Brian Setzer's Don't Mess With A Big Band, CD Review - by J. Blake

(New York, NY)

Brian Setzer has never been considered a “blues guitarist”, but as one of the most respected and revered players to ever pickup the instrument, he has always attacked the guitar with the passion and intensity of a bluesman and the virtuosity of a jazz player. His skill is arguably unparalleled in the world of “rock music” and he has done for both rockabilly and big band jazz, what the British players did for the blues in the 1960s.

His latest live release, The Brian Setzer Orchestra’s, aptly titled, DON’T MESS WITH A BIG BAND (2CD set) highlights many of the guitar-slinger’s biggest career hits and, as usual, some astounding musicianship. Disc 1 pulls almost entirely from his big band catalogue; with the exception of fun versions of the “Batman Theme” (for the 1960s ABC television series) and Eddie Cochran’s “Summertime Blues”. Definite highlights here include the always breathtaking “Sleepwalk” (from 1998’s THE DIRTY BOOGIE) and Setzer’s unconventional take on Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Flight of the Bumblebee”; a guitar tour de force titled “Honey Man” from 2007’s WOLFGANG’S BIG NIGHT OUT.

Disc 2 finds Setzer looking back to his days with The Stray Cats, as he tackles the bulk of their biggest hits with more recent big band swing arrangements. Crowd pleasers like “Stray Cat Strut”, “Rumble in Brighton” and “Rock This Town” sound huge here, recorded live with the 18-piece orchestra. The disc closes with Setzer and company blowing the roof off of the joint with a booming big band encore of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s “The House Is Rockin’”.

DON’T MESS WITH A BIG BAND is a sizzling live of album from one of America’s greatest guitar heroes. Its only real noticeable flaw is that it doesn’t quite live up to the precedent set by The Brian Setzer Orchestra’s 2004 live effort, THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION.

It may not be “blues”, but with 19 tracks of pedal to the metal, “no-holds-barred” rockabilly/swing…is it really that far off?


If you enjoyed this article, you may also enjoy: Jimmy Vaughan Live in NYC

Thanks and keep reading American Blues News and also check out Media Wah Wah for more of this writer’s thoughts and opinions about Movies, Music, TV & More.

NYC blues fans, make sure you check out Al Green live at B.B. King's Blues Club and Grill on September 2nd and Jerry Lee Lewis on the 13th!!!

Copyright © 2010 - J. Blake. All Rights Reserved

John Pizzarelli's Rockin' In Rhythm CD Review - by J. Blake

(New York, NY)

John Pizzarelli has been called one of today’s “prime interpreters of the American Songbook” as well as a “jazz guitar virtuoso” and even “The Sultan of Swing”…ok, maybe I made that last one up, but it certainly is a title that fits. Whether it is playing guitar duets with his legendary father, leading his trio or quartet, fronting a big band or an orchestra or backing the likes of Rosemary Clooney and even James Taylor, Mr. Pizzarelli has been at the forefront of American jazz for over 25 years. His ability to interpret a lyric is masterful and his guitar-style brilliantly blends the technical proficiency that the genre has become known for, with an energy, feeling and soulfulness that is more a kin to the blues greats than many of today’s modern jazz “heroes”.

With his latest Telarc release, ROCKIN’ IN RHYTHM, Pizzarelli honors one of jazz’s most beloved and greatest stars, Duke Ellington. No stranger to the “tribute album”, the 49 year-old guitar-playing-crooner approaches this latest studio effort with the same amount of detail, care and unpredictability that made his previous tributes to Nat ‘King’ Cole, Frank Sinatra and Richard Rogers wonderfully unique and specific. Unlike so many albums celebrating the work of a single artist, Pizzarelli consistently manages to put his own personal stamp on familiar favorites while also highlighting slightly less recognized (and often forgotten) gems.

“East St. Louis Toodle-On” and “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore” get the John Pizzarelli treatment here by being skillfully woven into a single track; while not only paying tribute to “The Duke”, but also Steely Dan, whose 1974 recording of “East St. Louis Toodle-On” admittedly served as inspiration of this album’s arrangement. Other laidback highlights include a solo-guitar rendition of “Just Squeeze Me” and “Satin Doll”, which features some of the album’s most beautiful guitar-work; courtesy of Pizzarelli’s legendary father Bucky.

Ballads and vocal standards aside, Pizzarelli and his horn-heavy band, affectionately known as the “Swing 7”, are at their best when they are living up to their title and thankfully a tribute album to one the finest big band leaders of all time is the perfect venue. “C Jam Blues” (featuring saxophonist Harry Allen and violinist Aaron Weinstein) and a medley of “Cottontail” and “Rockin’ in Rhythm” (serving as the album’s finale) highlight not only the music of a jazz legend and the individual talents of a magnificent band, but also the art of swing and bebop. Pizzarelli is in top form here as he and conductor/arranger Don Sebesky navigate their seemingly fearless crew through well-charted, yet still treacherous waters. These tracks alone are worth the price of the CD and as a bit of a suggestion; when you’re listening to them...turn it up!

ROCKIN’ IN RHTYHM expertly explores the work of one of America’s greatest musical treasures and Pizzarelli once again proves that he’s not just a talented guitarist and singer, but a gifted artist, interpreter and leader. This is jazz at its finest.

*other guests on the album include vocalists Kurt Elling & Jessica Molaskey

John Pizzarelli and The Swing 7 will be performing at the historic Birdland jazz club in NYC from tonight (Tuesday, March 9th) through Saturday, March 13th. Visit http://www.birdlandjazz.com/ for more information.


*If you enjoyed this article, you may also enjoy: The First Family of Jazz


Thanks and keep reading American Blues News!!!

Copyright © 2010 - J. Blake. All Rights Reserved

NEW YORK: The First Family Of Jazz - by J. Blake

It was December 1997, I was in college and I was desperately trying to figure out what I was going to get my Father for the holidays. If I recall correctly he seemed to be on a big jazz-kick at the time and of course, like many Italian families, mine consisted of a long line of Sinatra fanatics. So I completely lucked out when one night, while I was watching Late Night with Conan O’Brien (not to be mistaken with the new Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien) the musical guest was a young singer/guitarist that completely rocked (for lack of a better term) a version of the Vincent Rose, Al Jolson & BG DeSylva composition, Avalon (made famous by the Nat ‘King’ Cole Trio). The artist’s name was John Pizzarelli and he was promoting a CD titled OUR LOVE IS HERE TO STAY.

The following morning I went out and bought it for my Father. I gave it to him for Christmas and in a slightly ironic turn of events, I was the only one that listened to it during that entire visit and I happen to do so several times (a ritual that continued with Pizzarelli CDs for the next 5 or 6 Christmases*). The minute I got back to school I went out and bought myself a copy of OUR LOVE IS HERE TO STAY, along with an album titled DEAR MR. COLE (a Pizzarelli tribute to the Cole Trio, featuring bassist Christian McBride) and a couple of CDs that John recorded with his legendary Father, guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli.

I played them for my suite-mate (Chris) and we both instantly fell in love with the music of the Pizzarellis. One day Chris came running into my room exclaiming that both Bucky and John were going to be performing at our college theater! After months of eagerly waiting, we of course went to the show and it sealed the deal. We were both completely and officially hooked. After John and his trio performed an entire set, Chris and I looked at each other and said “this is the greatest guitarist we’ve ever seen!” Then for the second set John and Bucky came out and played guitar duets and we had to instantly retract our previous statement, because Bucky easily seized the title right out from under his son. It was definitely the best live show I had seen up to that point and even though I was only the ripe young age of 19, I had already seen Clapton, Buddy Guy, Bo Diddley, Ray Charles and B.B. King (among others). The musicianship of John, Bucky, Martin (John’s younger brother and bassist) and Ray Kennedy (John’s then pianist) was astounding and John’s charm and humor really made it an amazing “performance”, not just a concert.

After that, he was officially one of my favorite musicians and member of a very select group that I called my “guitar-heroes”. For the next few years I followed his career, buying his CDs and trying to turn other people I knew into fans, but for some reason I didn’t see him again live until 2002. My best friend (Dion) and I saw him at a jazz festival in Connecticut that summer. It was an outdoor event and in a complete stroke of luck we somehow ended up getting to the show over 2 hours early; enabling us to watch the rehearsal/sound check. John was playing with a local big band that night and they were going over the set list. It was fascinating to watch the process and then amazing to see how that set list came alive during the actual show, especially with Bucky added into the mix. That day, during the hour or so between the rehearsal and the actual show, I got to meet John briefly and actually hangout a bit with his brother/bassist, Martin. Little did I know then, that arriving so outrageously early to that show would lead to a professional and personal friendship with the Pizzarellis that has now lasted 7 years.

During those 7 years I have seen John and Martin perform more times then I can count and they are consistently amazing. This past week their shows at New York’s legendary jazz club, Birdland, were no exception. For 5 nights (2 sets a night) they wowed New York’s jazz-going public with an event they called The Pizza Party, named for Arbors Records’ recent CD release titled PIZZArelli PARTY. Like so many things involving John and Martin, both the shows and CD were a family affair. The John Pizzarelli Quartet (featuring Martin on bass, pianist Larry Fuller and drummer Tony Tedesco) were joined by Bucky on guitar (but for only the first 2 nights), Pizzarelli regular Harry Allen on tenor saxophone, newcomer Aaron Weinstein on violin and Rebecca Kilgore and Jessica Molaskey on vocals (Jessica also happens to be John’s lovely wife and Radio Deluxe co-host, as well as a Broadway veteran).

The live sets were made up of mostly material from the CD, which is a laid back collection of classic jazz standards, jazz rarities, smooth/walkin’ blues instrumentals and clever Pizzarelli penned homages. As all great live performances do, the Birdland shows added a new energy to the material; the Gershwin classic Lady Be Good swung even harder live than the recording and with the Pizzarelli original Strollin’ Over to Nola (Gonna Play Some Blues), John’s playing took on a much more classic “blues” feel. Other highlights, for both the CD and shows, include John’s original instrumentals Joe and Zoot (a tribute to Joe Venuti and Zoot Sims) and You Be the Judge (a tribute to bassist Milt Hinton), as well as the very rare and all but forgotten Gershwin, Harburg and Arlen composition, I Knew Him When; in which Kilgore and Molaskey's vocals provided a poignancy to both the live performances and CD with their beautiful vocal duet.

You may have missed the PIZZArelli PARTY live, but I strongly recommend that you try to catch any or all of these performers when they’re playing (or singing) in a city near you and of course the CD is now available for purchase. So as John would say “I urge you all to buy in bulk.”

*as a little postscript...it may have taken a few years, but I’m happy to say that the minute I dragged my Father to a live Pizzarelli show….he too became a fan.

Keep Swingin',
J. Blake

Check out some NYC Blues with J. Blake & The Earthquake at: www.myspace.com/jblaketheearthquake or http://www.livebluesworld.com/profile/JBlakeTheEarthquake as well as on Facebook.

***live photographs supplied by flickr4jazz

ALBUM OF THE WEEK:

PIZZArelli Party (Arbors Records)