The Trident: Then and now

Technology marches on, and I’m delighted by the increasing number of newspapers that have migrated their archives into public Internet search engines … often at no cost. (Having said that, I still await this service from the San Francisco Chronicle, merely the most important newspaper in Guaraldi’s career. I cannot imagine what the heck is taking them so long!)

Recent online newcomers include the Sausalito News, a weekly newspaper based (as you’d expect) in Sausalito, California, and published from 1885 to 1966; for a few years prior to its demise, it was re-branded the Marin News, but returned to its former self shortly before the final issue was published on November 2, 1966.

The newspaper still was vibrant in 1961, when the former Yacht Dock — a dilapidated venue that had hosted Guaraldi’s trio on occasion, built on the site of the original 1898 home of the San Francisco Yacht Club — was transformed into the Trident, which became Guaraldi’s “home base” for the next several years. The paper provided more detail on this transition, which I’ve woven into the following narrative, augmented by some interview quotes that didn’t make it into my book. (The News also provided the conclusive specific date of the Trident’s closure: a piece of information that eluded me for years.)

********

The July 22, 1961, issue of the Sausalito News reported that “the clatter of hammers, the shouts of workmen and the rustle of blueprints prevail over the venerable wharf at 558 Bridgeway on the Sausalito waterfront.” The Trident-in-process, according to new manager Louis Ganopolar, would be dedicated to “casual imbibing in an atmosphere of elegance.” Ganopolar had been “poached” from his former position as manager at Greenwich Village’s famed jazz nightclub, the Village Vanguard. The then-popular Kingston Trio were booked there for a weeklong engagement; they arrived in the company of manager Frank Werber. The latter mentioned that the clean-cut young men had purchased the Yacht Dock as a tax write-off, intending to transform it into “something special.” Werber invited Ganopolar to Sausalito, to check out the place and (hopefully) suggest somebody who’d make a good manager. Ganopolar volunteered himself, and moved his family from New York to Northern California, the week this Sausalito News story saw print.

Brad McNutt, one of the remodelers, hoped for an “early August” re-opening. He explained that the new venue’s seating alcoves would be “dramatically lighted and arranged on several levels, to take advantage of the superb view of the Bay, the bridges and the city, while retaining an atmosphere of intimacy.” The article concluded by citing other features: “complete yacht docking facilities, music by the Vince Guaraldi Trio, and a select bill of fare of international hors d’oeuvres, sandwiches and snacks.”

A little of this, a little of that: The fall 2016 edition

Dr. Funk’s fans have long awaited the wide release of The Anatomy of Vince Guaraldi, ever since its debut as a work-in-progress at the 2009 Monterey Jazz Festival. The completed Andrew Thomas/Toby Gleason documentary subsequently screened at more than two dozen film and music festivals during 2010 and ’11, garnering several awards along the way, while seeking a mainstream distributor: a necessary next step which — sadly — never materialized.

Years passed, as Andy and Toby continued to pursue every possible lead; Guaraldi’s fans began to despair. Many of them wrote me impassioned notes, hoping I’d have an inside scoop on the situation. Alas, my response always was the same: Nothing had changed.

Until now.

The final barrier was the need to expand performance permissions — for the music used within the film — beyond the “festival license” level, in order to obtain the legal right to distribute The Anatomy of Vince Guaraldi via home video and streaming platforms. That isn’t cheap, and Andy and Toby had exhausted their own financial resources (hence the lengthy search for a distribution company, which would have handled such requirements).

But there is another option these days, at a time when crowd-funding has resulted in happy successes such as the creation and release of a big-screen sequel to the cult TV hit, Veronica Mars. Andy and Toby have set up a Kickstarter campaign, which went live on November 17. They have 31 days to reach a pledge goal of $61,000, and they’re hoping that fan interest will push them over that hurdle.

You can read an official press release here, and check out a 2-minute trailer here.

As with all Kickstarter campaigns, the various levels of financial support are accompanied by inducements: from a 16-page preview booklet, at the modest Jazz Cat level; to a producer credit that will appear at the beginning of the film — along with all the goodies promised at the levels in between — for those willing to become an Angel-Headed Hipster. Details are available here, and several of the promotional items will be available for shipment in time for the holidays.

Check it out, and you’ll surely agree: A wide release of The Anatomy of Vince Guaraldi would make a great Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/Holiday-of-Choice gift ... not only for yourself, but for the entire jazz community. So pledge early, and pledge often ... and spread the word!

********

Jazz drummer Jerry Granelli, beloved in this blog as one of Guaraldi’s former sidemen, just received a tremendous honor at the annual Creative Nova Scotia Arts Awards gala, held November 5 at the Halifax Central Library. He was presented with the Portia White Prize, which recognizes cultural and artistic excellence in Nova Scotia — where Granelli has lived since 1988 — and those who have attained professional status and mastery in their discipline.

Among other things, Granelli was a prime mover in the establishment of the Halifax Jazz Festival, more than 30 years ago.

“When I recall ... how over the years you have trusted me with teaching your children, and supported the Creative Music Workshop as well as my performances, I feel such enormous gratitude,” Granelli said, during his acceptance speech. “And now to be honored with [this] award ... all I can really say is thank you. I will not stop.”

Additional coverage of this event can be found in the Halifax Chronicle Herald and the Nova Scotia Local Express ... although both articles repeat a grotesque error that has long circulated in Canadian newspapers, when discussing Granelli. Contrary to oft-published report, he is neither an “original” member of the Vince Guaraldi Trio, nor the “only surviving member” of the said trio: a claim that would be met with annoyance by Eddie Duran, Dean Reilly and Colin Bailey, all of whom preceded Granelli at Guaraldi’s side, and all of whom are still with us ... and, like Jerry, “not stopping.” (Talk about sloppy fact-checking. Sheesh!)

None of which is Granelli’s fault, of course, nor does it detract from the magnitude of his honor. Congrats and high-fives, Jerry!

********

Finally, a small surprise: Basement Blues, the new album from the John Stowell/Michael Zilber Quartet — Stowell (guitars), Zilber (sax and piano), John Shifflett (bass) and Jason Lewis (drums) — includes a Zilber original called “Have Yourself a Vince Guaraldi Xmas.” I’m hard-pressed to detect any obvious nods to Vince’s classic score for A Charlie Brown Christmas — although faint suggestions of “Christmas Time Is Here” hover throughout — but the tribute itself is quite nice to see.

A global welcome

Toby Gleason — son of former San Francisco Chronicle music critic Ralph Gleason, who in the 1960s became both Guaraldi's good friend and ad-hoc publicist — once perceptively referred to Vince Guaraldi as "the most famous jazz musician whose name nobody knows."


If fame is equated with artistic recognition, that statement speaks truth. People all over the world are familiar with Guaraldi's most frequently heard compositions for the early (1960s and '70s) Peanuts TV specials; many of the folks who don't know — or don't know how to pronounce — Guaraldi's name also mis-identify the most famous of those tunes. It's "Linus and Lucy," not "The Peanuts Theme."

But Guaraldi deserves recognition for much more than that, which led to my transition from avid fan to official biographer. My book, Vince Guaraldi at the Piano, was published last month by McFarland Press ... although, perhaps somewhat stubbornly, I've actually resisted the term "biography." I prefer to call this book a "career study," since it focuses primarily on Guaraldi's artistic output, and charts his life not by personal milestones, but by his many noteworthy musical accomplishments: his apprenticeship as a member of several Cal Tjader combos, and of big bands fronted by Woody Herman; his entry to Top 40 fame with "Cast Your Fate to the Wind," a song that might never have cracked the pop charts at all, absent the involvement of a radio DJ in Sacramento, California; his attraction to the emerging bossa nova sound of the late 1950s, and the perfect stylistic collaboration that resulted, a few years later, with Brazilian guitarist Bola Sete; and — last, but certainly not least — Guaraldi's development and performance of the Grace Cathedral Jazz Mass, the first such jazz mass performed during a religious service in the United States. (We take such musical events for granted in the 21st century; in the mid-'60s, it was nothing short of revolutionary.)


The latter accomplishment alone is arguably more significant than the rich portfolio of tunes that put the swing in Charlie Brown's step, and yet when folks think "Grace Cathedral" and "jazz," they're more likely to remember Duke Ellington ... whose September 16 Sacred Music concert came months after Guaraldi paved the way, on May 21, 1965.


My book was prompted by a desire to grant Guaraldi better recognition for this, and many other artistic accomplishments. Projects of this nature, though, are an endless task like housework: There's always something else to be discovered in some tucked-away corner. My rapidly expanding word count, as I revised draft after draft, finally demanded closure at just shy of 400 pages (and I'm grateful to my McFarland editor, for tolerating a final draft that clocked in at 50,000 words longer than we originally discussed!). I do believe that the finished book stands well on its own, as a testament to Guaraldi's career ... but (of course!) there's always more information to be ferreted out, more former sidemen to contact and interview, more rumored recordings to seek.


This blog, then, will be the home of such an ongoing conversation. Dry, dusty facts can be found on a companion document — the Vince Guaraldi Timeline — where you can look up where he played when, and with whom. But this is the place for more convivial chatter, and I look forward to reading anecdotes and memories from folks who recall seeing Guaraldi perform. For that matter, I'm always curious to hear about your favorite Guaraldi tunes; he may not have lived his four score and ten, but he left us a rich catalogue of music ... both original compositions and "cover" arrangements of jazz standards and 1960s pop tunes. No matter what he played, though, he was always unmistakably Vince. You simply can't hear a Guaraldi performance without knowing it's him.


So ... let the conversation begin!