BUDDY GRECO

Candid Recording(s):

Route 66 - A Tribute to Nat King Cole (CYCD 71901)

Buddy also features on:

Biography:

Buddy Greco was born in Philadelphia and made his professional debut at the tender age of five under the auspices of his dad, who among his activities conducted a programme featuring Italian music for local radio station WPEN. It was on this show that Buddy and an elder brother made their first public appearances. Greco played on this show for ten years, until he was 14 years of age. Actually, until he was ten years old Buddy specialised in acting and singing, but soon afterwards he took to the piano.

With the radio program chore completed, Buddy got the working bug and left his school, Southern High, to seek his fortune in the entertainment business. He formed a trio and worked for a number of years on Philadelphia’s night club circuit. There he met Elliot Wexler, an astute manager who at the time handled Benny Goodman and Wexler promptly got the Greco Trio on record. After scoring a hit with his first recording, Ooh! Looka there, ain’t she pretty? Buddy, through Wexler, found himself as pianist and vocalist with the Goodman band.

He built his fan base following during his stay with B.G., and when Benny temporarily quit the band business, Buddy went out on his own and his showbusiness career was under way.

Few can match the lifelong achievements of the extraordinary talent Buddy Greco. His peers have called him a singer’s singer and musician’s musician. He has been internationally recognised year after year as one of the top jazz pianists and vocalists of our time. He appears at top night clubs, concert halls, symphonies and in movies and has been featured on major television show in the United States and throughout the world. By order of Queen Elizabeth II, he was one of the only Americans to appear with the Beatles for a command performance for Her Majesty The Queen.

Buddy has sold many millions of records and received gold records for hits such as Ooh! Look-a her, ain’t she pretty?,The Lady is a Tramp and Around The World.

He enjoys the rare distinction of having made (to date) 66 albums, over a hundred singles ranging in style from Jazz to Country/Western and Pop music. To this date, Buddy’s particular favourite is the album he made with the London Symphony Orchestra in which he arranged, played piano and conducted.

In April 1993, Buddy was inducted to the Philadelphia Music Alliance’s "Walk of Fame". He has also gained acclaim for his musicianship and talent in the "Encyclopaedia of Great Musicians" and the "Encyclopaedia of Great Singers and Musicians". Buddy Greco has been acclaimed as one of the finest jazz pianists of our time and He continues to be active pursuing other fields of the music business, producing records, writing and scoring for films and TV.

Buddy has never stopped his relentless drive to stay on top. Recently he toured again with the Salute to Benny Goodman Band, only this time to star, headline and conduct. The tour took him to 72 cities and 72 unforgettable shows which drew standing ovations to capacity crowds, Trump Plaza in Atlantic City with an 18 piece Orchestra was followed by a long engagement at the Desert Inn Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. He also appeared for the first time at the World famous Carnegie Hall, New York in the ‘Tribute To Nat King Cole’ show.

Buddy’s talent as a writer/producer were self evident when he produced a star studded benefit show for the Society of Singers in Las Vegas. In one fast-paced evening Buddy combined the talents of Frankie Avalon, Louis Bellson, Jerry Lewis, Henry Mancini, Phyllis McGuire, Keely Smioth, Tony Martin, Jerry Vale, Joe Williams, Frank Sinatra Jr. And many more.

Buddy Greco is a consummate artist who is a surviving member of a vanishing breed of performers who can do it all. To this day he is the personification of stage glamour within his own ranks. He creates flash where there is no lightning. He is simply unique.