His jazz combo expanded and contracted, and on this day featured Chris Battistone on trumpet and the late Barry Hart on drums. Bassist John Previti, who played his first gig with Gatton on December 27, 1976, says, “Eventually, it brought in some fans, but initially it was just people going there for brunch. But it didn’t take long — a few months — for some Danny fans to show up, although I don’t think they ever outnumbered the regular hotel clientele.”
Previti affirms, “He knew an awful lot of Art Blakey and Cannonball Adderley material, and of course he loved Wes. He dug sophisticated stuff, with changes all over the place. At Gallagher’s, he’d play a whole set with his thumb, like Wes, just to do it. All chord melodies and octaves. His touch would be different. It was really wild, like he was getting back to something.”
John stresses, “Unless you played with him, people don’t realize how strong he was, the way he played. How strong his time and how powerful his technique were, how much control he had. He had such a lyrical quality.”
— Dan Forte, ASCAP/Deems Taylor Award winning music journalist
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