a renowned guitarist and composer who overcame remarkable adversity to retain his place in the top echelon of jazz guitar, died Nov. 1 at his home in Philadelphia, Pa. He was 77. Martino’s career began in the late 1950s but reached its greatest heights after it nearly ended in 1980 when a brain seizure left him close to death. Emergency surgery removed 70 percent of his temporal lobe, leaving him with severe amnesia that blocked all of his. His reputation soared, and Martino made nearly 30 more recordings in as many years, collaborated with a bevy of high-profile musicians, and toured the world several times over.
