Collegetown Chronicles
When your repertoire boasts more than 1,000 tunes, you never know what you’re going to play next.
“That’s kind of true,” says Ithaca, N.Y. guitarist Doug Robinson, co-leader of Johnny Russo’s East Hill Classic Jazz Band. And that’s part of the attraction for Russo, a marvelous multi-instrumentalist who also vocalizes and waxes eloquent about the origins of his tunes, many of which he wrote himself.
A versatile brassman, Russo started out in classical music, but early in life found himself drawn to the freedom of jazz improvisation. Now, he has chronicled his long, strange trip from symphonic strictures to unrestrained jazz sessions in a new book published by the History Center in Tompkins County, N.Y. The book, Ithaca Our Home, recalls the musicians and music halls of Russo’s adopted home of Ithaca. He was raised in nearby Geneva, N.Y.
The book reflects on the long existence of Russo’s East Hill Classic Jazz Band, with detailed remembrances by Johnny and his musicians along with an 18-song CD of original songs with printed lyrics inspired by the community that supported the combo’s career. The songs include “Aurora Street Blues,” “College Avenue Strut,” and the “Mystery of Taughannock.” Various photos show the band in action in diverse settings including the Ithaca Farmers’ Market, Cornell’s Fraternity Row, wedding recep
