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Pat Bianchi: B3 Master

By R.J. DeLuke

It may be that young Pat Bianchi had little choice but to follow a career in music. After all, his father and both his grandfathers played professionally in his hometown of Rochester, NY, an area that also produced the likes of the Mangione brothers (Chuck and Gap), pianist Frank Strazzeri, saxophonist Gerry Niewood and drum legend Steve Gadd. “When I came to music, jazz was probably a given because the grandfathers—Pat Bianchi and Richard Zona, sax and trumpet, ...

Hampton Hawes, Oscar Peterson & More

By Joe Dimino

Dig into a good heaping portion of jazz organ with Pat Bianchi joined by vibes master Joe Locke, followed up by a new cut off Joey DeFrancesco' latest CD In the Key of the Universe. As the hour moves on, we explore the life and music of Italian jazz cat Roberto Magris and his deep ties to the Kansas City Jazz community. We then go on looking into a diverse set of acts likeBig Heart Machine, Jim McNeely, Kansas City ...

Pat Bianchi Trio: A Higher Standard

By Dan Bilawsky

Fiery displays, lyrical expressions, bluesy statements, punchy interludes, torrential downpours of notes, and space-conscious thoughts all come to the surface on this well-crafted trio date from rising star organist Pat Bianchi. While Bianchi has drawn a lot of attention for his sideman work with such high profile artists as saxophone legend Lou Donaldson, guitar great Pat Martino, and heavy-hitter drummer Ralph Peterson, he has plenty to say when he's in the driver seat. Here, joined by two ...

Pat Bianchi: East Coast Roots

By Gaylord Smith

The leadership debut by Colorado-based organist Pat Bianchi most assuredly speaks of his East Coast Roots from its first notes. In the company of guitarist Mark Whitfield and drummer Byron Landham, Bianchi offers an East Coast burn virtually throughout, lightening the smokin' atmosphere only on “Little B's Poem," “Theme for Ernie" and, to a degree, “Turn Out the Stars."

With Whitfield matching or surpassing Bianchi's playing from an inspiration standpoint, and Landham driving the whole affair along at ...