jdgm Posted November 2, 2021 Share Posted November 2, 2021 (edited) The death has been announced of Pat Martino, truly one of the very greatest jazz guitar players of the last 50 (or more) years. He was 77. R.I.P. and thank you forever Pat, for your music and inspiration. He had been ill for some years and recently had a major operation; unfortunately despite even this (amazing he survived) it was only a matter of time, and he had been unable to play while recuperating. Many will know that Pat Martino also suffered a life-threatening aneurysm in 1980, and had to basically re-learn how to play. It is an extraordinary story; he retained quite a lot of muscle memory, so he could still more or less physically do it and gradually fought his way back. Most of his recordings - both before and after this event - display quite incredible technical fluency and an unique modern jazz guitar voice. At times he used very heavy strings, a 0.15 or 0.16 on the top E was quite normal for him. And as we all know, in his later years he was a Gibson Signature artist too. His solo on "Sunny" (1972) is a good introduction; easy to follow, generates a tremendous head of steam and shows what he was doing nightly in his first prime. Safe journey Pat. Edited November 2, 2021 by jdgm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted November 2, 2021 Share Posted November 2, 2021 Sad news. RIP Pat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparquelito Posted November 3, 2021 Share Posted November 3, 2021 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted November 3, 2021 Share Posted November 3, 2021 I heard the same earlier today Pat really was an exceptional talent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitefang Posted November 3, 2021 Share Posted November 3, 2021 Man, what a bummer! So, did that aneurysm 40 years ago play into his cause of death, or some other related complication? Regardless.... For a talent like that even 77 is way too young. Rest In Peace , Pat. Whitefang Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted November 3, 2021 Author Share Posted November 3, 2021 (edited) 23 minutes ago, Whitefang said: Man, what a bummer! So, did that aneurysm 40 years ago play into his cause of death, or some other related complication? Regardless.... For a talent like that even 77 is way too young. Rest In Peace , Pat. Whitefang Chronic Respiratory disorder; he was on oxygen 24 hrs a day for the last 2 years. He had been a life-long smoker and I believe the recent operation was actually a double lung transplant, which for someone in their 70s is obviously a last resort. His final signature guitar was/is a Benedetto - https://benedettoguitars.com/guitars/professional-series/pat-martino-signature-model™/ Edited November 3, 2021 by jdgm 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badbluesplayer Posted November 3, 2021 Share Posted November 3, 2021 (edited) Pat had a veinous malformation in his left temporal lobe and had a seizure that caused a lot of damage. I had some seizures eight years ago in that lobe and had to "relearn" some guitar stuff. Just mostly just getting the timing back between my two hands, my eyes and ears. For instance, after I had the seizures, there was a 1/4 second lag from when I saw my wife talking and when I heard her. I had vertigo for a couple years. Very disorienting and disturbing. I forgot lots of names of stuff and stumbled a little on some nouns. Playing the guitar made me sick to my stomach but ended up being excellent physical therapy to get my brain back in shape. The only plus about having the seizures is that my reaction speed is absolutely unbelievable now. Every time I drop something I catch it before it hits the floor. Sometimes I catch stuff before I let it go. It's really unbelievable. And my right hand timing is way better than it was before. So I got that going for me... Kudos to him for thriving after that. It's funny how he said he never wanted to go on vacation, he was just happy doing what he was doing. That's exactly how I feel. I wouldn't take a vacation if you paid me $10,000. Funny. Maybe it's some kind of PTSD thing. Edited November 3, 2021 by badbluesplayer 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merciful-evans Posted November 3, 2021 Share Posted November 3, 2021 ohhh... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OrdinaryNimda Posted November 3, 2021 Share Posted November 3, 2021 I did not know Pat Martino before. Thanx to all for the comments & links. What I hear on the videos, is great flowing music! RIP Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted November 4, 2021 Author Share Posted November 4, 2021 It's one of those times when you have to be grateful it all happened, not sad because it has stopped. He has left a wonderful recorded legacy. You MUST hear this, the opener from his fusion LP "Joyous Lake" - listen to him go! And this short 2010 clip (dig the Marshall cab!) should whet your appetite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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