Vic Juris: Endless Pursuit of Perfection

Introduction by Corey Christiansen

In the early 2000s, I was senior editor at Mel Bay Publications, Inc. and I was immersed in the guitar scene. I had high exposure to every genre but jazz was my passion and frankly, my focus. While I was starting to embark on my own touring and recording career I was also on the quest to find the best players and teachers in the world in hopes that we could publish their materials at Mel Bay. I kept hearing the name “Vic Juris” from all the players I respected but (embarrassingly) was not familiar with him. In 2002, I heard Vic was playing with Dave Liebman in St. Louis, where I was living at the time. I ran down to Jazz at the Bistro to hear him play. In short, my jaw was on the ground after the first set. I remember another STL guitarist asking me what I thought, and I told him I thought we all needed to get to work. 

Vic’s melodic, harmonic and rhythmic prowess just simply blew me away. I felt like I’d heard the guitar the way I had wanted to hear it played for years. He had everything in his sound.  The history of jazz guitar was in his playing with depth but with a modern esthetic and original vibe, all while being supported by one of the most gorgeous tones I’d ever heard. I introduced myself to Vic at the bar and long story short, offered him a contract to start writing and publishing some of his ideas. 

That night could have been one of the most important nights for me in a number of ways. Vic and I not only worked on educational curriculum together, but he also recorded A Second Look for Mel Bay Records which led to us collaborating on a number of projects together. While we were collaborators, I did not ever consider us colleagues. He was the master and I was an apprentice. He became one of, if not THE, most important mentors of my professional career. He was so supportive and encouraging of my efforts and offered at least one piece of advice after each gig. These were well-thought out nuggets of information that profoundly affected my approach to the music. Vic was simply an inspiration on every level. On stage, he did things that I’ve never heard another guitarist do. In the studio, his insight was deep and based on decades of mastery. As we traveled, the nuggets of life advice were inspirational. 

Vic’s playing is fiery, and tender, and everything in between. His composing and arranging is nothing short of compelling. And all of this is wrapped up in a calmness that is unique. Everything his plays is clear and always executed with precision. Simply put, Vic is just Superbad. SUPERBAD. For those who know Vic and/or his playing, you know what I mean and are already drinking the Kool-Aid. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Vic and his music, you need to be familiar. To me he represents all that is good in the music.