John Pizzarelli – Stage & Screen (2023)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:01:43 minutes | 1,01 GB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Palmetto Records
I’ve been making “records” as a leader for 40 years as of 2023. They have been in all different iterations and themes.
In the past few years, having gone back to smaller group recordings, I’ve made my way back to what I like best…the dreamless trio and to a theme I haven’t explored before-Stage and Screen, music from the Broadway stage and the movies.
In putting together my latest trio, Mike Karn on double bass and Isaiah J Thompson on piano, I looked for a new repertoire of songs for us to learn together aside from the things I’ve played with my groups over a 33 year period. I discovered that this new set of songs had the theater or the moving picture in common.
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John Pizzarelli – My Blue Heaven (1990/2003)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 59:51 minutes | 1,32 GB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Chesky Records
Chesky Records release. Sweet-tempered, laid back, small-band swing with vocals a la the King Cole Trio with a bit of Dave Frishberg tossed in. John Pizarelli, the pleasingly old-fashioned and engaging guitarist and singer, is backed up by dad Bucky Pizzarelli, Clark Terry, Dave McKenna, Milt Hinton and Konnie Kay.
“John amply demonstrates his flexibility as both an instrumentalist and a singer in 14 tunes that range from quality Tin Pan Alley pops to Ellingtonia…this set will go a long way toward establishing the younger Pizzarelli on a level presently enjoyed by his widely respected father.” – Jazz Times
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John Pizzarelli – John Pizzarelli Trio: Live At Birdland (2xSACD) (2003)
PS3 Rip | SACD ISO | DST64 2.0 & 5.1 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 131:41 minutes | Scans included | 7,63 GB
or FLAC 2.0 Stereo (converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | 131:32 mins | Scans | 2,35 GB
This is a wonderful, warm-hearted, and effortlessly virtuosic live recording by one of the finest living exponents of pre-bop small-ensemble jazz. With pianist Ray Kennedy and bassist Martin Pizzarelli (and on two songs joined by vocalist Grover Kemble), singer and guitarist John Pizzarelli runs through a generally lightweight but thoroughly charming set of standards, homages, funny stories, and the occasional original tune; the fast tunes are light and frothy, the ballads smooth and gentle, and even the moments that are less than utterly inspired work together with the album’s highlights to create a very satisfying whole. John Pizzarelli has a suit sponsor, which tells you something about what to expect of him as a singer: his voice is smooth and warm, offering a nice combination of Chet Baker’s timbre and Dean Martin’s fullness; as a guitarist you need to know that he favors seven-string guitars and flat-wound strings, leading him naturally to a swinging Django Reinhardt-meets-Freddie Green kind of sound. As for the trio’s instrumentation, it’s true that when you can comp with this kind of authority you don’t technically need a drummer. But on a few tracks a drummer would have filled out the band’s sound nicely. Highlights include the group’s fun, slightly greasy take on “Frim Fram Sauce” and a great ode to Art Tatum called “Tea for Tatum,” as well as a fine original blues composition titled “Headed Out to Vera’s.” Pizzarelli’s own “Oh, How My Heart Beats for You” and “Day I Found You” are also wonderful. But the album’s standout track is a limpidly gorgeous rendition of another original, “Better Run Before It’s Spring.” Pizzarelli is obviously having a blast in the intimate setting of the legendary Birdland club, and so will any jazz lover who takes the time to listen. Very highly recommended.
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John Pizzarelli – Dear Mr. Sinatra (2006)
PS3 Rip | ISO | SACD DST64 2.0 & 5.1 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 39:00 minutes | Scans included | 2,41 GB
or FLAC 2.0 Stereo (converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | Scans included | 774 MB
John Pizzarelli, one of the most celebrated performers bringing popular standards to a new generation, pays homage to Frank Sinatra with the release of Dear Mr. Sinatra. Early in his career, Pizzarelli opened for Sinatra on tour. His father, the jazz guitar legend Bucky Pizzarelli, played on many of Sinatra’s seminal recordings. Focusing on songs that were specifically written for ‘Ol’ Blue Eyes’ and also featuring The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra, Dear Mr. Sinatra is in many ways the most personal of all the Sinatra tributes available.
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Johnny Frigo featuring John & Bucky Pizzarelli – Live from Studio A (1988) [Reissue 2003]
PS3 Rip | SACD ISO | DST64 2.0 & 5.1 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 54:55 minutes | Scans included | 3,08 GB
or FLAC(converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | Scans included | 1,03 GB
Features 2.0 Stereo & 5.1 multichannel Surround sound
At the age of 71, Johnny Frigo finally had his debut as a leader on record, with the exception of an obscure effort in 1957. Although he had spent much of his career as a studio bassist, Frigo successfully switched full-time to his first love, the violin, and was immediately considered one of the top swing-based violinists. Joined by both Bucky and John Pizzarelli on guitars, either Ron Carter or Michael Moore on bass, and drummer Butch Miles, Frigo is in wonderful form on 14 standards, including “Pick Yourself Up,” “Detour Ahead” (which he had co-written while with the Soft Winds in the late ’40s), “Stompin’ at the Savoy” and “The Song Is You.” This recommended album launched the Chesky label.
Read more![John Pizzarelli - Sinatra & Jobim @ 50 (2017) [Official Digital Download 24bit/44,1kHz] Download](https://i0.wp.com/imghd.xyz/images/2023/03/27/kj8rpr9w70rrc_600.jpg?resize=500%2C500&ssl=1)
John Pizzarelli – Sinatra & Jobim @ 50 (2017)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 51:24 minutes | 548 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Concord Jazz
Two of John Pizzarelli’s greatest influences, Frank Sinatra and the bossa nova composer Antonio Carlos Jobim, joined forces in 1967 to present a softer, sultrier side of Sinatra on the heels of ‘That’s Life’ and ‘Strangers in the Night’. Half a century later, John Pizzarelli is celebrating that unique gathering with his Concord Jazz release Sinatra & Jobim @ 50.
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John Pizzarelli – Dear Mr. Sinatra (2006/2018)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 39:20 minutes | 1,84 GB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Telarc
John Pizzarelli, one of the most celebrated performers bringing popular standards to a new generation, pays homage to Frank Sinatra with the release of Dear Mr. Sinatra. Early in his career, Pizzarelli opened for Sinatra on tour. His father, the jazz guitar legend Bucky Pizzarelli, played on many of Sinatra’s seminal recordings. Focusing on songs that were specifically written for ‘Ol’ Blue Eyes’ and also featuring The Clayton- Hamilton Jazz Orchestra, Dear Mr. Sinatra is in many ways the most personal of all the Sinatra tributes available. Dear Mr. Sinatra, follows Pizzarelli’s highly-acclaimed tributes to Nat King Cole (Dear Mr. Cole and P.S. Mr. Cole), Antonio Carlos Jobim (Bossa Nova) and The Beatles (John Pizzarelli Meets The Beatles).
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![John Pizzarelli - Better Days Ahead (Solo Guitar Takes on Pat Metheny) (2021) [Official Digital Download 24bit/44,1kHz] Download](https://i0.wp.com/imghd.xyz/images/2023/03/27/tv7by0gbx96dc_600.jpg?resize=500%2C500&ssl=1)
John Pizzarelli – Better Days Ahead (Solo Guitar Takes on Pat Metheny) (2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 57:49 minutes | 450 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Ghostlight Records
World-renowned jazz guitarist, singer and recent Grammy Award-winning producer John Pizzarelli takes on the songs of Pat Metheny in his new album “Better Days Ahead”. Having loved the recordings of the Pat Metheny Group since his teenage years, Pizzarelli welcomed the challenge of diving deep into Metheny’s cannon of dense, moving material and deconstructing Pat Metheny’s group arrangements on his seven-string guitar. “To say it was flattering to have John address these tunes is an understatement. I had no idea that it was all leading to this excellent solo guitar recording of my tunes” says Methany.
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John Pizzarelli – Midnight McCartney (2015)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 49:51 minutes | 557 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download – Source: HDTracks | © Concord Records
When Paul McCartney wrote John Pizzarelli a letter suggesting he record an album of the former Beatle’s songs, the jazz guitarist and singer quickly signed on.
“I got an idea got in my head,” McCartney wrote to Pizzarelli in late May 2014. “It might be interesting for you to do a few of my songs that are lesser known than some of the others. I realize this may be a little immodest, if not pushy.” “I imagine the songs would include post-Beatles melodies of mine like ‘Love in the Open Air’ (from the soundtrack to 1967 film The Family Way), ‘Junk,’ ‘Warm and Beautiful’ and, possibly, ‘My Valentine.’”
McCartney concluded in his letter, “The attraction for me is lesser-known tunes done in a mellow jazz style and, if it gets some traction, maybe the album could be titled Midnight McCartney. As I said, this may tickle your fancy or you may decide these are the ramblings of a deranged composer with too much time on his hands.”
To say Pizzarelli was tickled is putting it mildly. Pizzarelli, his wife Jessica Molaskey – co-producer of Midnight McCartney – and pianist Larry Goldings immediately went into research mode, digging through McCartney’s albums of the last 45-plus years to find songs that could be re-harmonized and adapted for Pizzarelli’s trademark style.
Recorded at Jacob Burns Film Center and Media Arts Lab in Pleasantville, N.Y. (more…)
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