Joe Baiza (born January 11, 1952) is a
punk rock and
jazz guitarist whom
Eugene Chadbourne cites as one of the most noteworthy guitarists to emerge from the Southern California punk rock milieu. Baiza is a founding member of the bands
Saccharine Trust,
Universal Congress Of, and The Mecolodiacs. He also performed guest guitar spots on several
Minutemen tracks and played alongside
Black Flag's
Greg Ginn and
Chuck Dukowski in the SST all-star jam band
October Faction, recording two albums with them. Baiza was also part of the musical side project Nastassya Filippovna which featured Bob Lee (drums),
Devin Sarno (bass) and
Mike Watt (bass). He substituted for
Nels Cline during
Mike Watt's European and American tours behind his second solo album,
Contemplating the Engine Room, in 1997 and 1998. Also in 1997, he and Cline played (sometimes together) in the band Solo Career with Lee (drums), Richard Derrick (bass), Walter Zooi (trumpet) and Gustavo Aguilar (percussion); other guitarists in that rotating ensemble included Mario Lalli, Woody Aplanalp and Ken Rosser. Currently, he is in the reunited Saccharine Trust as well as the improvisational unit
Unknown Instructors with former
Minutemen Mike Watt and
George Hurley.
Opening on October 26, 2013 and running until December The Cornelius Projects in San Pedro hosts
'The Mind of Joe Baiza - Paintings, Drawings, Photographs & Artifacts