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New York Beat

Nick Catalano has a beat on the Big Apple. Find out what's cookin' in NYC.

NEW YORK BEAT September 16, 2016

John Pizzarelli Soars at Birdland

By NICK CATALANO

Wowing a late night crowd of worshipful fans at a packed Birdland, John Pizzarelli showcased his guitar mastery, vocal excitement, and hilarious patter this past Saturday night. Accompanied by his Swing Seven band of jazz all-stars, the scion of the famed New Jersey Pizzarelli clan (guitarist father Bucky will celebrate his 90th birthday this week at the Jazz Gallery) continued his world-renown jazz parade with a set featuring the work of legendary composers. Pizzarelli has performed in ...

NEW YORK BEAT August 18, 2016

Joey DeFrancesco at Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola

By NICK CATALANO

As the New York August heat blazed onto the streets on Saturday night (August 13th), Joey DeFrancesco and his trio rocketed into Dizzy's with their own burning repertoire. The B-3 wizard played four selections from his new HighNote CD Trip Mode and had an audience which included Bill Charlap, Paquito D'Rivera, and Todd Barkan roaring with approval for the tunes--some written with metronome settings breaking the sound barrier. The new group features guitarist Dan Wilson and drummer ...

NEW YORK BEAT June 13, 2016

Clifford Brown and Max Roach in 1954: New Research

By NICK CATALANO

Jazz history is all about revisionism. New material about musicians--biographical information, newly discovered recordings and photos, corrected anecdotes and stories -are some of the areas where history is constantly evolving. This is an important process and writers should always be aware of it and report its occurrences. Since I published my book on Clifford Brown Clifford Brown: The Life and Art of the Legendary Jazz Trumpeter (Oxford University Press, 2000) I have been contacted by individuals who ...

NEW YORK BEAT April 9, 2016

Steve Miller and Jimmie Vaughan at Jazz at Lincoln Center

By NICK CATALANO

No matter what the style where African-American influences and developments upon the modern music scene have been pervasive--work songs, ragtime, jazz, stride, and boogie-woogie, the most important contribution has been the Blues. The country Blues as heard by pioneers such as Robert Johnson, The City Blues epitomized by Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith, Rhythm n' Blues as iterated by players like Robert Cray continue to provide the major foundation for jazz and the other aforementioned musics. Muddy Waters, B.B. King ...

NEW YORK BEAT February 9, 2016

Pat Martino at The Jazz Standard

By NICK CATALANO

On Thursday February 4 paradigmatic guitarist Pat Martino led his trio into The Jazz Standard for another seminal Big Apple performance. Gotham has been very lucky in recent years as Martino has rarely missed an opportunity to perform here and has headlined at most of the leading clubs. Quintessential hard swing has long been a Martino trademark and his signature phrasing along with his uncanny picking style immediately roared across the bandstand as the group opened with ...

NEW YORK BEAT November 23, 2015

Carol Fredette at Jazz at Kitano

By NICK CATALANO

Carol Fredette Jazz at Kitano New York, NY November 19, 2015 Jazz at Kitano, the club in Gotham's Kitano Hotel on Park Ave. and 38th St., continues to grow in popularity with artists and audiences alike -the former avidly competing for the best dates and the latter chatting about the room's intimacy and sensible pricing policy. On November 19th we caught Carol Fredette's opening set joining the packed house ...

NEW YORK BEAT October 28, 2015

Juilliard Jazz Ensemble at Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola

By NICK CATALANO

One of the most important booking traditions established early on at Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola is “Monday Student Night" where pupils are admitted for a small fee and are able to see and hear outstanding musicians. Very quickly, Mondays became showcases for two of Gotham's premier music schools--The Manhattan School of Music and The Juilliard School of Music. Both institutions have top notch jazz ensembles and I have frequently taken my music students at Pace University down to the club where ...

NEW YORK BEAT July 8, 2015

Erik Charlston at Cafe Wha

By NICK CATALANO

Erik Charlston and JazzBrasil, a sextet from his CD Essentially Hermeto (Sunnyside) came to Café Wha for a one set offering of their music on Sunday June 28. Charlston has gained wide attention for his knowledge and performances of the music of Hermeto Pascoal. This illustrious composer/ musician/producer from Lagoa da Canoa, Alagoas, whose genius has been woefully neglected by American jazz writers, stands at the very top rung of Brazilian music and, through the years, the few times that ...