Danny Federici - R.I.P.

[kedoane]

I know that he did a couple of jazz albums, but he is better known in the rock realm. That's the reason why I'm posting his obit in the other music section.

I'm sadden by his loss. I got to see Bruce Springsteen in concert about 21 years ago.


E Street Band mamber Danny Federici dies at 58

1 hour, 8 minutes ago

NEW YORK (AP) — Danny Federici, the longtime keyboard player for Bruce Springsteen whose stylish work helped define the E Street Band's sound on hits from "Hungry Heart" through "The Rising," died Thursday. He was 58.

Federici, who had battled melanoma for three years, died at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. News of his death was posted late Thursday on Springsteen's official Web site.

According to published reports, Federici last performed with Springsteen and the band last month, appearing during portions of a March 20 show in Indianapolis.

Springsteen concerts scheduled for Friday in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Saturday in Orlando were postponed after news of Federici's death.

He was born in Flemington, N.J., a long car ride from the Jersey shore haunts where he first met kindred musical spirit Springsteen in the late 1960s. The pair often jammed at the Upstage Club in Asbury Park, N.J., a now-defunct after-hours club that hosted the best musicians in the state.

It was Federici, along with original E Street Band drummer Vini Lopez, who first invited Springsteen to join their band.

By 1969, the self-effacing Federici — often introduced in concert by Springsteen as "Phantom Dan" — was playing with the Boss in a band called Child. Over the years, Federici joined his friend in acclaimed shore bands Steel Mill, Dr. Zoom and the Sonic Boom and the Bruce Springsteen Band.

Federici became a stalwart in the E Street Band as Springsteen rocketed from the boardwalk to international stardom. Springsteen split from the E Streeters in the late '80s, but they reunited for a hugely successful tour in 1999.

"Bruce has been supportive throughout my life," Federici said in a recent interview with Backstreets magazine. "I've had my ups and downs, and I've certainly given him a run for his money, and he's always been there for me."

Federici played accordion on the wistful "4th Of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)" from Springsteen's second album, and his organ solo was a highlight of Springsteen's first top 10 hit, "Hungry Heart." His organ coda on the 9/11-inspired Springsteen song "You're Missing" provided one of the more heart-wrenching moments on "The Rising" in 2002.

In a band with larger-than-life characters such as saxophonist Clarence Clemons and bandana-wrapped guitarist "Little" Steven Van Zandt, Federici was content to play in his familiar position to the side of the stage. But his playing was as vital to Springsteen's live show as any instrument in the band.

Federici released a pair of solo albums that veered from the E Street sound and into soft jazz. Bandmates Nils Lofgren on guitar and Garry Tallent on bass joined Federici on his 1997 debut, "Flemington." In 2005, Federici released its follow-up, "Out of a Dream."

Federici had taken a leave of absence during the band's tour in November 2007 to pursue treatment for melanoma, and was temporarily replaced by veteran musician Charles Giordano.

At the time, Springsteen described Federici as "one of the pillars of our sound and has played beside me as a great friend for more than 40 years. We all eagerly await his healthy and speedy return."

Besides his work with Springsteen, Federici played on albums by an impressive roster of other artists: Van Zandt, Joan Armatrading, Graham Parker, Gary U.S. Bonds and Garland Jeffreys.

___

On the Net:

Bruce Springsteen: http://www.brucespringsteen.net

[VIBEr]

He was one of those background guys who really defined the sound of that group, and I always thought that Springsteen had the best-sounding rock and roll band I ever heard. And he could take that band to another level on accordion as well as on the Hammond, and if go watch the video at Springsteen's site from their last gig together in Indianapolis you'll know what I'm talking about.

RIP, and here's to a job well done.

[Gentle Giant]

Really sorry to hear this. I knew he was sick and off the last tour, but I'd heard of sightings at shows. When Bruce made it big, he bucked advice and stuck with the NJ cats he grew up with. He knew the hungrier the cat, the better the music. Aside from guitar and sax, Federici's organ was a key component of his early sound.

RIP

[Chris D]

A stalwart, willing to be in the shadows, but with a tremendous effect on the band's sound.

"Sandy, the aurora's rising behind us, the pier lights our carnival life forever...."

[Gentle Giant]

Bruce and the fans give Danny a whole lotta love at his last show.

Organ solo

[kedoane]

This is the obit. from the New York Times.

Danny Federici, 58, Artist in Springsteen’s Band, Dies
By JON PARELES

Danny Federici, a keyboardist for Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band since it was formed in the early 1970s, died on Thursday. He was 58 and lived in Manhattan.

His death, at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan, was caused by melanoma, according to Mr. Springsteen’s Web site, brucespringsteen.net.

Mr. Federici was Mr. Springsteen’s collaborator since they jammed together at clubs on the New Jersey shore in the 1960s. “He was the most wonderfully fluid keyboard player and a pure, natural musician,” Mr. Springsteen said in a statement. “I loved him very much. We grew up together.”

Born in Flemington, N.J., Mr. Federici began studying classical accordion at 7 before switching to electric organ and joining rock bands. He played at clubs in Asbury Park and made his first recording on a single by an Asbury Park songwriter, Bill Chinnock, whose bands included two other future members of the E Street Band: Vini Lopez on drums and Garry Tallent on bass.

Mr. Federici and Mr. Lopez started their own band and invited Mr. Springsteen to become a member. “This skinny guy with long hair and a ratty T-shirt was an incredible guitar player and a good singer, so we asked him to join,” Mr. Federici once said.

The band was named Child and soon renamed Steel Mill, which built a strong reputation touring the East Coast. Mr. Federici was also in Mr. Springsteen’s short-lived band Dr. Zoom and the Sonic Boom.

He did not play on Mr. Springsteen’s debut album, “Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J.,” from 1973, but he was in E Street when Mr. Springsteen introduced the band that year on “The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle.”

Mr. Federici remained in every E Street Band lineup, along with Mr. Tallent on bass and Clarence Clemons on saxophone, until taking a medical leave of absence in November 2007. Mr. Springsteen called him “one of the pillars of our sound.”

Like a gospel group, the E Street Band includes two keyboardists, one usually playing piano and the other an organ. Mr. Federici, whom Mr. Springsteen often introduced as “Phantom Dan,” was the organist; he also played accordion for songs like “4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy).” His role in the band was most often supportive, filling out the harmony with beefy chords from his Hammond B-3 organ.

But Mr. Federici is in the foreground with the organ solo on the 1980 hit “Hungry Heart.” At times, to give the E Street Band its chiming, Phil Spector sound onstage, he played a keyboard-operated glockenspiel, one of few in existence.

For much of the 1980s Mr. Springsteen kept the E Street Band on retainer while working with other musicians. Mr. Federici played on Mr. Springsteen’s 1987 solo album, “Tunnel of Love,” and was a member of its touring band. He was a studio musician on Mr. Springsteen’s 1995 solo album, “The Ghost of Tom Joad.” Through the years he played recording sessions for Joan Armatrading, Garland Jeffreys, Graham Parker and Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul, among others.

Mr. Springsteen reconvened the E Street Band to record new songs on a greatest-hits album in 1995 and started touring with it again in 1999. “The Rising,” Mr. Springsteen’s 2002 record, was his first full album with the E Street Band since “Born in the U.S.A.” in 1984. They have toured together often since its release.

Mr. Federici, whose replacement after November 2007 was Charles Giordano, last performed with Mr. Springsteen and the band onstage in Indianapolis on March 20. They are still on tour, but have postponed some shows.

Between E Street Band engagements, Mr. Federici led his own groups in clubs and released two albums of pop-jazz: “Flemington” in 1997 (reissued as “Danny Federici” in 2001) and “Sweet” in 2004 (reissued as “Out of a Dream” in 2005).

He is survived by his wife, Maya; his son, Jason; and his daughters Madison and Harley.