Live @ Triumph Brewing Company

IMAGE: Full-length live album is in the works. Read on…
VIDEO: Rehearsal on December 6, 2022. Chris Buono fretless guitar & music. Cody McCorry bass. Anibal Rojas sax. Faye Fadem drums. Fretless guitar and Orchid bass built by Rick Toone.

Coastal air off the Atlantic seeps in under Sandy Hook, slyly flirting with Navesink River dampness, the extended New York metro tang of NJ Turnpike combustion and chemical refineries. Onshore, offshore. Giants to the north, Eagles to the south. Manhattan commuters. Money.

Chris Buono will flit through this mist, reaching up with (funk you) Jersey Attitude™ to grab Big Apple brass and polish it against shore prog rhythms. Triumph Brewing Company, Red Bank, New Jersey is our venue, as he prepares to take onstage residency for the next several months.

Risk is real…

He’s coming in cold, struggling—rehabilitating—excruciating left arm pain via pinched nerves in his spine. This band is total raw bar, two hours of rehearsal and digital chord charts as guidance through an improv jazz wilderness marshland.

Chris debuting two new guitars I built for him: his custom multiscale fretless “Fragile” and “Green Monster” who is also holding my tremolo. Cody McCorry is playing another build so fresh the finish is still drying: “Orchid” bass. New and unfamiliar instruments for both of these masterful players. And a chance to capture their sounds live, in the wild.

We are in this together. Tonight is opening night.

With the recording, I am seeking to capture the village vanguard intimacy of Bill Evans. Snapshot this moment. Band banter. Audience chatter, barstools and glasses. 1961 turns 2022. Killick Hinds beautifully brings his touch to the mixing and mastering. Deeply grateful we had this opportunity to work together.

Credits:

Chris Buono — music & guitar
Anibal Rojas — synth sax
Cody McCorry — bass
Faye Fadem — drums

Killick Hinds — mixing & mastering
Rick Toone — recording & production

“If I died right now I would want you to show the world ‘Raining Caterpillars’ and say this what I truly sounded like when I was dialed in. For that I’m indebted to you both.” (Chris Buono)

VIDEO: (Audio only) live recording of “Raining Caterpillars” @ Triumph Brewing Company on December 8, 2022. Orchid bass and Green Monster guitar are the duet heard here.

Orchid Bass

PHOTO: Orchid™ 4-string 32″ scale bass. Orchid 4-string bass. Ergonomic, light weight. Extremely fast and comfortable.
AUDIO: Bass-forward remix of “Raining Caterpillars” recorded live @ Triumph Brewing Company (12.8.2022). In bassist Cody McCorry’s hands you can hear Orchid’s beautiful organic woodiness and responsive clarity. Cody plays exclusively on the neck pickup, with his right hand fingers at the end of the fretboard. Listen for his wonderful chordal work and melodic flow. Music by Chris Buono. Rick Toone recording and production.
PHOTO: Swamp ash with Shou Sugi Ban traditional Japanese wood finish. Carbon fiber. Quartersawn flame maple neck w/Advantage™ profile. DiMarzio Area J™ noiseless pickups. Patented Intonation Cantilever™ bridges precision machined from stainless steel.

Orchid Guitar

PHOTO: Orchid headstock. Forged aircraft aluminum. Torrefied quartersawn maple. Ebony fretboard.

Hi Rick,

Many years ago we had chatted back and forth about guitar building. I didn’t have the opportunities to get into building my own creations the way I envisioned, but I still follow all the work you create. I’ve reached a stage in my life/career though where the possibility of obtaining one of your creations is within reach.

Your Orchid body shape has been one of my favorites since the first purple bass. I have been dreaming about almost this exact guitar and contemplating reaching out to you about the creation of a SSB Orchid Multiscale guitar for a few months now. To see this (Orchid 7-string) blows my mind, for me it exists in a way that feels like a future memory I’ve somehow tuned into.

Orchid design ideas:
A sense of age/wear (Shou Sugi Ban, old wood, wear patterns?)
Metal parts with patina, maybe even damascus (jack-plate, cavity cover, string anchor?)
Scar(s) from a repair (kintsugi, butterfly/bowtie, knot patch?)

Any other specs like wood types, details, pickup type, colors I’m happy to leave up to you. I trust in your craft and creativity, whatever speaks to you or works well together. I just wanted to lead with some potential ideas and concepts, and let you take it from there! The pickup choice in particular might be dictated by the acoustic qualities of the instrument. Totally happy to get more granular and add input or decisions as well if needed though, and if any of the design ideas are too abstract, let me know.

Really excited for this! (Jesse)

Rick!

The guitar has arrived and it is perhaps the most stunning thing I have ever seen! It’s at once everything I hoped it would be, and still uniquely surprising. There is no question that nothing else like it exists, I absolutely love it. First play through unplugged and it’s clear and effortless; this is really what I needed to help take my playing to a new level. More to come when I have a chance to plug in and crank it up. In due time I aim to be a lot more active on Instagram and YouTube sharing my exploration into new edges of guitar composition and sound.

I can’t thank you enough for this creation and I hope to do it justice. (Jesse)

PHOTO: Patented Intonation Cantilever™ bridges. Bare Knuckle custom pickups. Forged aircraft aluminum. Swamp Ash with traditional Shou sugi ban Japanese wood finish.

Orchid | 7-String Guitar

PHOTOS: Quarter sawn flame maple, Madagascar ebony, swamp ash, carbon fiber. Shou sugi ban traditional Japanese wood finish. Custom DiMarzio™ pickups with 10-way switching. Patented Intonation Cantilever™ solo bridges precision machined from stainless steel.
PHOTOS: Orchid™ 7-string guitar is part of a matched set which includes Orchid™ headless 4-string bass and Goshawk™ SSB. Orchid body shape is equally ergonomic in both guitar and bass platforms. Exceptional versatile playing position options, always with a natural neck up balance.