Alex Skolnick & Ron Jackson
City Vineyard presents Alex Skolnick & Ron Jackson live on February 29th at 7:30pm
The notion of a jazz guitar duo with Ron Jackson and Alex Skolnick might strike some as an unusual match at first. Yet when Jackson and Skolnick together on their vintage hollowbody guitars and combo amps, there is so much common sonic ground that it is difficult to guess how distinct their musical backgrounds are.
World-renowned, seven-string jazz guitarist, composer and arranger, Ron Jackson has performed, recorded, and taught music in over 30 countries and is likely the only African American seven-string jazz guitarist alive. Alex Skolnick may be best known as the 90s lead guitar virtuoso from Bay Area metal band Testament who went on to study jazz at The New School and launch a second career as an improviser. Ron maintains a full time touring and recording career, often in straight-ahead jazz settings with organ. Alex’s instrumental associations include his eponymous trio, and jazz/rock with the likes of Stuart Hamm, Percy Jones and more as well as performing globally with Testament.
Whenever these two meet up for a guitar duo jam session, the chemistry is immediate and undeniable. From jazz standards, to sophisticated tunes by the likes of Shorter and Corea to “new standards” (ie Tom Petty) to originals, their set is elegant and fiery. Fittingly, the two first met at 55 Bar, one of Greenwich Village’s most legendary venues, shortly before it’s untimely closing in 2022. Both had been invited to a VIP photo shoot organized by the venue with over a hundred of New York’s finest instrumentalists (including Mike Stern), inspired by the iconic jazz photo “A Great Day in Harlem.” The Jackson/Skolnick duo is a musical extension of that great day in Greenwhich Village.
"Jackson is a master of the seven-string, which puts him in the ranks of a select few" - Adam Perlmutter JazzTimes
“Skolnick runs the guitaristic gamut, from lush chord melodies to Wes Montgomery-style octaves to screaming Sonny Sharrock-esque skronking” Bill Milkowski Downbeat
