Joe Negri Talks About Charlie Christian, Mr. Rogers and Dream Dancing

Jim Martin and his Pupplets pose of the set of "Adventure Time". From left to right are: Joe Negri, Baby Jeffy, Thad, Kathy Iarusso, Shrike, Jim Martin, Mort, and Quincy.

To an entire generation, the name Joe Negri conjures up the image of the gentle and soft-spoken “Handyman”, from the long running PBS children’s TV program Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood.

From his childhood beginnings as one of his native Pittsburgh’s Stars of Tomorrow, the self-acknowledged “work in progress” has been a continuously evolving musician of note.

His early days as a big band and be-bop guitarist gave way in the 1950s to a career as an on-air performer and musical director in the fledgling medium of television, and it was there that Joe found his true home. The rest, as they say, is history and Negri ultimately landed with Fred Rogers in the role of “Handyman” Negri, a character he would be known as to millions of children for nearly 40 years.

During that time, Mr. Negri continued to carve out a name for himself, both locally in Pittsburgh and internationally as a profoundly talented and lyrical guitarist, and as a gifted educator and composer.

With his latest CD, Dream Dancing, on the Noteworthy Jazz label, we find Joe playing in a straight-ahead jazz trio setting, reminding a new generation just how handy a guitarist can be.

Was it Charlie Christian who first inspired you to seriously study the guitar?

Joe Negri - Photo credit: Michael G. Stewart

Joe Negri: It was, indeed, Charlie Christian that first inspired me. He was the first “real”Jazz guitarist that I listened to. He played those flowing “saxophone“ type lines and he made quite an impression on me. I can still remember transcribing his solo on Rose Room with the Benny Goodman sextet …We had this old fashioned Victrola ( record player)and I could slow it down and copy the lines one section at a time. It was wonderful training and I never looked back after that. It was my basic training in the art of improvisation.

What was your musical training?

Joe: I never had any “ real “ formal training. I could read music and knew quite a bit about harmony and how chord changes worked but it was all “street smarts”. I didn’t know any of the theory behind any of it. Studying legitimate classical harmony, counterpoint and composition gave me an understanding of just how music was put together.

Carnegie Mellon University did not have a guitar program at the time, so I became a composition major. That too gave me a new understanding of how to actually write music and work with classical musical forms.

During the era of the Big Bands, you played with the Shep Fields Orchestra and moved in some pretty rareified guitar circles.

Joe: The Shep Fields experience was life shaping. It was like going to graduate school at sixteen years old. The members of that band were some of the best musicians in the country. They shared their knowledge and experience with me freely. It was at this time that I was able to meet other top guitarists such as Johnny Smith, Tal Farlow, Jimmy Rainey and many others.

The guitar was still relatively new and all of us were trying to develop our own individual styles. I was attracted to “bebop” and had to work on developing a “legato” horn like quality on the guitar.

This work began at that time and continued on for several years. The relationships that I struck up with those national guitarists have lasted many years. I have seen Johnny Smith on several occasions and we are still close friends. I have remained close with many of the others as well. Unfortunately, we have lost some of them, like Tal Farlow, Herb Ellis , Chuck Wayne and Jimmy Rainey. But, I’m still close with Bucky Pizzarelli, Gene Bertoncini, Howard Alden and others.

Thomas Wendt (percussion); Joe Negri (guitar) and Brian Stahurski (bass) - Photo credit: Michael G Stewart

After your experiences in New York, you ended up back in Pittsburgh, which led to your long association with Fred Rogers as “Handyman” Negri on the PBS TV show Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood, for which you are probably best known by a generation of viewers and guitarists.

Joe: I had done two years on the road with the band and two years with the army, including a stint in Europe. To put it simply, I was tired and when I returned to Pittsburgh I wanted to stay there.

I worked locally for a while with my brother pianist Bobby Negri and then decided to go back to school. I got my high school credits and enrolled in Carnegie Mellon, then Carnegie Tech. Since the Jazz Guitar was not yet being recognized in higher education circles I chose a major in Composition. I studied with a wonderful Russian Composer named Nicolai Lopatnikof. It proved to be a rewarding experience all around .

College gave me the overall musical grooming that I needed and also rounded me as a person. During my college years I met my wife to be and landed a job in the new medium of TV. It was through that TV association that I met Fred Rogers, who was also just starting his television career.

We became friends and a few years later he asked me to join the program and Handyman Negri was born. It was a relationship that was to last for almost 40 years.

The program grew and was seen all aver the world. Folks are always curious as to how I became the “ handyman” of the neighborhood. As I mentioned earlier, I knew Fred as a TV associate and had worked with him a bit on a local TV program. Fred Rogers was not cut out for commercial TV. He just didn’t like it.

So he left to form a liaison with WQED Public Broadcasting in Pittsburgh and began making plans for the new show. He called and asked if I would like to be the handyman on the program. I said, “Fred you have the wrong guy. I’m just not very handy and don’t do well on handyman type jobs”.

He said quickly, “ Don’t sweat it Joe. It’s all pretend.” And pretend it was, for almost 40 years. He was a truly special and talented man and a joy to work with.

How do you balance teaching and performing?

Joe: I don’t think of it as balancing the two …. One enhances the other . Teaching keeps me grounded and I continue to teach and work on the basics of guitar playing. It keeps me fresh and working with young people is always a joy.

I see you have a beautiful new Benedetto guitar. Could you tell us about this guitar and your association with Bob Benedetto, and some of the other instruments you have played over the years?

Joe: I have had the pleasure in my lifetime to have known , on a personal basis, three of the worlds outstanding makers of Accoustic / Jazz Archtop Guitars. They were : John D’Angelico, Jimmy D’Aquisto and Bob Benedetto.

All three were great artists and collectively they built some of the greatest jazz guitars the world will ever see.I have become closer with Bob Benedetto in the past few years. He is a brilliant guitar maker, a warm and generous person and a joy to work with. I have visited his new shop in Savannah, Georgia, on several occasions.

Actually , Bob made me a customized guitar . It’s a 16 ” archtop that is the predecessor to todays Bravo guitars. I recall him asking me what color would I like and I told him that I didn’t want a sunburst or a blonde. He replied, “Great , that gives me some room to be creative.”

My guitar is a natural finish and is quite beautiful to look at. It has a great feel and is easy to play and easy to handle. I used it for all the Dream Dancing sessions and was most pleased with the results. I have had several guitars over the years, my 1943 D’Angelico was a classic

I remember a 1969 Guild 500 that was a real workhorse for me and following that I had a 1997 Heritage Custom Golden Eagle. All fine guitars and all good working guitars. I don’t believe in putting guitars in a glass case and looking at them . They have to be used and I use them to the fullest. My Benedetto Deluxe might be my favorite all time guitar. It’s Beautiful to look at , easy to play and good sounding . What more would you want from a guitar?

You’ve just released a new CD on the Noteworthy Jazz Label, entitled Dream Dancing. Can you tell us about it?

Joe: Dream Dancing has been a dream of mine for quite some time. My family has been trying to get me into the studio to do something on my own. I’ve recorded a lot with others and most of the recordings were with different musical combinations. I’m proud of many of them. However, I always wanted to do something that featured me. Dream Dancing was it and I’m happy that Noteworthy Records was interested in taking on the project. I thank Neal Tilghman and his group for their faith in me and hope that we can reach a wide audience of jazz fan’s and guitarists.