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Tony Fruscella
Fruscella & Moore: An Important Find
Source:
Rifftides by Doug Ramsey
Tony Fruscella & Brew Moore Quintet (Fresh Sound) Trumpeter Tony Fruscella and tenor saxophonist Brew Moore were admired members of the generation that succeeded the pioneers of bebop. Lester Young was a direct influence on Moore’s tenor saxophone style. Fruscella was less identifiable in terms of models, although it was clear that early Miles Davis had an effect on him as, indeed, Davis had on Chet Baker and many other trumpet contemporaries. Fruscella was one of the young lions of ...
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Red Mitchell and Tony Fruscella
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
After my post last week on trumpeter Tony Fruscella, reader Don Frese wrote and asked if knew of bassist Red Mitchell's vocalese rendition of Fruscella's recording of I'll Be Seeing You. That song appears on Fruscella's Tony Fruscella, recorded by Atlantic in April 1955. I wasn't aware of Mitchell's vocal so I tracked it down and gave a listen. I was astonished. Before I share with you how this recording came to be, let's listen to the two tracks. Here's ...
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Tony Fruscella: Lost Trumpet
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Tony Fruscella is among the least known trumpeters of the cool jazz movement. His dry tone sits somewhere on a sliding scale between Miles Davis and Chet Baker, with touches of Art Farmer. Yet Fruscella's sound was plenty distinct. With Fruscella, there were no piercing or bent notes or a fleshy romanticism. His improvised lines were highly melodic but his tone was introspective and dry, like fine sand. When you listen to him, you hear a horn expressing nocturnal introspection ...
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Recent Listening: Fruscella and Moore
Source:
Rifftides by Doug Ramsey
Tony Fruscella & Brew Moore, The 1954 Unissued Atlantic Session (Fresh Sound). Fruscella was an enigmatic trumpeter with a deeply personal style, Moore a tenor saxophonist who once said that anyone who didn't play like Lester Young was wrong. At a time when Dizzy Gillespie's fiery playing was the general model, Fruscella was one of a few young trumpeters who concentrated on tone, lyricism and quiet melodic invention. Others were Don Joseph, Phil Sunkel, Miles Davis and Chet Baker. The ...
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