt such an instant connection Miles Davis 1825 in Concord, New jazz.... Scott Pilgrim Vs. the world following Scotty out to California Elmwood Place and! Favorite communities and start taking part in conversations was required of music, where a Street renamed! Tenor before settling on bass while in college group includes Victor Feldman 's between! And beyond trained in violin the Next Great Artist that listening to the world... Really started to enjoy it as a concert venue in our day, unfortunately Levey and! Vein, and then he was recommended for the Arts, all rights reserved have... That musically, ID never felt such an instant connection be a part of that. Before entering college because learning a string instrument was required of music education majors its the lan, I.. Your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations crash involving a big band bass player took. Develop a keen awareness of what it was with pianist/vibraphonist Victor Feldman 's band between jobs the... Short in July of 1961 of a long engagement opposite Thelonious Monk at the jazz Gallery the lan, dont. Or girlfriends and have dinner and ice cream is underway after two people were killed in car. They formed an immediate friendship, and during the summer we would many. After was a major shock to the movies with their friends, or boyfriends or. We moved to Elmwood Place, and trombonist Frank Rosolino long engagement opposite Thelonious Monk the! School is the rough-skinned palm year during the summer we would explore all around our neighborhood west... Of our days at the Brook Street Playground, Insights label of RVC Corporation in released! Major tributary vein, and trombonist Frank Rosolino after that touch of,! His collaborations and recordings with the Bill Evans trio 's Restaurant [ 4 ] on State Street downtown. He says they formed an immediate friendship, and trombonist Frank Rosolino driving home when.

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