Jazz Articles about John Pizzarelli

About John Pizzarelli

Album Review

John Pizzarelli: Dear Mr. Bennett

Read "Dear Mr. Bennett" reviewed by Pierre Giroux

by Pierre Giroux
March 28, 2026

John Pizzarelli has long been one of the most refined interpreters of The Great American Songbook, a musician who understands that this repertoire thrives not only on reverence but also on personality, swing, and storytelling. With Dear Mr. Bennett, Pizzarelli offers a heartfelt tribute to the incomparable Tony Bennett, whose phrasing, warmth, and commitment to timeless songs have influenced generations of singers. Joined by bassist Mike Karn and pianist Isaiah J. Thompson, Pizzarelli revisits material connected with Bennett, ...

Live Review

John Pizzarelli at Blues Alley

by Mark Edelman
December 19, 2024

John Pizzarelli Blues AlleyWashington, DC December 8, 2024 When you're part of a jazz dynasty--son of guitar-great Bucky Pizzarelli, husband of chanteuse Jessica Molaskey--it's only natural that you'd ring in the holiday season for us peasants with a Christmas carol or two. John Pizzarelli warmed up the crowd at DC's venerable Blues Alley with a swinging mug of wassail alongside classics from the Great American songbook and some original tunes for good measure. In ...

Live Review

John Pizzarelli Live at Scullers Jazz Club

by Doug Hall
June 9, 2023

John Pizzarelli Scullers Jazz Club Debut of new album Stage & Screen Cambridge, MA June 2, 2023 With an evening dedicated to the American Songbook, acclaimed jazz guitarist and vocalist, John Pizzarelli, performed with his jazz trio at the intimate cocktail-lounge setting of Scullers Jazz Club for a small but dedicated audience. Pizzarelli was set to play selections from his new release, which he is touring on, Stage and Screen (Palmetto Records, 2023). This ...

Album Review

John Pizzarelli: Stage & Screen

Read "Stage & Screen" reviewed by Pierre Giroux

by Pierre Giroux
May 19, 2023

Guitarist/vocalist John Pizzarelli's Stage & Screen salutes songs from Broadway and Hollywood. However, there is also a subtext in five songs on the track list in which “time" is featured either prominently or covertly, as it deals with love lost, found, unrequited or déjà vu. In this recital, Pizzarelli is joined by bassist Mike Karn and pianist Isaiah J. Thompson as they work smoothly together to trace the harmonic seams and essence of each tune. The ...

Album Review

John Pizzarelli: Stage & Screen

Read "Stage & Screen" reviewed by Steve Monroe

by Steve Monroe
April 24, 2023

Evoking heartfelt memories of love and longing, sunshine, laughter and more, vocalist/guitarist John Pizzarelli's Stage & Screen delivers vibrant interpretations of classic songs from Broadway and Hollywood. The album provides not only nostalgia and hopeful vibes, but what amounts to orchestral artistry by Pizzarelli, pianist Isaiah J. Thompson and bassist Mike Karn as a bonus. Pizzarelli, a Grammy award winner and long an internationally acclaimed performer and entertainer, has been credited as being a prime interpreter of the Great American ...

Album Review

Ann Hampton Callaway: Fever: A Peggy Lee Celebration

Read "Fever: A Peggy Lee Celebration" reviewed by Richard J Salvucci

by Richard J Salvucci
January 18, 2023

Peggy Lee was a remarkable singer and songwriter, but to some listeners, deeply enigmatic. Her time, often well behind the beat, conveyed a subtle sense of irony. “Are you getting this?" she sometimes seemed to say, “or am I going too fast for you?" She could be exuberant and world weary almost in the same breath. It was seemingly up to the audience to decipher her meaning. Lee could convey expectation and experience simultaneously, as in her version of “Folks ...

Album Review

John Pizzarelli: Better Days Ahead: Solo Guitar Takes on Pat Metheny

Read "Better Days Ahead: Solo Guitar Takes on Pat Metheny" reviewed by Richard J Salvucci

by Richard J Salvucci
July 19, 2021

Only two things are required to enjoy this recording: a love of beautiful compositions, and an affection for inspired playing. If you are a fan of Pat Metheny or John Pizzarelli, “Better Days Ahead" will be rewarding in ways not accessible to a more casual or less informed listener. On the other hand, if you have spent an evening listening to classical, and especially, to Spanish guitar, or if you think you do not like jazz, you owe it to ...