Al Viola RIP

Another of the many unsung heroes in rhythm guitar passed away last week.

Al Viola (1919-2007) learned his craft in the mid-late 1930s, and when World War II hit, he was fortunate to be assigned to an Army band. He was deeply influenced by the music of Charlie Christian and Nat King Cole’s guitarist Oscar Moore, but was also well-rooted in the traditional acoustic rhythm guitar style, which served him well later in his career.

After the war, he teamed up with fellow soldier Page Cavanaugh who formed a popular Los Angeles-based trio. As early as 1946, the trio backed up Frank Sinatra on several popular recordings, and had successful engagements in New York. Al returned to Los Angeles soon after and began working clubs with Cavanaugh, as well as beginning a lucrative career in the studios, where he worked with many popular musicians, including Julie London, Ray Anthony, Steve Allen, and others. He also resumed what became a long association with Frank Sinatra, where he mainly played rhythm guitar.

Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, he maintained a very busy schedule with studio dates, solo recording dates under his own name, and touring–mainly with Frank Sinatra. In the 1950s he began studying classical guitar, and often used a classical guitar on studio dates. His recording with Julie London (Lonely Girl) was one of the first times a classical guitar was used to accompany a pop singer.

My own recollection of Al Viola goes back to the big annual Frank Sinatra specials on TV back in the late 1960s. Al, playing an acoustic Gibson L-5 guitar, was usually seated in a prominent position with the band, probably because Frank liked his rhythm chords and sense of swing. As the band wailed away, his head bobbed wildly from side to side in time with the music–you couldn’t miss it. Sinatra was visibly amused at Al’s enthusiasm during one televised special–he just stopped and looked at him for a few seconds with a big grin on his face.

From the 1970s on, Viola continued working with Sinatra and Cavanaugh, and as the studio work began drying up, he taught advanced students. His last recordings showed him to be comfortable in virtually any style, from traditional ballads to the hottest bebop to classical music. One of his best (and still available) recordings, Mellow as a Cello, was released in 1995.