Jazz-guitar great Bucky Pizzarelli dies at 94 after testing positive for coronavirus

Legendary jazz guitarist John "Bucky" Pizzarelli, who played for presidents at the White House and with music icons including Paul McCartney, died Wednesday at his New Jersey home. He was 94.

A New Jersey Hall of Fame member, Pizzarelli tested positive for the coronavirus on Sunday, his daughter, Mary Pizzarelli said. The cause of death has not yet been determined. He died with his wife, Ruth; his son Martin; and his caregiver at his side.

"There will be some kind of tribute as soon as we can all get within 6 feet of each other," said his son, John Pizzarelli, also a renowned jazz artist.

Born in Paterson, New Jersey, Pizzarelli's career spanned eight decades, from playing with Vaughan Monroe in 1944 to White House concerts for Ronald Reagan (twice) and Bill Clinton, backing the likes of Benny Goodman, Frank Sinatra and Perry Como.

"He was the ultimate sideman," John Pizzarelli said. "He wasn't looking to be the guy out in front of the band. He was happy to be inside the band, supporting the whole organization."

He also had a long residency with Doc Severinsen's "Tonight Show" band during the Johnny Carson era when the show was produced in New York.

"Doc asked him to go with them to California, but he said he wanted to stay here," John Pizzarelli said.

He also toured with Sinatra in 1968 "when Sinatra was stumping for Hubert Humphrey," John Pizzarelli said.

"Jazz guitar wouldn't be what it is today without Bucky Pizzarelli," said jazz guitarist Frank Vignola. "He and Freddie Green were responsible for a style of rhythm guitar playing that has lasted until 2020."

"The length and breadth of the work with all the different people was a testament to how hard he worked at it," John Pizzarelli said. "Everybody from Benny Goodman and Les Paul to Carly Simon, Janis Ian and Paul McCartney. All kinds of people requested his services because he was the best at what he did."

Bucky and John Pizzarelli both played McCartney's Grammy-winning 2012 album of jazz traditional jazz standards, "Kisses on the Bottom."

Bucky Pizzarelli also recorded with several other jazz-guitar greats for a "Jersey Guitar Mafia" album, recorded at Showplace Studios in Victory Gardens, New Jersey in 2013. The lineup included Vignola, Lou Pallo and the late Al Caiola. They got their name from Les Paul, who would joke they dominated the New York recording studio market.

"The beauty is, when we get in a younger crowd, they record a song in two, three days,” Joni Forte of Showplace Music Productions said. “These guys came in, we gave them antipasto and some wine, and they recorded 11 songs in a day. They have no egos, they look at each other, they go ‘you, me, you, you,’ boom boom and it's done.”

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In later years, Pizzarelli was a popular fixture on the jazz festival circuit and packed halls and clubs in his native northern New Jersey. He held court for years in the 2 p.m. "Guitar Summit" slot at the annual Morristown Jazz and Blues Festival. He was frequently accompanied by his sons, John and Martin, and guitarist Ed Laub.

"Bucky was a fixture at the festival and always delighted the huge crowd with his impeccable guitar playing and warm personality," said Don Smith, co-producer of the Morristown festival.

"He just oozed jazz smoothness," said Morristown Mayor Tim Dougherty. "He will be missed by so many."

Pizzarelli also was known for mentoring and supporting young jazz guitarists.

"He was an inspiration on so many levels," Vignola said. "When I first met him, I had four young kids and he was a father. He showed me that yes, you can be a jazz guitar player and raise a family. That may not seem like a big deal, but it was huge to me."

Vignola remembers dropping Pizzarelli off at home after a gig and "his wife comes out with a big pan of lasagna for the kids."

"He had so much to give to people," John Pizzarelli said. "All the guitar players and musicians who have called me in the last 24 hours. He got the guy who was upholstering his couch to play the guitar."

Pizzarelli cut back on live performances after 2017, "but was pretty good right up to the end," Mary Pizzarelli said.

"He was such a treasure musically and a gem to work with," Forte said. "His kindness and humor was always uplifting. He was quite a talented painter, as well. Our hearts go out to the Pizzarelli family.

William Westhoven is a local reporter for DailyRecord.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: wwesthoven@dailyrecord.com Twitter: @wwesthoven

This article originally appeared on Morristown Daily Record: Jazz great Bucky Pizzarelli dies after testing positive for coronavirus