Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country | Founded 05-05-05

January 25, 2007 issue

Music With Gypsy Swing and Hillbilly Twang

Frank Vignola’s Gypsy Grass Collective Plays Boone Saloon January 31

Story by David Brewer

What might happen if you combined the sounds of Django Reinhardt and Bill Monroe? Jazz guitarist Frank Vignola is determined to find out with his new outfit, Frank Vignola’s Gypsy Grass Collective. On Wednesday, January 31, the band will converge on the Boone Saloon.

Exploring the musical worlds of France and Appalachia, Vignola’s new group looks to explore the parallels between the highly rhythmic gypsy jazz popularized by Reinhardt in the clubs of France in the 1930s and ‘40s and American bluegrass music. On his website, Vignola characterizes the project as “wicked gypsy jazz, front-porch jam and bluegrass all mashed up and reconstructed by some of the nastiest pickers we can find.”

For the first installment of what Vignola says will likely be a rotating cast, fiddler Casey Driessen and mandolin virtuoso Matt Flinner will join the Gypsy Grass Collective in their quest to bring the two genres together. A strong presence at MerleFest during the last two years, Driessen was recently nominated for a Grammy in the Best Country Instrumental category for the song “Jerusalem Ridge,” on his album 3D.

“It’s a lot of fun for me to make music with these guys,” said Vignola. “I want to keep playing with players of the top level.”

For their repertoire, the Gypsy Grass Collective will draw not only from the catalogue of Reinhardt, but also from jazz and bluegrass standards and maybe even a Frank Zappa song or two.

“It used to be that you sort of just played one style, but now everybody is influenced by everything from Rage Against the Machine to Bill Monroe,” said Vignola. It’s very exciting to keep it fresh.”

A professional guitarist for 25 years, Vignola has performed all over the United States, releasing several CDs and performing with such notables acts as Mark O’Connor, Steely Dan co-founder Donald Fagen, Leon Redbone and David Grisman. Though primarily an acoustic jazz player, Vignola characterizes himself as a musician with broad interests.

“It all starts with good songs,” said Vignola.

With his Gypsy Grass Collective’s recent debut at the 2006 National Association of Music Merchants convention in Los Angeles, Vignola is excited about hitting the road with the new band, insisting that the younger players are keeping him on his toes. Vignola also noted that the band plans to do their best to not only play a blistering mix of music, but also to take a page from star musicians of old and entertain the audience.

“It used to be that a guy like Les Paul would walk into a room and have the audience in the palm of his hand,” said Vignola.

For more info about Frank Vignola’s Gypsy Grass Collective show, call the Boone Saloon at 828-264-1811.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Wednesday, January 31

Time: 10:30 p.m.

Location: Boone Saloon

Cost: $8