- John Pizzarelli
Infobox musical artist
Name = John Pizzarelli
Img_capt =
Img_size =
Landscape =
Background = non_vocal_instrumentalist
Birth_name = John Paul Pizzarelli Jr.
Alias =
Born = Birth date and age|1960|4|6
Died =
Origin = U.S.
Instrument =Guitar Vocals
Voice_type =
Genre = SwingVocal jazz
Occupation =Guitarist jazz singer Songwriter
Years_active =
Label =Telarc Records (current)RCA Records
Novus RecordsChesky Records
Stash Records
Associated_acts =Bucky Pizzarelli Martin Pizzarelli Jessica Molaskey Rosemary Clooney Clark Terry
URL =
Current_members =
Past_members =
Notable_instruments =John Pizzarelli, Jr. (born
April 6 ,1960 ) is anItalian-American jazz guitarist ,vocalist ,songwriter andbandleader born inPaterson, New Jersey . He is married totorch singer Jessica Molaskey with whom he has recorded on each of her albums, and is the son of legendary jazz guitaristBucky Pizzarelli .Pizzarelli has had a lengthy career as a recording artist, performing for a variety of labels that include
Telarc Records ,RCA Records andChesky Records , among others. He has recorded twenty-three albums of his own, as well as other joint recordings with his father. Additionally, he has appeared on more than forty albums of other recording artists, including those ofJames Taylor ,Rosemary Clooney and his wife Jessica.Pizzarelli often performs with his own
jazz trio , comprised of his brotherMartin Pizzarelli ondouble-bass andLarry Fuller onpiano . He is also sometimes compared to anotherjazz singer ,Harry Connick, Jr. , for his performances ofjazz standards and overall popularity. John has appeared in commercials forFoxwoods Casino , and he and his wife are also hosts of their own jazz radio program (Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli ).Music & Performance
Despite his young age, John Pizzarelli has recorded nearly 40
album s ofmusic , either as the leader or in tandem with other performers. Among others, Pizzarelli has recorded with such luminaries asGeorge Shearing ,Rosemary Clooney ,Johnny Frigo andBuddy DeFranco , as well as theBoston Pops Orchestra . Many if not most of his albums have received good to excellent reviews and are very popular sellers. Additionally, he has been a guest performer on numerous records throughout his career.Particularly lauded for his swinging interpretations of
jazz standards , Pizzarelli also composes his own songs, some of which have achieved a sort of modern "standard" status in their own right. He is also a fan ofbossa nova and released an album entirely composed of that type of music.Perhaps his most famous and highly-regarded album, though, is
Dear Mr. Cole , an album featuring Pizzarelli's versions of some of Nat "King" Cole's most famous songs. Interestingly, the John Pizzarelli Trio only appears together on track one of the album,Style is Back in Style . The rest of the album features Pizzarelli performing withChristian McBride on bass and Benny Green on piano.Pizzarelli is also known for his winning personality, and his great
rapport withaudience s during his live performances has gone a long way to garnering him cachet with the jazz public. He is also known to sing his solo lines while playing his guitar.Pizzarelli also sings the theme for Foxwoods Casino, "The Wonder of It All."He now leads a quartet that includes Tony Tedesco drums, Larry Fuller on Piano and his brother Martin on bass.
John Pizzarelli and his wife, singer Jessica Molaskey co-host the nationally syndicated weekly radio program "Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli."
Personal life
Pizzarelli grew up in
Bergen County ,New Jersey and attendedDon Bosco Preparatory High School inRamsey, NJ , an all-boys Roman Catholic High School. He frequently expresses pride about being from New Jersey; a fan favorite at his live shows is the Cosgriff-Bernardi numberI Like Jersey Best , a largely humorous tribute to the Garden State.Pizzarelli is a huge
Boston Red Sox fan, and has played baseball (in one capacity or another) all his life. Inhigh school he split his time between studying music and playingsport s. As he once said in aninterview : "I wasn't making any of the sports teams and I was a big sports fanatic. That's when I realized there was a reason why I was going to band practice." In April, 2007 he performed at theBLOHARDS luncheon at TheYale Club of New York City , the BLOHARDS beingRed Sox Nation chapter in New York. [ [http://www.blohards.com/letter0704.html News From the BLOHARDs ] ]He married singer
Jessica Molaskey in 1998, and the couple have a daughter, Madeleine Elizabeth. Pizzarelli also has a son John Paul Pizzarelli.He appeared on the
March 31 ,2007 episode of the NPR weekly radio news quiz, "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me", on the "Not My Job" segment.During childhood, Pizzarelli was a counselor at the now defunct Knights Day Camp
elect discography
John Pizzarelli albums
As guest or sideman
*"Please see
John Pizzarelli album credits "References
External links
* [http://brucecmoore.com/pages/pizzarelli.html Live performance photographs]
15 May 2006 , Jazz Alley, Seattle
* [http://johnpizzarelli.com/ Official Website]
* [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:xne997ljkrst John Pizzarelli] - onAllmusic
*imdb name|id=0686200
* [http://johnpizzarelli.com/go.php?id=6 Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli]
* [http://lubowphotography.com/john-pizzarelli.htm Performance photographs, Clifford Brown Jazz Festival 2006]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.