Anybody witnessing this might think there’s something going on between singer and bassist, and they’d be right. The bass player is John Previti, Marianna’s husband of nearly six years. Artistic collaborations between couples are notoriously fraught with emotional turmoil, but the Previtis’ musical partnership seems to work beyond all normal expectations, and you, the club-going public, get to be a part of it.
“What’s fun about playing with John,” explains Marianna, “sounds really obvious, but it’s that we’re really close friends. We talk about everything under the sun and there’s a lot of humor in the house. People might not know it but his real talent is as comic of the century.” There are also a lot of diapers in the house, as the Previtis have just gone from a couple to a family trio, adding Rosetta Elena Previti to the mix last August.
John, born in Clinton, is best known around Washington for having played bass with the late guitar legend Danny Gatton for nearly 20 years. “Of course Danny was my major mentor,” says John. “I’m still learning from him, and I use the things he taught me about music in everything I play, not just in soloing.”
Over the years John has played with the likes of Paul Simon, Doc Cheatham and Emmylou Harris, but has always preferred to stay in Washington. He plays every Sunday afternoon at the Inn at Glen Echo with Brooks Tegler’s Hot Jazz, and works clubs regularly with the Rick Whitehead Trio.
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1997/04/11/previtis-passing-love-notes/270058f6-11c2-46ce-8393-7ca6a9008292/