Jazz Articles about Jack Costanzo

About Jack Costanzo

Album Review

Peggy Lee: Too Marvelous for Words

Read "Too Marvelous for Words" reviewed by C. Michael Bailey

by C. Michael Bailey
June 30, 2026

“Every musician in town wanted that gig... She got whoever she wanted, because she was so good." --pianist Lou Levy, as quoted by James Gavin in Is That All There Is?: The Strange Life of Peggy Lee (Atria Books, 2014) Born Norma Deloris Egstrom in Jamestown, North Dakota, in 1920, Peggy Lee survived a harsh childhood through music. In 1936, she began singing on KOVC radio in Valley City, North Dakota. She later hosted her own ...

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Album Review

Jack Costanzo: Back From Havana

Read "Back From Havana" reviewed by Jim Santella

by Jim Santella
January 1, 2001

After 25 years away from the spotlight, Jack Costanzo has returned. His album features an exciting band -around 10 pieces for the most part -performing intense Afro-Cuban arrangements. Chicago native Costanzo, whose ancestry is Sicilian, has lived in Southern California since his discharge from the U.S. Navy at the end of World War II. Two years with Stan Kenton and five with Nat King Cole led to studio work, significant television and motion picture projects, and live performances as a ...