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Nick Brignola


Victor Christensen

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Nick is an underrated player, I think he is better than Pepper Adams and almost at par with Serge Chaloff and Mulligan. Got to think of Nick playing "Raincheck" on Resorvoir. He swings like mad with a very gutsy sound on his Baritone and is so gentle on Clarinet playing "Tenderly". I have more or less all his recorded stuff.

Any opinions ?

Vic

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Nick is an underrated player, I think he is better than Pepper Adams and almost at par with Serge Chaloff and Mulligan. Got to think of Nick playing "Raincheck" on Resorvoir. He swings like mad with a very gutsy sound on his Baritone and is so gentle on Clarinet playing "Tenderly". I have more or less all his recorded stuff.

Any opinions ?

Vic

i'd agree with you Vic. Brignola was a killer player and he is sorely missed. he's a local hero where i'm from and i was fortunate to see him a few times. he played frequently here with another local hero - guitarist chuck d'aloia. i have a somewhat rare cd from the band they co-lead: Endangered Species. good stuff. Nick was the man...

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Nick is an underrated player, I think he is better than Pepper Adams and almost at par with Serge Chaloff and Mulligan. Got to think of Nick playing "Raincheck" on Resorvoir. He swings like mad with a very gutsy sound on his Baritone and is so gentle on Clarinet playing "Tenderly". I have more or less all his recorded stuff.Any opinions ?

Vic

Me too, so obviously I think he's a great player, a giant of the baritone, actually (and many other reed instruments, too) Certainly all of his Reservoir dates are very consistent. But here's two that I think are really outstanding.

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This one has Nick has no less than 10 reed instruments, overdubbing in various combinations to provide ensembles and backgrounds for solos.

Nick is an underrated player, I think he is better than Pepper Adams and almost at par with Serge Chaloff and Mulligan. Got to think of Nick playing "Raincheck" on Resorvoir. He swings like mad with a very gutsy sound on his Baritone and is so gentle on Clarinet playing "Tenderly". I have more or less all his recorded stuff.

Any opinions ?

Vic

i'd agree with you Vic. Brignola was a killer player and he is sorely missed. he's a local hero where i'm from and i was fortunate to see him a few times. he played frequently here with another local hero - guitarist chuck d'aloia. i have a somewhat rare cd from the band they co-lead: Endangered Species. good stuff. Nick was the man...

Here are two with D'Aloia on guitar - a fine player.

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I've been a Brignola fan for a long time. In addition to the sides mentioned already, some of my favorites (and the first ones I got) are on the Beehive label.

Baritone Madness with Pepper Adams, andBurn Brigade with Ronnie Cuber and Cecil Payne

That's a whole lotta Bari playing, right there!

Sadly, I don't think either of those titles was ever released on CD.

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I'm a big fan of Nick Brignola (aka "The Upstate Burner"). I wouldn't say he's better than Pepper though- to me it's apples & oranges. He definitely created his own niche but I think that the precedent of Pepper's style was a point of reference for many modern bari players, whether they chose to acknowledge his influence or intentionally pursue a divergent path. I hear Pepper in Nick, Ronnie Cuber, Bruce Johnstone and Gary Smulyan, to name a few. I sure wish Nick was still around.

Edited by Free For All
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I know who Brignola was, had heard many of his records, but didn't know a LOT about him. A couple of years ago I was stunned when browsing at Stereo Jack's, a record was playing featuring a really nice soprano player. I asked Jack who it was and he replied "Nick Brignola'.

I had never heard Brignola play soprano....I had never OF him playing soprano, but he had a beautiful sound and concept on the instrument...

bigtiny

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I know who Brignola was, had heard many of his records, but didn't know a LOT about him. A couple of years ago I was stunned when browsing at Stereo Jack's, a record was playing featuring a really nice soprano player. I asked Jack who it was and he replied "Nick Brignola'.

I had never heard Brignola play soprano....I had never OF him playing soprano, but he had a beautiful sound and concept on the instrument...

bigtiny

I saw Nick play at Ryles Jazz Club several times and one time, he had Cecil Payne with him for a two bari front line. On one tune, Nick decided to go toe to toe with Cecil's bari on his soprano. He smoked it! One of the most intense sax solos I've ever seen, no matter the pitch. Nick was one bad mo-fo. :)

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I also live in the capital region of new york where Nick made his home. Saw him numerous times. He usually brought an arsenal of horns to his local gigs, e.g., baritone, soprano, clarinet, alto. A really sweet guy but with an edge to him. Could and would play with anybody. For example, I saw him appear with Tisziji Munoz, the guitarist that played with Pharoah Sanders. (For quite a few years, Tisziji lived in the Capital Region). If Nick appeared with a horn player, there was usually some sense of competition, which for me comes through on those two Beehive sessions. I always imagined that Nick would have done well in one of those old time cutting sessions. Miss seeing him.

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51FJWWBTRVL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

This record is a motherfucker. Buy it. You will not be disappointed. Gary Smulyan, Ronnie Cuber & Nick Brignola. Smokin. Especially "Line for Lyons" and "Walkin' Shoes." I think it was on Dreyfus Records.

http://www.amazon.com/Plays-Mulligan-Three-Baritone-Saxophone/dp/B000001ZTK/ref=ntt_mus_ep_dpi_1

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On A Different Level is one my favourite cds. Gets a lot of plays.

Another vote for the above title. Also enjoy this one.

d62000u2ql6.jpg

It's a nice one Tom but Different Level sounds so right to me that I don't feel the need to visit the others very often

51FJWWBTRVL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

This record is a motherfucker. Buy it. You will not be disappointed. Gary Smulyan, Ronnie Cuber & Nick Brignola. Smokin. Especially "Line for Lyons" and "Walkin' Shoes." I think it was on Dreyfus Records.

http://www.amazon.com/Plays-Mulligan-Three-Baritone-Saxophone/dp/B000001ZTK/ref=ntt_mus_ep_dpi_1

I can recommend this one too.

Edited by JohnS
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  • 9 years later...

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