Bud Brisbois Story
Bud was a long time friend and customer of mine. I had done some work for him before, including aligning his Holton Bb trumpet #516449, when in 1978 he visited my shop.
When I asked Bud what I could do for him he said, “I want you to make a new and improved Bob Reeves’ version of my Herrick mouthpiece.”
“You got it!” I replied.
He was playing a custom Burt Herrick piece (pictured left) that I had altered the shank on before. It was a completely custom mouthpiece – hand carved rim and cup, short length and a complex backbore.
It took me most of the morning and afternoon to get the piece done. I was able to modify the piece from the original to give him a little more sound for less work.
I had barely taken it out of the silver-plating tank when he grabbed it out of my hand and started running for the door.
“I have a session I have to get to. Thanks for the piece!” Bud said running out of the shop.
“Hey, don’t you want to take the old one with you just in case?” I yelled out, chasing after him with his old Burt Herrick piece in my hand. I couldn’t believe he would show up to a studio session with a new, untested piece.
“What the hell do I need that old thing for…yours is better isn’t it?”
I stood there speechless.
The session ended up being one of his best recordings with Henry Mancini. He never came back for his old piece, where it has been sitting in the same drawer for 30 years.
July 17, 2008 at 9:13 pm
Great story , i am sure you have many more stories to tell us , i cant wait.
Regards Yiannis from Greece.
August 18, 2008 at 1:38 pm
Bob, thanks for the story about Bud. He was a great player, who left us way too soon. If only he would have gotten some help….
I met his brother J.J. on a big band gig here in Minneapolis this past May. J.J. stopped to chat, telling me how much he enjoyed my playing, and asked if I knew of a trumpet player named Bud Brisbois (I did not know who J.J. was at the time). After I told him, “hell, yeah, I love Bud’s playing!,” he told me he is Bud’s younger brother. Holy sh*t! We ended up talking for an hour after my gig was done. Really nice guy, who had some great stories.
Mike Supple
Minneapolis
September 5, 2008 at 8:57 pm
I know you´ve probably heard this question a thousand times before, but which size did Buds´ Reeves Mouthpiece have?
Can you compare it to any of your mouthpieces?
Leif
Hannover, Germany
November 12, 2008 at 9:24 pm
Hi Guys -
I am guessing that the date was more like 1975 when Bud was still very active on the LA scene. The album probably would have been Symphonic Soul. Bud stopped playing for a bit in 75 and then moved to Arizona soon after. In 78, he was playing again, but certainly was not doing studio work….
Kevin
July 3, 2009 at 7:42 pm
Hey Kevin. I loved Symphonic Soul, and still have it sitting around somewhere on vinyl. Haven’t heard it for 25 years, but I can still remember every note of that picc solo that Bud did!
February 28, 2009 at 11:36 am
yeah-you would leave it in the same place and never move it for 30 or 40 years.
i just saw some of the anniversary stickers you came out with in an old book claude gave me.
thanks for all your help over the years. i am really startin’ to like this mouth piece you made me in 1995 or so. and-strange-i played with Mario Pino tonight. the day i was picking my “DynamicMass” up, he was in the shop. he was nice enough to copy a book of bach studies and mail them to me in alaska-kept me sane on ships for 12 years.
is gagliones exploded schematic of the interchangeable sleeve proto still on your wall????he did it about the time we were hanging out with bud-the only trpt guy we knew with a frickin porsche-except szabos hi-school grad. present….reminds me-his dad gave him a chicago benge for jr. hi grad-wow. love you, bob…lou in sin city, still playing and practicing…
July 11, 2009 at 2:43 am
This is a great story, but I completely missed the point. At first, I thought it was rude that Brisbois was going to run out of your store without paying you for your work. Did you ever get paid for that job? LOL.. I imagine the story, and his old mouthpiece is worth many times more than the cost of the job!
August 3, 2009 at 11:52 pm
Really, I did not write the blog, one of the staff wrote the story. How much would you pay for IT ? The little money I’ve made I’d gladly give it back, IF Bud would return, he was a good friend. Actually, I would not sell IT, I use IT as needed to make a copy or show IT to a customer and let them play IT, upon request. YOU must not know me. Bob Reeves, you ARE ?
October 31, 2009 at 4:51 am
Hi Bob,
I am Bud’s youngest daughter. I am grateful to you for the story, and for keeping my father’s memory alive. He was a good man – a wonderful father – and as you well know – one of the all time greatest trumpet players.
November 14, 2009 at 4:24 am
I was being sarcastic, Bob.
I know who you are very well, Bob Reeves. My old trumpet teacher here in Denver spoke very highly of you, constantly and we may have even had you do some work on a mouthpiece for me. His name was Jim Grafmyer, and you may have known him through Claude Gordon.
Thanks for the great story about Bud Brisbois.
Benge Trumpets