The Unique Guitar Blog: Remembering Seven String Jazz Guitarist Bucky Pizarelli

Bucky Pizzarelli

This past Wednesday, April 1st, Jazz guitar legend Bucky Pizzarelli passed away at age 94. He had suffered numerous health issues, including a stroke, but what took his life was COVID-19.

John Paul “Bucky” Pizarelli was born on January 9 1926 in Paterson, New Jersey.

His father was the owner of a local grocery, but as a teen had decided to explore the Wild West which he only knew from movies. So he spent some time as a ranch hand in Odessa, Texas. Upon returning to New Jersey, he had a lot of memories plus a lingering love for the West that would lead him to nickname his young son Buckskin. Shortened to Bucky, the name stuck.

Bucky learned to play guitar and banjo at a young age. His uncles, Pete and Bobby Domenick, were professional musicians, and sometimes the extended family would gather at one of their homes with their guitars for jam sessions. They decided that Bucky should take up guitar, since his skill on the banjo was something to be desired. Bucky took their suggestion to heart.

Joe Mooney Quartet

Pizzarelli cited as an inspiration Joe Mooney, a blind accordion player who led a quartet that included Pizzarelli's uncle, Bobby Domenick. During high school, Pizzarelli was the guitarist for a small band that performed classical music.

Vaughn Monroe Orchestra

Pizzarelli began his professional career at 17 when he joined the Vaughn Monroe dance band in 1944. The employment was brief, as he was drafted and spent two years serving in the U.S. Army. Upon honorable discharge he rejoined Monroe’s band in 1946.

Bobby Rosengarden

By 1952 he joined the ABC orchestra under the direction of Bobby Rosengarden.

Skitch Henderson

That same year Pizarelli also worked at NBC, with orchestra leader Skitch Henderson. Henderson lead the Tonight Show Band under a succession of hosts.

Tonight Show Orchestra - 1964

By 1964 Bucky Pizarelli became a member of the Tonight Show Band Starring Johnny Carson.. His role there included accompanying guests and musical stars performing in various musical genres.

He enjoyed the job since it allowed him to stay at home in the New Jersey area to take care of his children instead of touring.

However when Johnny Carson moved “The Tonight Show” to California from New York in 1972, Mr. Pizzarelli stayed behind. He explained at the time that he did not want to uproot his four school-age children from their New Jersey home.

George Barnes & Bucky Pizarelli

Freed of the responsibilities of a regular job, he began performing more frequently in New York nightclubs. Among those clubs was a Midtown Manhattan spot appropriately named the Guitar, where he had already attracted attention in a duo with his fellow guitarist George Barnes in 1970.

Reviewing one of their first performances, John S. Wilson of The New York Times wrote: “This is a brilliant and unique team. Mr. Barnes and Mr. Pizzarelli can be dazzling and they can be sensuously brooding. They sparkle with excitement, leap with joy or relax with a warm romantic glow.”

Stephan Grappelli and Bucky Pizarelli

After Bucky and George. Barnes parted ways in 1972, Mr. Pizzarelli began performing and recording in high-profile settings: unaccompanied, as the leader of small groups, and as a sideman with leading jazz musicians like the saxophonists Zoot Sims and Bud Freeman.

Bucky also played guitar alongside the violinists Stéphane Grappelli and Joe Venuti.

The Three Suns

From 1956 to 1957, Pizzarelli used the stage name "Johnny Buck" and performed with The Three Suns pop music trio. This group was featured on the then popular Kate Smith Show.

He toured several times with Benny Goodman until Goodman's death in 1986. Pizarelli performed with Benny Goodman at the White House in Washington, D.C.

Bucky performed for presidents Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, and First Lady Pat Nixon.

2010 Jersey Jazz Guitars

He participated in an event called "Jersey Jazz Guitars" in 1985 held at the Rutgers University Nicholas Music Center in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The ticket featured Pizzarelli, Les Paul, Tal Farlow, and Pizzarelli's son, John. The concert was aired on New Jersey's public radio station as part of their three-part New Jersey Summerfare Series. Pizzarelli and Les Paul had performed together before, as they were not just good friends, but neighbors too.

Pizarelli with Howard Alden,
Herb Ellis, and Billy Baurs

The list of musicians he collaborated with includes Benny Goodman, Les Paul, Stéphane Grappelli, and Antônio Carlos Jobim. Pizzarelli cited as influences Django Reinhardt, Freddie Green, and George Van Eps, who taught him to play 7 string guitar.

Bucky and John Pizarelli

Bucky was a first call player in the busy New York recording scene. His last guitar partner was his son John. A reviewer once wrote, "Watching them play was like seeing the Von Trapp Family on martinis".

He died of COVID-19 on April 1, 2020, in Saddle River, New Jersey with his wife and caregiver, Ruth, at his side. Bucky Pizarrelli had been battling several serious health problems in recent years. Bucky PIzarelli is survived by his son John Pizarelli, who also plays the seven string guitar, and is a noted Jazz singer, and his son Martin Pizarelli, a Jazz Double bass player and by his two daughters, Anne Hymes, Mary Pizarelli, and four grandchildren.

Bucky Pizarelli with his Gibson

Pizzarelli's first guitar was an L series arch top Gibson, which was an expensive instrument at the time.

Pizarelli with his Gretsch 7 String

When he switched to a seven string instrument he played a Gretsch 7 string guitar, similar to the one that George Van Eps played.

Benedetto Pizarelli Model

He later played a Benedetto Bucky Pizzarelli Signature seven-string guitar made by Robert Benedetto, who also made guitars for Howard Alden and Frank Vignola.

George Van Eps

Pizarelli learned to play the seven-string from George Van Eps. The extra string on Pizzarelli's guitar, tuned to low A, provided him with a bass line during performances.