Buffalo News critic Jeff Simon once wrote: “Who is the most beloved person in the City of Buffalo, who is neither an athlete nor TV personality? As fast as the question came, so did the answer: Joey Giambra.” I have known Joey for nearly forty years and I agreed with Simon when he wrote: “Everyone who knows Joey tends to love the guy. At the very least, they grin whenever they hear his name.”

Giambra was born on the Lower West Side of Buffalo in 1933 during the swing music era, which caught his attention in a big way at an early age. As the ageless Renaissance man enters his eighty-sixth year, he has never lost his love for music or his proud heritage as an Italian American. A one-time shoeshine boy, Giambra is an accomplished jazz trumpeter, a singer, composer, lyricist, band leader, gourmet chef, and author of four books, including the print and audio biography of Russell J. Salvatore.