Bassist John Beal- 6.24.21

What /Who becomes a bass legend most?
How to finish Season One on an ultimate “low” note? It was several of my guests who chimed in- “Ya gotta interview John. He’s a New York legend, has great stories, and, well, you’ve worked with him tons, right?” So here he is- stories of recording with the hippest jazz artists of the late 50s-early 60s, auditioning for Leopold Stokowski for his (now 56th year!) principal bass chair gig with the American Symphony Orchestra, being a Sondheim “rock” on Broadway, and his endless TV and Film credits- including laying down tracks from Sinatra to John Lennon’s “Imagine”. John’s wry sense of humor has been relied upon to diffuse the tensest of rehearsals and recording sessions- merely a cool fringe benefit to his unbelievably solid and beautiful musicianship. I’ve had the honor of working with him for 15 years at City Center’s “Encores!”, and always look forward to gaining some priceless wisdom during our ritual ramen noodle outings. AND, in lieu of creating the duets, we’ve opted instead to showcase some of those early swinging sessions that John walked all over- awesome sides with Gerry Mulligan, James Moody, Al Cohn, and more. It was an honor to wrap up my first season doing this special “off-the-menu” interview with one of the true greats of the bass violin.