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Jazz Articles about Nick Brignola
Nick Brignola: Between A Rock And The Jazz Place
by Rob Rosenblum
This interview was originally published in 1969 in an Albany, New York area arts publication called Transition. It documents a time when saxophonist Nick Brignola was in the process of trying to break out of the confines of bebop and incorporate some of the elements of fusion that was beginning to dominate the jazz market. There are many references to a recording he was in the process of making. It was never formally released, although it has been ...
read moreNick Brignola: Big Horn, Strong Words
by Rob Rosenblum
This article first appeared in Coda Magazine in 1978. With the possible exception of torture, there has never been an art form more maligned than jazz. So, it is inevitable that every once in a while there is an exceptional musician who finds that the financial rewards of being a jazz musician are too small, and its spiritual compensations too infrequent to continue this masochistic pursuit. Case in point--Nick Brignola. If you say Nick Who?" then ...
read moreNick Brignola: Things Ain't What They Used To Be: Last Set at Sweet Basil
by R.J. DeLuke
Nick Brignola was one of the most robust baritone sax players and could burn with the best of them. Even though he usually took a back seat to Gerry Mulligan or Pepper Adams in popularity polls, he was starting to see more of the limelight before he died of cancer in 2002, drawing in more fans and critical acclaim (though he always had a decent share of both). A good example of what one would encounter in a club can ...
read moreNick Brignola: What It Takes
by William Grim
Nick Brignola was one of the greatest baritone saxophonists of the 20th century and this album was one of his best and most far-ranging efforts. Focusing on straight ahead and bop oriented material, Brignola begins the album with an up-tempo of version of “Star Eyes” in the style of Charlie Parker. Randy Brecker on trumpet delivers a great solo that is reminiscent of Charlie Shavers. “Au Privare,” another Parker favorite, is performed with muted trumpet and Brignola on clarinet doubling ...
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