september 2001 interview

Jerry Vivino-saxophonist
by Laura Harrison
 

L.H. My boss-Rob Mullins-met you at the Creative Coalition Spotlight 2000 Awards last year in New York, and he enjoyed your playing. Tell us about the direction you are taking your personal music. J.V.The direction I'm taking my personal music? I love playing jazz,  blues and rhythum and blues. Pick one.....you'll find all three in my music.  I'd like to think of myself as a well rounded/versatile musician. I love The  Beatles and I love Train. My record label wants me to favor blues and r&b.  LH. Many jazz musicians think that "the blues" is a harmonically boring genre since there are only a few chords. Do you consider yourself more "blues" or "jazz", and what is it about that blues that keeps it interesting for you? J.V.  I consider myself more of an r&b saxophonist. Ala King Curtis. That's  how I primarily make my living. The demand for rock/ r&b saxophone will  always be there. And I enjoy doing dates in those idioms as well as playing  jazz or legit. As far as jazz is concerned....yes it is more challenging or more  difficult to master than any other form of improvisational music. And  furthermore, I take my hat off to anyone out there who might want to dedicate  their lives to becoming the next Charlie Parker. I feel that the so called  jazzer's or purists who feel that blues or r&b are boring and limited to 3  chords show a lot of musical shallowness. Here in New York I'm very fortunate  to play with all types of players. I did a gig the other night with Lou  Soloff at the Iridium Jazz Club in NYC. Les Paul was being honored and Gibson  sponsored this big hoopla and invited every guitar player you could think of  to sit in and jam with our group.. We  played with Russell Malone and we  played with Slash.....yea Slash at a Jazz club. The point I'm trying to make  is that if you play all styles of music you will play with all types of  musicians. Russell Malone burned and Slash rocked his ass off. Obviously  Russell is the better Jazz Guitarist and Slash is the better Rocker. Who's  the better guitarist? My answer to the question....what keeps me interested  in the blues is......I LOVE MUSIC...IT'S THE MUSIC.....sometimes you have to  know what not to play.  L.H. My boss and I are big fans of "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" and read the story about Conan and Max Weinberg meeting and Max asking for an audition for his group for the show. Have you been with the show since the beginning? J.V. I have been with the show from day 1. The story you read is true. My  phone rang and so did my brother Jimmy's. At that time we were both playin  with Donald Fagan and New York Nights. We were about ready to commit to the  first Steely Dan reunion tour, when Max asked us to make an audition. We  rehearsed for 4 or 5 days with Max, made the audition and now it's 9 years  later. The Steely Dan Reunion Tour was a 5 week stint. A lot of Cats here in  the City thought we were crazy to pass on Fagan and Becker's tour for a remote  chance of landing a T.V. gig. I guess it's the route you take.  L.H. You and your brother Jimmy are musical directors for that show. Can you tell our readers exactly what that means. J.V.  You might have read or heard through our coast to coast musical  grapevine, that my brother Jimmy and I are  the  musical directors of the  show. Max is the musical director Jimmy does all the arrangements and I do  all the contracting. Max is the band leader/musical director.  L.H. How do you choose what songs to play when on the show? Is it pre-arranged according to the guests or something? J.V. Max and Jimmy select the songs. Although, sometimes a guest will ask for  a certain song. But rarely.  L.H. One of the things that is impressive about that band is the wide range of musical styles that you guys do with a small group. How do you approach arranged songs like the Beatles music and other styles that weren't really done with your instrumentation on original versions? J.V. It's television...It's middle America.....It's sometimes corny or  muzak like....but it works.  L.H. Who wrote the theme song for the Conan show?  J.V. Howard Shore and John Lurie wrote the opening theme. My brother Jimmy  and I wrote the closing theme. The closing theme was plucked off of our first  Vivino Brothers Album intitled Chitlin's Parmiagianna  L.H. One of Rob's favorite bits that you guys ever did was the "Year 2000" song with the flashlights and stuff. Whose idea was that?  J.V. One of the writers. I forget which one. The writers come and go.  That particular bit has been going for the full run of the show.  L.H. Many musicians out here in L.A. are out of work, and whenever someone in our camp gets a cool job, there is much celebration from those guys who are working and secure, and a lot of jealousy from guys who are out of work. Do you get a lot of email from people asking your for favors since you are so high profile now? How do you find time to do everything on your schedule? J.V. We have the same problem in New York as you have in L.A. So many  great players... not so many great gigs. I feel so blessed that I am working  so steadily. I'm too busy to get caught up in any of the bullshit that exists  on the music scene here in NYC. I've always worked a lot. Even before Conan I  was doing all right. My friends or colleagues are the real deal and they are  happy for me. I see them all the time on jingle and record dates. My good  friend, Lou Marini is touring with James Taylor. ( I'm a little bit jealous  of him )  L.H. A friend of Rob's-trumpeter Lee Thornburg-recently got the gig on the Tonite Show with Jay Leno. Lee described that event as "life changing."  Did getting the Conan gig change your life? J.V.  I'm so happy for Lee. We were at Manhattan School of Music together  in the 70's. He sounded great as a kid. Joe Shepley ( a legendary studio  trumpet player in N.Y. ) called me to congratulate me on landing the show. He  asked if my life had changed. I told him that the only difference in my life  was that, when I put the ATM card in the bank machine that the money always  comes out. (click next for page two)