10 Trombones Like 2 Pianos - Pete Rugolo

Willow Weep For Me

10 Trombones Like 2 Pianos
Pete Rugolo And Orchestra
David Carroll: Recording Director
Mel Chisholm: Recording Engineer
Mercury Records PPS 6001
1961

Personel

Session 1 (May 10, 1960)

Conductor: Pete Rugolo
Tenor Trombones: Frank Rosolino, Bob Fitzpatrick, Vern Friley, Herbie Harper, Milt Bernhart, Bob Pring, Harry Betts and Joe Howard
Bass Trombones: Kenny Shroyer and Russ Brown
Pianos: Russ Freeman and Johny Williams
Bass: Red Mitchell
Drums: Shelly Manne

Session 2 (May 12, 1960) as Session 1 except:

Tenor Trombones: Dick Nash replaced Herbie Harper and Dick Noel replaced Joe Howard
Bass Trombone: George Roberts replaced Russ Brown
Piano: Claude Williamson replaced Johnny Williams

From the inside cover: Pete Rugolo was born in San Piero, Patti, Sicily on Christmas day in 1915. His parents brought him to the United States when he was five. He was raised in Santa Rosa, California.

Pete inherited much of his musical talent from his father who loved opera and played banjo and baritone horn. Pete himself played baritone horn in his high school band. In the school orchestra he played French horn. In the dance orchestra he played piano. Thus, even as a teenager, Rugolo became personally acquainted with the various instruments of the orchestra.

"I studied myself." Pete affirms. "I just listened to records. I'd listen to a Duke Ellington record maybe a hundred times. I learned by trail and error."

Rugolo received his BA degree at San Francisco State College. He then studied with Darious Milhaud (as did Dave Brubeck) and received his MA at Mills College.

"You know I always loved tone colors," Pete recalls, "I used to listen then mostly to Stravinsky, Ravel, Debussy and Bartok. When I started composing and arranging, people said I was too modern. And you known, I didn't care!"

Rugolo's first job as a professional instrumentalist was with the famous Johnny Richards. The job was at Hermosa Beach, in southern California.

"We all wrote fantastic wild arrangements. In those days we didn't worry about public acceptance. And the whole band rehearsed regularly every afternoon before the job," Pete remembers.

This Johnny Richards band was basically in the Lunceford style.

"However," says Pete, "we used flutes, waltz introductions, everything! This was a very experimental band!"

Then in November 1942, Rugolo went into the army. During the war he met Stan Kenton. He started arranging for Kenton and, on his discharge from the army at the end of 1945, he joined the Kenton organization. Rugolo's associations with Kenton produced some of the most historic compositions and arrangements in jazz.

In 1949 Pete Rugolo went to New York as musical director for Capitol Records.

He had unique and unprecedented success at Capitol. He discovered, developed, signed, arranged for and recorded so many artists who are, today, the biggest names in the business. He produced some of the earliest records for Nat King Cole (the first string dates), Mel Torme, June Christy, Peggy Lee, Miles Davis (the historic Cool album), Woody Herman, Charlie Barnet, Lennie Tristano and Harry Belafonte – to mention but a few.

Then Pete was called to Hollywood to work for MGM studios.

"I did 25 film scores in four year," he notes.

During the middle fifties he did a tour with his own 20 piece orchestra. However, he was so overwhelmed with studio assignments that he was forces to disband, after just a few months.

For the last five years Pete has been constantly busy composing and arranging in all media – films, records and television. TV producer Dick Powell points out: "Pete Rugolo's scoring was one of the major factors in making our Richard Diamond series so different and so popular. No one but Pete could have written such exceptional music."

From Billboard - February 6, 1961: Here's a solid entry in Mercury's new Perfect Presence Sound Series with strong appeal for sound fans. Rugolo's inventive arranging genius is utilized to great effect on a group of standards and originals, including "Love Is Here To Stay," "Willow Weep For Me" and "Like Love." Stereo effects are fine with 10 trombones and two pianos split between two speakers. Bass and drums complete the ork. Handsome double-fodld album packaging.

Marie
Moonglow and Theme From "Picnic"
Let There Be Love
Like Love
Willow Weep For Me
Intermission Riff
Love Is Just Around The Corner
Angel Eyes
Love Is Here To Stay
It's A Most Unusual Day
Basin Street East
Ten Trombones Like