Les Paul Tribute Concert This Weekend

The following is a release from the Mahwah Museum.

The Les Paul Trio – Lou Pallo, John Colianni and Nicki Parrott– will perform the Second Annual Tribute to Les Paul at the Russ and Angelica Berrie Center for the Performing Arts at Ramapo College this Saturday, September 29 at 8 p.m. 

The concert will benefit the Music Program at Ramapo College and the Mahwah Museum.  

For 40 years, Lou Pallo performed with the legendary Les Paul, the inventor and jazz guitarist who lived in Mahwah for 50 years prior to his death in 2009.  Pallo, a resident of Haskell, New Jersey – who was a mainstay of Les Paul’s Monday night performances at the Iridium in New York – is an accomplished guitarist and the star of  “Thank You, Les” a CD/DVD Set featuring Pallo, the rest of the Trio, and guests such as Keith Richards, Steve Miller, Slash, Billy F. Gibbons and more.  

The CD/DVD [was] released on September 11 and will be available for purchase at the September 29 Berrie Center performance. 

John Colianni, the consummate jazz pianist, began playing with Les Paul at the Iridium in 2003, after being recommended to Les Paul by his friend Bucky Pizzarelli. Colianni’s artistry is praised by Les Paul in his autobiography “Les Paul in His Own Words” and the pianist appears in the popular video “Les Paul: Chasing Sound.” 

Australian born Nicki Parrott joined Les Paul at the Iridium in 2000. The bassist and vocalist was well suited to the trio for her skill on the double bass and her flair for improvisation.

The concert will also feature a benefit auction of a guitar signed by Les Paul before his death and the signatures -- to be obtained on-stage on the night of the performance -- of Pallo, Colianni and Parrott. There will also be a silent auction of a limited number of autographed Les Paul memorabilia items. 

The net proceeds of the concert will support the Ramapo College Music Program and the Mahwah Museum. 

The Ramapo College School of Contemporary Arts is acknowledged for its cutting edge music program in which students become not only musicians but are also schooled in the technical and business sides of the music profession. 

The Mahwah Museum is in the second year of its exhibit “Les Paul in Mahwah: A Tribute.” The Museum, at 201 Franklin Turnpike, Mahwah, is open Wednesdays and weekends from 1-5 p.m. and also features “New Jersey Fights in the Civil War: Remembering Soldiers Buried in Mahwah.”  Further information is available at 201.512.0099 or at www.mahwahmuseum.org.

Click here for tickets or buy them by telephone at 201-684-7844 or at the Berrie Center Box Office, Monday – Friday from noon to 5 pm.