Jerry Granelli
The past decades have been good to Jerry Granelli.
Jazz Times magazine calls Granelli “one of those uncategorizable veteran percussionists who's done it all.” A Canadian citizen since 1999, Granelli burns with an intensity fuelled by a passion for “the pursuit of the spirit of spontaneity which drives the player.” A veteran of the West Coast jazz scene, Granelli's recent flourish of recordings has documented remarkable collaborations between the generations.
Jerry Granelli's story is one that follows the evolution of the West Coast jazz scene. Born in 1940 in San Francisco, the boy recognized his passion in 1948 when he spent a day with Gene Krupa. Hanging out during the 50s in San Francisco nightclubs like the Blackhawk and Jimbo’s Bop City, soaking in the sounds of Ellington, Miles, Max Roach and Monk, his passion grew, eventually leading him to Dave Brubeck drummer Joe Morello. After two years as Morello's star pupil, Granelli became a highly sought-after session player, eventually playing, recording and touring with the Vince Guaraldi Band. He provides the unmistakable steady swing beats for the classic Charlie Brown “Peanuts” theme song.
In the volatile West Coast scene of the 60s, Granelli moved on to the Denny Zeitlin Trio, a group that included bassist Charlie Haden. A hugely successful recording and touring band, they tied with Miles Davis for Group of the Year in Downbeat magazine's Critics and Readers Poll in 1965. Throughout the 60s he performed with many major players on the scene, including Jimmy Witherspoon, Mose Allison, Lou Rawls, John Handy, Sonny Stitt, Sly Stone, Ornette Coleman and Dewey Redman. He was right there too as the West Coast focus shifted from cool jazz styles to the beginnings of psychedelia. His free-form improvisational trio held down the opening slot for comedian Lenny Bruce for three months in 1963, and shared bills at The Matrix and The Fillmore with Jefferson Airplane, Big Brother and the Holding Company and the Grateful Dead, also accompanying the Dead on their first European tour in 1971.
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Album Review
- The Jerry Granelli Trio Plays The Music Of Vince Guaraldi & Mose Allison by Chris M. Slawecki
- The Jerry Granelli Trio Plays The Music Of Vince Guaraldi & Mose Allison by Glenn Astarita
- Plays Vince Guaraldi & Mose Allison by Neri Pollastri
Interview
Radio
- Jerry Granelli, Lisa Ullén, Rudresh Mahanthappa & Yells At Eels
- Jorja Smith, Gary Bartz & Maisha, Jerry Granelli and More New Releases
- Art Ensemble of Chicago, William Tatge & Hans Ludemann
Album Review
- Dance Hall by Maurizio Comandini
- What I Hear Now by Vincenzo Roggero
- What I Hear Now by Dan McClenaghan
November 27, 2017
Drummer Jerry Granelli Reunites with Guitar Greats Bill Frisell &...
November 15, 2016
Jerry Granelli Holds A One-Week Residency At John Zorn's The Stone On...
April 06, 2012
Jerry Granelli Trio’s Debut CD, "Let Go," Is The Latest Gem In...
June 25, 2011
Jerry Granelli Trio - Let Go (2011)
December 30, 2008
Jazz Musician of the Day: Jerry Granelli
September 20, 2007
Drummer Jerry Granelli Interviewed at AAJ
March 04, 2006
Jay Clayton/Jane Ira Bloom/Jerry Granelli Bowery Poetry Club Saturday,...
V16 is simply responding to the myriad of influences that make one night different from the next for a group that's clearly out on a limb with every performance. There may be no safety nets for V16, but The Sonic Temple simply proves that Jerry Granelli and his younger cohorts don’t need one. —John Kelman, All About Jazz
Four Stars —Downbeat
Granelli remains one of the best working drummers in any genre of music, but the band’s just as fine—this is an electric-guitar quartet unlike any other. —Paul Olson, All About Jazz
This is precision, this is punch, this is real exploratory music that cannot really be held down by anything
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