Harping on it

Rod Piazza blows Tough and Tender

by Michael Caito

Rod Piazza

It's been a five-year wait for Rod Piazza and the Mighty Flyers' new studio recording, so pardon us if we give these multiple W.C. Handy Awards nominees -- West Coast swing stalwarts that they are -- and their newest disc Tough and Tender (Tone-Cool) the blow-by-blow.

Ever since the '60s, when he toured with Muddy Waters Band alum George Smith as Bacon Fat, Piazza has been working on tone in his chromatic and low-tuned diatonic harpwork. A bigger rig with a button and longer reeds, in capable hands (lungs?) the chromatic gives a rich, slightly-fuzzed sound, and the diatonics he does use are more akin, warmth-wise, to violin vs. cello, or the bari sax's sinewy low register in a full horn section. Add Piazza's custom mic and amp setup and there's no wonder there are so few who can whip up as much of a storm.

For Piazza, touring with fellow harpmeister Smith must've been doubly perplexing in the Watts of the '60s . . . gig flyers kept misidentifying Smith as Little Walter, and race was enough of a musical issue to warrant disclaimers on the nightclub's hype sheets, qualifying Harmonica Rod with "He's white -- but he's out of sight!"

On the opening track, "Power of the Blues," Piazza is matched by the confident, adept riffs of guitarist Rick "L.A. Holmes" Holmstrom, sounding less noodlish than the last time I heard him on the Isle of Block two summers back. Though Holmstrom shines early and often, this is by no means a guitarist's record, unless you appreciate the refined, throwback tones Holmstrom coaxes throughout. In case you're one of those wondering whether Piazza has genuine redemption going on in a song with a title like that, here's a splash of bio: both parents died when he was a kid, in his 20s he lost his colon to ulcerative colitis and received as lovely parting gifts from the hospital 1) a colostomy bag and 2) a divorce. Banner week.

But decades later he's still on the job. "Quicksand" again showcases Holmstrom, one in what we suspect is a very elite club of Alaskan blues guitarists, as his solos and comping recall his days playing with Smoky Wilson and Billy Boy Arnold, and his love and respect for boyhood idol T-Bone Walker. Plus a dose of the rawness from his own '96 Black Top release Lookout!

Three tracks in and still very little Miss Honey Piazza, but things are righted quickly on the ensuing title track, a kick-azz boogie shuffle which finds husband and wife throwing dead-red for six-and-a-half minutes. They warp the floorboards, and the ivories have arrived. Back in flower-power 1960s California Honey Piazza, young mother of two, was listening to her stoned homies play half-hour solos when one day the classically-trained pianist plopped down in front of an abandoned upright. The rest is boogie-woogie history, and Miss Honey's devotion to Otis Spann is well-chronicled and noteworthy. "Sea of Fools" adds a New Orleans bounce, again with spotless work by Miss Honey, and the horns (tenor saxes) make it two straight winners, with more chromatic prowess in the rhumba-tinged "She Can't Say No." Decent even though it may be, it's the album's lone instance of connect-the-dots to this point. "Teaser" finds Holmstrom again knowing when less playing is more, illuminating the splashy harp romp. "Blues and Trouble" opens with a wicked hanging note by Piazza before switching into a silk swing. Holmstrom's own "Under the Big Top" gets it right with Miss Honey's keys before the mid-tempo "Scary Boogie," which maybe coulda chopped a minute or two from the harp-guitar interplay. Still, that's exactly two less-than-strong moments -- rare for an hour's work. Seems there was a lot of pent-up fire build up in the past five years. "Hang-Ten Boogie" is a tour de force for Miss Honey, and much as Ilove and respect Marcia Ball, there's not much of a comparison on the 88s, as Honey seeks out mischievous, jazzy progressions early and lights it up, with new drummist Steve Mugalian snaring for dear life. Title fits. "Searchin' For a Fortune" closes on a somewhat epic note, seven minutes-plus of loping ensemble playing with more to like for the chromatic fanatic. It's an outro that cements the band's desire to play as one fun unit.

There's no irony lost on the fact that some styles of blues-infused swing that the Mighty Flyers (not to mention the Roomfuls, Sugar Rays and Duke Robillards) always include in their sets seem to be appearing as blips on the pop music radar once again. How long it will last and how big it will get is anyone's guess (please oh please be bigger than ska!), but one thing's a safe bet:if you want to hear it done well, it's usually wise to reach back toward the source as far as possible. Not only is it still around, but it's never left.

Rod Piazza & the Mighty Flyers open for Roomful of Blues Monday at the Ocean Mist.

SHOWS. Jimmie Vaughan headlines an early show at Lupo's next Thursday (7/9, with Olu Dara opening) in the show of the week, though Amoebic Ensemble will have something to say about that on Friday the 3rd at the Met. Meanwhile, Geri Verdi sings the blues to all youse at the Green Room, same night. Today (7.2), shamalama over to the Blues Buffet at the Call to hear Bellevue Cadillac and munch, Edvard. Later, Mother Jefferson talk about their new CD on the WALE's Fuzzbox show at midnight.