Al Viola
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| Alfred Viola | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 16, 1919 Brooklyn, New York City |
| Died | February 21, 2007 (aged 87) Studio City, Los Angeles |
| Genre(s) | Jazz |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar |
| Years active | 1940s-1980s |
| Associated acts | Frank Sinatra, Frankie Ortega, Carl Tandberg, Bobby Troup, Ray Anthony, Harry James, Buddy Collette, Stan Kenton, Gerald Wilson, Terry Gibbs |
Alfred Viola (June 16, 1919 – February 21, 2007) was an American jazz guitarist who worked with Frank Sinatra for 25 years and also played the mandolin on the soundtrack of the movie The Godfather [1]
Contents |
[edit] Biography
Viola grew up in an Italian family in Brooklyn, and learned to play guitar as a teenager. He enlisted in the Army during World War II from 1942 to 1945, and played in a jazz band there. After he was discharged in 1946, he and Page Cavanaugh, whom he had met while serving, joined bassist Lloyd Pratt in a trio. The ensemble recorded for several films, including A Song Is Born, and played with Frank Sinatra for a few dates in 1946 and 1947. Viola continued to work with Sinatra regularly, accompanying him on several hundreds of studio recordings and concert dates between 1956 and 1980.
Viola found much work as a session musician in Los Angeles, performing for film, television, and commercial spot. His mandolin playing can be heard in the soundtrack to The Godfather; other credits include West Side Story and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?. He continued playing jazz as well, playing with Bobby Troup, Ray Anthony, Harry James, Buddy Collette, Stan Kenton, Gerald Wilson, and Terry Gibbs; alongside this, he worked as a session musician on over 500 albums, including releases by Jimmy Witherspoon, Helen Humes, June Christy, Natalie Cole, Neil Diamond, Ella Fitzgerald, Marvin Gaye, Steve Lawrence, Julie London, Anita O'Day, Linda Ronstadt and Joe Williams.
Viola and Cavanaugh reunited in the 1980s with Phil Mallory, continuing to play regularly in the Los Angeles area until the late 1990s. Viola died of cancer in 2007 at age 88. [1]
[edit] Solo discography
- Solo Guitar (Mode, 1957)
- Guitar Lament (World Pacific, 1961)
- Guitars (Liberty)
- Guitars Volume 2 (Liberty)
- Imagination (Liberty)
- Alone Again (Legend, 1973)
- Salutations For Frank Sinatra (Legend, 1974)
- Mellow As A Cello (Starline, 1994)
- The Memory Of All That: The Chairman's Board Salutes Sinatra (Avanti, 1998)
- Stringin'The Blues (Jazzology, recorded at the jazz festival in Ascona 2002)
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Al Viola, Guitarist Who Worked With Frank Sinatra for 25 Years, Dies at 87.", Associated Press in The New York Times, February 25, 2007. Retrieved on 2008-02-24. "Al Viola, a guitarist who worked with Frank Sinatra for 25 years and also played the mandolin on the 'Godfather' soundtrack, died on Wednesday at his home in Studio City. He was 87."
