Try This Bill Moio

Album info

Album-Release:
2025

HRA-Release:
17.01.2025

Label: ITI Records

Genre: Jazz

Subgenre: Smooth Jazz

Artist: Bill Moio

Album including Album cover

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Formats & Prices

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FLAC 44.1 $ 13.50
  • 1 Try This 06:05
  • 2 720 Berkeley 05:49
  • 3 I've Heard It All Before 04:57
  • 4 Need To Know 05:47
  • 5 Friends Again 05:51
  • 6 Chuckles 04:54
  • 7 Straight Talk 05:16
  • 8 Let It Begin 06:28
  • 9 Struttin' 05:39
  • 10 Arroz Con Pollo 06:00
  • Total Runtime 56:46

Info for Try This



First album in years, co-produced by keyboardist George Whitty, is both smooth & swinging, with nods to George Benson, Pat Martino & Wes Montgomery. Years in Las Vegas, Reno and Lake Tahoe, veteran guitarist Bill Moio has crafted a gem in Try This. Co-produced by keyboardist-arranger George Whitty who has toured and/or recorded with Herbie Hancock, The Brecker Brothers, and Grover Washington Jr., guitar aficionados and smooth jazz fans alike will be introduced to this talent deserving wider recognition, who has been flying under the radar. From the funky Tower of Power-inspired title track to the soulful, blues-tinged Struttin', the gorgeous ballad Friends Again and smooth jazz cruising numbers, Chuckles and Straight Talk, Moio and his cohort Whitty concocted a virtual two-man show on Try This through their accomplished keyboard sampling/sequencing technology and adept drum programming. The result is quite organic-sounding and authentic, while the guitarist unleashes his remarkably fluent chops in scintillating fashion. Along the way, the native of South Portland, Maine and resident of Paradise Valley, Arizona also sneaks in a few tips of the hat to guitar heroes Pat Martino (720 Berkeley and I've Heard It All Before) and Wes Montgomery (particularly his thumbed octaves work on Straight Talk, Let It Begin and Chuckles). A cadre of colleagues with alto saxophonist Eric Marienthal, bassist Jimmy Haslip and drummer Tom Brechtlein, appear as special guests on two tracks, Try This and Struttin' (Brechtlein also appears separately on Need to Know). Trumpeter Wayne Bergeron and trombonist Andy Martin bulk up the synthesized horn section on Struttin' and the Latin flavored closer, Arroz con Pollo. And the full sounding complement of digital horns and strings on I've Heard It All Before and Friends Again sound as convincing as the real deal.

"This music can be enjoyed in depth, as there’s much to admire in both the quality of the compositions and the skill of the artists on the album. I would even say that for young musicians, this album is a great example of craftsmanship, with top-notch mixing, perfectly mastered track choices, and an order that instantly gives you a vision of what a Bill Moio show would be like when you take pleasure in listening. When an album makes you want to dance, something good is happening—and that’s the case here. As you know, we receive tons of albums each month. We listen to them all. Some don’t make it past two tracks before being removed from the CD player, while others, like this one, stay on repeat. It’s never by chance. It takes immense work to achieve such mastery. You might even catch nods to artists like George Benson on the track *Straight Talk*, just through a few guitar riffs here and there. Everything here is done delicately. And as if that weren’t enough, all the tracks are original compositions by Bill Moio, making this album one we deem “Essential.” (Thierry De Clemensat, PARIS-MOVE)

Bill Moio, guitars, keyboards, drum programming
George Whitty, keyboards, piano, Rhodes, synthesizer, drum programming
Jimmy Haslip, bass (track 1)
Tommy Brechtlein, drums ((track 4, 9)
Eric Marienthal, saxophone
Mel Brown, bass (track 7)
Wayne Bergeron, trumpet (track 9,10)
Andy Martin, trombone (track 9, 10)

Mixed by George Whitty
Mastered by George Whitty
Produced by Bill Moio and George Whitty



Bill Moio
Growing up in South Portland, Maine, Moio picked up guitar at age eight and later studied with a local guitar teacher before making his professional debut at age 15. After finishing high school, he was accepted to the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he studied under the late William G. Leavitt. Seminal jazz guitar albums for him through his developmental years included Pat Martino's 1972 album, Consciousness, and George Benson's 1971 album, Beyond the Blue Horizon. As he recalled, "I remember listening to Pat's record for the first time. 'On the Stairs' was playing, and when that guitar break came in, I was like, 'What was that?' It was killer. Another revelation for me was hearing Benson's version of 'So What' on Beyond the Blue Horizon. My teacher played that for me when I was about 14, and I remember thinking, 'What's that? How do you do that?' That was it for me. I never went through Hendrix or Clapton or any of the rock guys, I just went straight into Benson and Martino and Wes and never looked back. Those guys will always be the masters, for me and for my generation."

Leaving Boston, he returned to Maine and began teaching at The University of Maine at Augusta. It was at this time that he founded his first band, The Bill Moio Quartet, which performed an eclectic blend of jazz, Latin and funk. Moio left Maine in 1978 and headed west to Nevada for a two-week engagement at the MGM Reno. Two weeks turned into nine months, and he later found himself immersed in the show circuit throughout Nevada, serving as the house guitarist for Harrah's Reno and Harrah's Lake Tahoe for seven years, then holding down the position of orchestra leader at Harrah's Tahoe for two years before finishing a three-year run in the showroom of The Rio Suites Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Moio has also performed with the legendary soul band Tower Of Power and has appeared with such jazz artists as trombonist Bill Watrous, guitarists Joe Diorio and Jack Wilkins and organ great Joey DeFrancesco to name a few.

Now with Try This, Moio is showcasing his remarkable fretboard prowess and songwriting talents to a much wider audience. “I still practice every day and work on new stuff, ” he confided. “I really work on my time, so when I double it, it’s there. Because when you’re dealing with MIDI you have to be locked in. So I’ve been working on my Bach Sonatas and Partitas, and I always have my metronome close by. It’s something you just constantly work on. All with the great players that I’ve admired, their time is so strong. George Benson’s time and his feel is ridiculous. Everything about that guy is amazing. Music just flows out of him.”

This album contains no booklet.

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