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John Menegon
bass

ologon@earthlink.net

www.johnmenegon.com
www.myspace.com/johnmenegon


A resident of Upstate New York, Menegon started his career as a jazz bassist in Montreal. After having worked for several years on the Canadian jazz scene with the great guitarists Sonny Greenwich, Mike Gauthier & Nelson Simons, and saxophonists Steve Grossman & Pat LaBarbara, he then went on to hone his skills in NYC in the mid-80s. Since moving to New York City to study Jazz at Long Island University on a full scholarship, John has performed/recorded with Dewey Redman, David “Fathead” Newman, Matt Wilson, Frank Kimbrough, John Hicks, Yoron Israel, Jack DeJohnette, Kenny Burrell, Kenny Barron, Bruce Barth, Paul Bley, Anthony Braxton's Tri-Centric Orchestra, Nick Brignola, Bob Meyer, Jimmy Cobb, Al Foster, Slide Hampton, Sheila Jordan, Lee Konitz, J.R. Monterose, Joe Lovano and many others.

John was an integral member of the David “Fathead” Newman Quintet, until his death in January 2009 and was also a member of the Dewey Redman Quartet for ten years up until his death in 2006. These jazz legends have taken John around the world, playing at jazz festivals in South Africa, Argentina, Turkey, Brazil, Europe and the U.S., and have been a major influence in his playing and compositions. John appears on Newman’s four most recent CDs on High Note Records, the most recent being a 2007 release entitled Life.

In 2005 John recorded SOUL ADVICE, a CD of original compositions written by the musicians in the band: Mark Dziuba (guitar), John Gunther (bass clarinet, tenor & soprano sax), Tani Tabbal (drums), and Menegon (bass). This is a brilliant release full of rich composition and arrangement…when you have a strong well-rounded bassist like John Menegon composing, arranging, and laying down the serious low-end vibes, the music naturally flows out and around and back again seeking its root. John Trent, Chronogram

In 2004 Menegon debuted his CD Search Light. The CD is a selection of his original compositions and arrangements, and features one of jazz's greatest living legends, Dewey Redman (sax), along with John Gunther (sax/flute), Mark Dziuba (guitar), Mark McLean (drums), Tani Tabbal (percussion) and Teri Roiger (voice). John Menegon’s Search Light is witty, atmospheric, and thoroughly engaging from one end to the other. On Search Light, John Menegon shows, without self-indulgence, that the bass can define the character of an ensemble as clearly and fully as any other instrument. The entire project has a surefootedness, a quiet, elegant, muscularity that radiates from Mr. Menegon’s own playing, and that is immediately apparent and compelling. The band is made up entirely of accomplished players, the best known being, in fact, saxophonist Dewey Redman, who is, once again, brilliant, and wonderful. Steven Robinson, All About Jazz

In 2005 John played at the Montreal Jazz Festival with Pat Metheny and Dewey Redman, performing music from Metheny’s CD 80/81. John also played at the Festival with the Dewey Redman Quartet featuring Matt Wilson on drums and Frank Kimbrough on piano, which was acclaimed by the critics as the best performance of the entire 2005 Festival.