Carl Fontana plays a show-stopper trombone solo "If Only I Had a Brain" by E. Harburg. It shows that he belongs up there with Frank Rosolino and J.J. Johnson. Conte Candoli, Carl Fontana, Teddy Edwards, Pete Jolly, Chuck Berghofer, Joe LaBarbera. Do these names ring any bells? If not, look elsewhere as these West Coast giants gathered for a magnificent concert at JazzOpen Stuttgart in 2001 to show the world what separates the men from the boys. Carl Charles Fontana (July 18, 1928 - October 9, 2003) was a jazz trombonist. His influence among jazz trombonists in the latter half of the 20th century is possibly second only to the great J. J. Johnson. "If I Only Had a Brain" (also "If I Only Had a Heart" and "If I Only Had the Nerve") is a song in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz by Harold Arlen (music) and E.Y. Harburg (lyrics). The song is sung by the characters who meet Dorothy talking about what each character wants from the Wizard. |
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