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ROD PIAZZA & THE MIGHTY FLYERS
by Dave Leucinger
If they were a sports team, the "dynasty" tag would already be applied. Rod Piazza and the Mighty Flyers have become one of the dominant acts in the
blues world during the past four years – earning blues music's top honor, the W.C. Handy Award, for best band in 1999 and 2000 – following Piazza's own Handy in 1998 for harmonica instrumentalist. And how did they
follow that up in 2001? Try five different nominations – Best Band, Entertainer of the Year, and instrumental performances for harmonica, piano, and bass.
Such recognition is testament to the perseverance Piazza has practiced throughout his career. "At first it was rough," he recalled in a telephone conversation from his California home.
"In 1980, people didn't know what the hell we were. They had only heard Texas blues or Chicago blues. Now the musicians are all hip to it." Piazza is one of the principal architects of contemporary West Coast jump
blues – a dynamic, interactive blend of Chicago blues with elements of Los Angeles' post-World War II jazz/swing/R&B combos. "Growing up out here, it was in the environment," Piazza said. "I listened to Jimmy
Reed and Joe Turner, and Earl Bostic recordings. And when I first started playing, there were still connections to Johnny Otis' big band and to Joe Houston. That's where everything comes together."
Piazza's mentor in his early career was George Smith, a Chicago harmonica player who came to L.A. as the Windy City's blues scene reached its apex. Smith and Piazza paired in the group
Bacon Fat for 15 years. But a close listen to Piazza's harmonica work reveals how his instrumentation also follows that of the sax honkers of the '40s and '50s. "Little Walter took his influence from Gene Ammons,
and I'm doing the same thing – with more vocals."
In his 34 years of recording and fronting bands, Piazza has been gifted with the ability to identify all-star talent (such as Hollywood Fats and Junior Watson) – and to bring it all
together in the context of a unified ensemble. "I try to pick cats in that idiom, then teach them how the band works," he said. That selection process may have reached its peak with the current Mighty Flyers – from
guitarist Rick "L.A. Holmes" Holmstrom, whose work with Johnny Dyer and two solo releases have all received glowing praise, to bassist Bill Stuve, a veteran Flyer and regular Handy nominee, to drummer Steve
Mugalian, another long-time Flyer, to Rod Piazza's foil within the group: pianist Honey Piazza.
Yes, the band's core is a husband/wife team. While such pairings are not unheard of in music, few have endured as long and as strong as the Piazzas. "Well, I've been playing since I
was four, classically trained, all of that," Ms. Piazza said. "In my teens, I became a real blues fan – especially of Otis Spann. For a couple of years, I practiced with records. Then when I was about 19, I went to
Chicago and got to play with Robert Jr. Lockwood."
Cut to a couple of years later. "I was about 22 and in Riverside (CA) when I first saw Rod," Ms. Piazza recalled. "I asked him if he was looking for a pianist." Rod also recalled the
meeting. "When I first put together the idea of a band, I knew I wanted a pianist," he said. Then Honey shows up with her little electric piano. I could see she had talent, so I told her to go home and practice. She
really wood shedded – I was pretty rough on her at the start."
But the connection was only musical for several years. "At first, I was happy to be playing – I was getting into a superstar band, and the guy up front was handsome and cool," Ms.
Piazza said. "But I wasn't daring to tell him that I thought those things. We were both married to other people at that time, but didn't know that we both were in unhappy relationships. Eventually, both marriages
broke up. We finally got together in 1977."
And that, as Frost wrote, has made all the difference. "She has become a hallmark for my band," Rod said. " It wouldn't be the same without her – what she does has created an identity.
She's that one ingredient." The two regularly collaborate on song writing. "We have two heads, and we're both looking for the same win. Sometimes I'll have the words, and she has the music. Other times, it's the
other way around. It's a partnership – there's no set way we do things."
Honey describes their bond as all-encompassing. "Music weaves our whole lives," she said. We're together 24 hours a day, working towards our next show date. And in our off-time, we're
best friends – we'll head to the beach and go surfing for the whole day. Our individual personalities work together, too – he's mellow, and I'm high-strung."
That fine art of give-and-take is at work across the rest of the band as well. "Being a band leader is no easy job – you always have to make concessions," Rod said. "George Smith
taught me to let the other cats stretch out – it shouldn't be all you, all night. How many acts do you want to see with one guy at the center the whole time? And it's nice to have relief."
Honey noted some of the key nuances at work. "The ensemble sound was really perfected by the Chicago blues bands – Muddy, Little Walter, and such – those musicians each played their
section, then left a space – and then the others came in to fill it," she said. "When you have that playing sense, it's like you're weaving a blanket – it's a real art, but it's really fun. The longer we play
together, the more intuitive it becomes. As I listen to Rod, from even a silent note I can tell where he's going. Holmes has been with the band for five years now, and there have been times where we've both come in
and play exactly the same thing together."
The group's many accolades from their peers in blues music have also bolstered the group's confidence, individually and collectively. "It makes me feel really good, coming from where I
did – a girl, young, and white – that's a lot of strikes against you in blues," said Ms. Piazza. "A lot of musicians didn't even want to play with me. I had to prove myself by working harder. Now I'm at the point
where people say I'm one of the top five blues pianists. I don't think I'm worthy of that, but it makes me work harder to live up to it." Rod's take is eloquently minimalist. "What it means to me is two words:
somebody's listening."
This month, the group releases its latest recording, Beyond the Source, on the Tone-Cool label. "It's more at the core of what we do; more raw," said Rod. "It's not just a bunch
of tunes together."And like other previous releases, it balances vibrant vocal tracks with cutting instrumentals. "I've always liked instrumentals," Rod said, "and the track that reflects that spirit is 'Ghosting.'
It's like if I could play sax like Gene Ammons – and take the ghosts of him and Little Walter for inspiration."
Yet in spite of the widespread recognition within the blues genre, Piazza's music and fame have yet to establish themselves in more mainstream music markets. And that isn't a problem
with either Piazza. "If you think about it, and look at what people are buying, I'd be worried if they started to look at us," Honey said. "I don't want anything to do with that market." Rod also is quite
comfortable within his current niche. "I've always wanted to be a blues man," he said. "There are blues players, and there are blues men – and I'm what I've always wanted to be. Would I like to play for a million
people instead of a thousand? Sure – but I wouldn't want to change my music to do that. I made that decision 35 years ago."
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