On December 9, David who is the general manager and emcee at Mezzrow Jazz Club in the West Village, grabbed a microphone and began the night by introducing Pasquale Grasso the next performer to an eager crowd as “the future of jazz guitar.”
The small satellite club located in the basement of a building cookbook store on 163 West 10th Street — owned by the larger Smalls located diagonally across Seventh Avenue — was packed tightly and the seating in front of the stage was even more congested. In order to make your way to any table, you had to walk sideways while avoiding the server.
As David bellowed out his final call, the crowd began to knowingly cheer as an unassuming man in his mid-30s emerged wearing a dark suit and necktie, carrying his auburn vintage hollow body electric guitar. Behind him followed a distinguished man in his 50s with white hair who dragged an upright bass while carrying a bow. The luckiest guy was the drummer, who did not need to schlep any equipment other than a pair of drum sticks and brushes. He quickly positioned himself behind the house drum kit.
Meet the Pasquale Grasso Trio, consisting of jazz veterans Ari Roland on double bass, and Keith Balla on drums. The unassuming man carrying the auburn guitar was Pasquale Grasso, the musician who was recently voted as the #1 Top Jazz Guitarist in Downbeat Magazine’s 72nd Annual Critics Poll in the Rising Star Guitar Category. Grasso swiftly sat on a black piano bench on the front “stage,” plugged in his guitar, and counted off the first set.
Words from Hall of Fame Guitar Legend Pat Metheny
In 2016, Downbeat Hall of Fame guitarist Pat Metheny told Vintage Guitar magazine that Grasso was “the best guitar player I’ve heard in maybe my entire life.” I couldn’t agree more. Grasso may just be the new evolution of jazz guitar. I’ve only recently been following this “new breakout cat” who has been playing in NYC with his trio since moving here from Campania, Italy in 2012.
Specializing in his own self-created unique hybrid of bebop jazz, classical, and flamenco, Grasso is certainly carving a niche out for himself as one of the top players in modern jazz. He can best be described as Joe Pass 2.0: he combines the best traits of Joe Pass, Django, Tal Farlow, and Bud Powell all wrapped in one!
While performing standards from the American Song Book such as Gone with the Wind, The Chase, Time After Time, and Groovin’ High, Grasso used alternate, sweeping, hybrid picking, and classical guitar finger style in between his beautiful chord melodies. In this style, I believe he is currently unmatched in the world of jazz guitar.
In between Grasso’s fingerboard gymnastics, Roland enthralled the audience using a violin bow on his upright double bass and Balla played several tasty drum solos.
Mezzrow Jazz Club is the Spot
Harvesting weekly formidable talent such as Pasquale Grasso and showcasing legends regularly such as the great Ed Cherry is what makes Mezzrow Jazz Club one of my favorite jazz clubs in New York City. We are lucky to have it here in Greenwich Village where this subterranean room hosts jazz acts six nights per week. It has an extremely cozy milieu, a dimly lit cavern-like experience where the drinks are priced pretty reasonably and the jazz talent is always top shelf.
What I best love is the sense of community among the jazz players and the spectators. Mezzrow is where an informed audience can listen and develop a close bond with the talented jazz musicians and where the talented jazz musicians can work comfortably and hang out among themselves. Patrons can feel this buzzing vibe.
On any given night it would not be uncommon to see Peter Bernstein or Raphael Silverman called to sit in with the great Cherry, or a crooner like Bobby Hewitt to sing with Cherry’s trio, as much as on a different night where I witnessed a random singer in the audience called up by Wilfie Williams.
Hopefully, this place which still owns the title as NYC’s “best kept jazz secret,” will not be shedding its skin soon. I meet many tourists coming there from all over the world, and this slightly concerns me.
If you are a lover of jazz, check their schedule at instagram.com/mezzrowjazzclub
Read this article where I originally wrote it in The Village View:
Pasquale Grasso Downbeat Magazine’s 2024 Top Rising Guitarist Plays Mezzrow Jazz Club
Kaju Roberto is an accomplished musician, singer/ songwriter, journalist, and an award-winning producer. He is the artist Rad Jet on Spotify.