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Pizzarelli / Ellington: Rockin' In Rhythm
by Nick Catalano
John Pizzarelli unveiled the contents of his new Telarc CD John Pizzarelli Rockin' In Rhythm: A Tribute to Duke Ellington at Birdland recently and the result was a musical explosion. It is easy to become bored with the plethora of “tribute" CDs issued almost every week these days, but this effort is truly something special.
From the moment Pizzarelli ascended the bandstand with his “Swing Seven" cohorts the room began rocking. Not only were patrons finger popping and foot stomping ...
Continue ReadingJohn Pizzarelli: Rockin' in Rhythm
by Woodrow Wilkins
He's the captain of cool. It seems no matter which songs he performs, guitarist and vocalist John Pizzarelli always delivers a certain amount of dashing and debonair. Rockin' in Rhythm: A Tribute to Duke Ellington is no exception.Items repeatedly culled from the American Songbook can become trite. But Pizzarelli has a knack for making the old seem new, fresh, and invigorating. He was very young when Ellington died in 1974, but his father, Bucky Pizzarelli, taught him much ...
Continue ReadingJohn Pizzarelli: A Tribute to Duke Ellington
by Matthew Warnock
John Pizzarelli is a man of many talents. Singer, guitarist, bandleader and arranger, depending on the circumstances Pizzarelli can step into any or all of these roles and perform at the highest level. Coming from one of the most successful families in jazz, his brother [Martin Pizzarelli] being an accomplished bassist and father the legendary seven-string guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli, the New York-based guitarist has built a devoted fan base, inside and outside of the jazz world, that has made him ...
Continue ReadingJohn Pizzarelli: Rockin' in Rhythm: A Tribute to Duke Ellington
by C. Michael Bailey
John Pizzarelli is a walking, talking embarrassment of riches. He has a great pedigree, as his father, Bucky Pizzarelli), was a prodigious guitar talent (on a seven-string guitar, no less) with a voice like Chet Baker should have had. It is all this charm that Pizzarelli freely shares with us lesser mortals. Rockin' in Rhythm: A Tribute to Duke Ellington is a thematic collection picking up where his 2006 collection, Dear Mr. Sinatra (Telarc), left off. What more can be ...
Continue ReadingRadio Deluxe Live: The Pizzarellis Go to Tanglewood
by R.J. DeLuke
Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli and Jessica MolaskeyTanglewood Jazz FestivalLenox, MassachusettsSeptember 5, 2009
Jazz programming on national radio stations--the stuff you still get in your car or in your home for free, not satellite radio--is a rarity. That's an unfortunate thing, because lack of exposure to the music is one of the main obstacles to growing the audience.
But there are some gems out there, where people can tune in on radio and hear good ...
Continue ReadingJohn Pizzarelli: With a Song in My Heart
by Woodrow Wilkins
The American Songbook. There are times when those three words make a music listener cringe: Oh no, another album of old songs. That's not the case with John Pizzarelli. There's something about his guitar, his vocal style and the arrangements that make his recordings fun and interesting. That's doubly so on With a Song in My Heart, Pizzarelli's tribute to one of the great writers who contributed to the songbook: Richard Rodgers.
Pizzarelli began playing guitar ... Continue ReadingJohn Pizzarelli and The Hot Club Of Detroit
by Nick Catalano
As he continues his prolific recording career John Pizzarelli faces greater challenges in searching for material that can result in successful, fresh performances. He has covered most of the legends of the American Songbook and, in his latest session for Telarc, he examines the music of Richard Rodgers. This composer's music has, of course, been gleaned by countless performers and any attempt to come up with “something new" faces stern tests. But Pizzarelli's multifarious musical talents (producing, vocalizing, playing) have ...
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