Carl Fontana
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CARL FONTANA here is something of the shifts. After Vido Musso's brawny low `bone players I talked to would young boy's capacity to saxophone solo there is a 12-bar en- enthuse: "Oh yes, Fontana, fantastic, hero-worship that happily semble measure where agitated my favourite too!" Tnever leaves many of us. At trumpets and trombones rush and October '88—twenty years some earlier stage in our life we may fuss around, like courtiers preparing on—found me on the Nevada trail in encounter, read, or hear things which for the arrival of royalty. And, sure search of the man. Highway 10 out ring huge aesthetic bells, right there enough, Carl Fontana comes gliding of Los Angeles and turning north- on the spot, sending shock waves to majestically in with four of the most west over the mountains, past over- lap around our consciousness for the elegantly-played trombone choruses heated saloons resting on the hard rest of our days. The unsuspecting you've ever heard. Wonderful ar- shoulder, and on down to the instigators of these precious gestalts ticulation and control, imagination, scrubby desert towards Las Vegas. become heroes and models to us; gi- range, a little wry humour to flavour, Las Vegas! The very words reek of ants in our eyes. and an appropriate poignancy. diamanté and from thirty miles away One of my luckier breaks was From that magic moment of out on the highway this hedonistic to buy a second-hand copy of "Stan discovery I silently appointed Carl oasis can be easily marked by the Kenton in Hi-Fi" at Ashwood's rec- Fontana to my personal Order of He- glow of the huge neon chrysanthe- ord store in Sydney in the late Six- roes and determined to find out more mum it casts up into the sky. ties. Side one: "Artistry Jumps", about him. This was more difficult Three years ago—on a rare trip followed by "Interlude"—both than I'd imagined: his recordings abroad—Fontana played the Edin- tracks nice enough, and atmospheric. seemed comparatively rare at that burgh Festival, thrilling everyone— Then track three, "Intermission Riff time, nor was he profiled in jazz except me, that is. I was away on ', with its intriguing little half-tone magazines. Paradoxically most fel- tour myself, and so missed everything. But now I was Carl Fontana Page 1 of 5 But now I was approaching Vegas; of the MU's private club. A friendly trumpet man originally out of Wich- I'd been assured he was working voice answered, shouting over the ita, who is now secretary-treasurer with his own quartet at Bourbon sound of a big band, "Carl Fontana?" of the union. "You've hit jackpot to- Street, I just wanted to shake the (Hang on, he'd ask the guys.) "Is CF night," he said, "this is a great band slide-hand of "the jazz-trombonists' in town?" I heard him shouting to with great charts." He explained that trombonist". others. They thought he was. Sure, it there were live sessions here It was Columbus Day holiday would be okay to ring him at home. Wednesday through to Sunday every weekend and the streets were I did. He was in, and agreed to meet week. "There's some great players jammed with noisy cars and punters. me later at the club for a chat. around here and we tend to take the Enormous glittering signs offered The club is a large building quality for granted sometimes." He Vic Damone, A1 Jarreaux, or Wayne felicitously located at the corner of broke off to introduce me to a very Newton, while the harsh cranking of Tropicana Avenue and Duke El- affable Carson Smith, bassist on the fruit machines could be heard lington Way. It houses the adminis- original Gerry Mulligan Quartet rec- through the open doors of every trative offices of MU Local 369 as ords, then went on to comment wist- club. well as spacious re- fully on earlier times when top play- In Bourbon Street, to my dis- hearsal/performance room with bar ers could make marvellous money may, I found a sextet bashing out old and bandstand, making it a tremen- by working a show at three or four Herb Alpert hits to fewer than a dous community centre for fellow different clubs a night. It required dozen people in a corner lounge area pros. (Where is London's equiva- planning, and your car waiting out- while scores of others stood grimly lent? Was Archer Street the last?) side. Things were much quieter now, engrossed among rows of machines When I arrived a big band was and he added witheringly: "You stretching sixty yards down the packing up, but only to make way don't do anything hip here for a liv- room. A barman told me Carl's band for the 2am start by another one, run ing anymore." had left three weeks before. So now, by trumpeter-arranger Herbie Phil- We got to talking about Carl, at midnight, I decided upon a little lips. Musicians drifted in with horn and Alan smiled. "Everybody loves Philip Marlowe investigation and cases, some straight from their gigs CF, he's a giant." He carried on rang the Musicians' Union. Their an- on The Strip. Acting as genial bar- serving drinks as the bar got busier swering service gave me the number man for the night was Alan Ware, a and the jokes and joshing picked up. Carl Fontana Page 2 of 5 "Stick around till five," he dad's band from 1945 to 1950 and March 1956 and went on to eleven shouted, "this place is a zoo." also enrolled at Louisiana State Uni- other European countries). Then the man himself arrived versity for a degree in musical edu- Then the roots going down in it was at once clear that he was in- cation. "At college I went through Vegas, regular work on the Strip, deed held in great affection. Greet- the whole thing—marching band, and occasional tours, like with ings were thrown across from eve- symphony orchestra, and dance Woody again in 1966 (going on after rywhere and half a dozen other peo- band. and on Friday and Saturday the British leg that time to do twelve ple seemed to be waiting to see him nights you could pick up between weeks in Africa!) I knew that he'd about one thing or another. A little $10 and $25 with the dance band. I worked for years in the trombone while later, with a Cutty Sark— remember Bill Evans was at one of section of singer Paul Anka's back- Lime-Soda-on-the-Rocks in his hand the nearby colleges and I think we ing orchestra whenever the Canadian and a Grolsch dark beer in mine, we did some gigs together at that time." was in tow or had a tour. "Paul's a headed off down the corridor to the What was his first pro break? "With trombone freak. for quite a while quiet of the snooker room and sank Woody, at The Blue Room in New the section was Kai Winding, Frank into a couple of armchairs. Orleans. I was with him from '51- Rosolino, and me." I said what a Carl Fontana has lived in Las '52, the Third Herd." I then asked section that must have been, and he Vegas for thirty years, originally ar- him the usual one about influences, just smiled over his Cutty and nod- riving in town with alto-saxist A1 and he acknowledged early admira- ded. Belletto's sextet in 1958. He'd been tion for many guys including Dor- What about life in Las Vegas on the road solidly for eight years up sey, Jenney, Teagarden, Bill Harris, nowadays, I wondered. Is he still as till then. He thought it was time to Benny Green and Tommy Turk. busy as he wants to be? "This used take a break from touring and there "But the big bands were always my to be a late-night town. There used was plenty of work in Vegas. first love. That's what I really liked to be 1500 musicians working here He was born and raised in best, the big bands." After Woody as recently as 6 or 7 years ago—but Monroe, Louisiana, where his father there were spells with Hal McIntyre, now it's down to about 160. Hotels Collie Fontana played tenor sax and Kai Winding's Sextet (featuring four are phasing out big bands and in fact ran a band. "He knew a lot, and he trombones), and Stan Kenton's Or- they're trying to get away with no taught me a lot." Carl played in his chestra (which toured Britain in entertainment at a11. But as for me, Carl Fontana Page 3 of 5 I've just turned 60 and, as far as I suggested that electrified and he said, "I've never really gone after regular work on the Strip is con- synthesized pop excesses probably that." cerned, I've more or less retired. " contributed to the demise of work on But he would be very happy to I'd expected to be able to hear the Strip. He said he thought that visit Europe again, although two him at Bourbon Street. What had popular music works its way along weeks would be long enough away happened there? through a series of peaks and from home. Working with a trio "The management thought troughs. would be preferable, but he does they'd like to try a little late-night "At the moment.