Dear Mr. Sinatra, John Pizzarelli on Telarc Records

Dear Mr. Sinatra not only pays tribute to some of the greatest songs ever performed during the past century but highlights the remarkable talent of singer/guitarist John Pizzarelli. He teamed up with arranger John Clayton and The John Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra to provide brilliant interpretations of songs such as "Ring A Ding Ding", "I've Got You Under My Skin", "Nice 'n' Easy" and "If I Had You". These breathless renditions will have you leading your partner to the dance floor.

Pizzarelli isn't merely recording and performing the songs you have heard before but he is giving them a new voice. "I think when I started out I liked the sound of the Nat King Cole Trio and in the beginning they (Pizzarelli's songs) were more cover versions than they were John Pizzarelli versions. I think the Sinatra CD is the best example of my saying, 'Here is what I am going to do and here is how we are going to go about it.' It wasn't like we were covering the songs but we were totally remaking them. I think in the last five, six, seven years I have been really lucky to be able to say this is how I sound and I am going to do these songs without thinking that I am going to do them like Nat King Cole or whoever. I feel more confident now that I am doing songs as John Pizzarelli."

I had never heard of the Lynne Arriale Trio prior to a show at the Dakota in Minneapolis about five years ago. I promptly went out and bought every CD I could find, which at that time included maybe six artfully crafted, low profile recordings. Now with more than a decade of collaboration, the Lynne Arriale Trio celebrates its tenth release with Live (on Motema Music’s In & Out Records), recorded during Burghausen Jazz Week in spring 2005. One can only hope that the enthusiasm of this German audience will prompt a similar reception on this side of the Atlantic, where the trio remains far less visible despite individual and collective talents that easily compare favorably to the perennial high flyers (Jarrett, Mehdlau, Moran, Charlap), and perhaps even more so to the critically acclaimed (if also less familiar) ensembles of Fred Hersch and Kenny Werner.

Half the Perfect World

As it happens, Klein is Mitchell’s ex-producer, ex-bass player, and ex-husband. And “River” is a song about Christmas, sort of . . . actually, it’s more about self-recrimination, longing, and regret for love stupidly lost. Mitchell’s original recording on the spare and searing Blue (1971, not produced by Klein) still makes you want to rip your heart out.

John Lee

Recently I spoke to John Lee, bassist and co-producer for the album. We talked about the Gillespie tunes that appear on this CD, why the band was originally formed, and his personal encounters with the late jazz master.

There are three original Gillespie songs on the album, "Con Alma," "Blue ’N Boogie" and "Tour de Force." Lee says, “We are still playing some of the older arrangements because Dizzy’s music is so unique. It is so unlike any other band’s music. It is more solo oriented and the charts are so bebop based.” He makes the point that the element of bebop and the opportunity for soloists is much more pronounced in Gillespie’s music than in that of his contemporaries such as Count Bassie or Duke Ellington. “It was unique at the time and it is still unique,” he says.

Consequence of Chaos

There are people who are different just for the sake of being different and then there are those who stand out because they are so much more accomplished than most of their contemporaries. Al Di Meola is someone who definitely belongs to the latter group. He has always been that way. Growing up in New Jersey, he was an accomplished jazz, bosa nova and classical guitar player while still in his early teens. While the other kids were listening to Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix and Jimmy Page, the boy from Jersey City was learning more sophisticated music. We should point out (smile) that it was more because of the insistence of his instructor than his own decision. In fact, even today Di Meola freely admits he wanted to learn how to play Beatle’s tunes and songs by the Ventures.

Duo - Irv Williams and Peter Schimke

Take two long-time collaborators separated by a generation (or more) of musical experience who nevertheless fit together as soulmates, and send them into the studio with no distractions from other instruments. It’s a recipe for a most elegant musical mousse. To be released with a celebration at the Artists Quarter on October 8^th, Duo (Ding Dong Music) marks a new high point in the careers of both Irv Williams and Peter Schimke. “Mr. Smooth” at 87 is blowing sweeter than ever, while the much younger Schimke seems totally removed from his rock roots and even from his usual post bop fury. Schimke particularly shines in a less rambunctious, more restrained and more lyrical role. Flowing like a small suite, Duo is really a volume of sonic love poems, the two musicians following individual journeys that complement each other without tracing the same steps.