Singer and guitarist John Pizzarelli is known for turning classic pop tunes into cool, jazzy melodies. Pizzarelli expands his musical horizons even further on his latest album, Double Exposure.
It’s not every day you hear the Allman Brothers classic “In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed” performed by a jazz musician. But, then Pizzarelli isn’t your average jazz musician.
Pizzarelli’s influences extend far and wide. Clearly, Davis was one of his heroes growing up, but so was everyone from Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra to Antonio Carlos Jobim, Duke Ellington and The Beatles.
His rendition of “I Feel Fine” marks a return to The Beatles songbook. In 1998, Pizzarelli released a tribute album to the “Fab Four,” titled John Pizzarelli Meets The Beatles.
Double Exposure also features remakes of Joni Mitchell’s “Free Man In Paris,” Tom Waits’ “Drunk On The Moon” and Leiber and Stoller’s “Ruby Baby,” as well as songs by Neil Young, Billy Joel and Donald Fagen of Steely Dan.
Pizzarelli admits that his music is basically pop and jazz rolled into one, thus the title Double Exposure. On making the album, he says, “It was a matter of finding the jazz to go inside the pop song, and doing it in a way that would be entertaining and engaging.”
