Mike Karn News

Two years off of the Birdland stage didn't do anything to John Pizzarelli expect make him more more vital and more enjoyable than ever.

THE DJANGO, downtown Manhattan’s premier jazz club, is commemorating Women’s History Month by hosting more than 20 leading female jazz artists on its stage during March.

John Pizzarelli returns to Café Carlyle with an all-new show titled John Pizzarelli Salutes that Shearing Sound, May 5 a?" 16. Jazz Weekly recently raved about his Johnny Mercer program: a?oeA gig like this oozes with style, class and fun, with Pizzarelli being one of the best ambassadors for the Great American Songbook. One of his best.a?? Earlier this year, The John Pizzarelli Trio released For Centennial Reasons: 100 Year Salute to Nat King Cole. At Café Carlyle, John Pizzarelli will be joined by Mike Karn (bass), Chuck Reed (vibraphone), and Ted Rosenthal (piano).

I don't know if Benny Goodman “The King of Swing” ever performed at the original Birdland on Broadway at 52nd Street which was more known for the Bebop Jazz of Charlie Parker. However, his music was gloriously celebrated last night by John Pizzarelli and his special guest Clarinetist Ken Peplowski at the current Birdland on 44th Street. The link to the past was firmly established by the extraordinary artistry of Pizzarelli and Peplowski as they toured the Benny Goodman Songbook. The link was also established by the many stories both had about Benny Goodman. Ken Peplowski played in Benny's last band, and John's father Bucky was also was a featured guitarist with Goodman. In fact as John in his “Bucky Voice” recounted a funny story, when he was a youngster tagging along with Bucky John even got to strum a few notes for Benny Goodman until Bucky said “come on kid we gotta get home”! It was all smiles and happy swing music last night as John Pizzarelli and his trio with Ken Peplowski filled Birdland with great music and great conversation. The tradition of exceptional music continues at 'The Jazz Corner of The World”

Birdland will kick-off their great week of programming with the following acts:

Husband-and-wife duo John Pizzarelli and Jessica Molaskey make their annual fall pilgrimage to Cafe Carlyle with an all-new show, November 5-16.

Birdland Jazz Club announces July 2019 Schedule featuring Veronica Swift with the Emmet Cohen Trio, Freddy Cole Quartet, Steve Smith's Groove Blue Organ Trio, John Pizzarelli: Two-week engagement, Nancy Kelly, Konrad Paszkudzki and Pasquale Grasso, Lew Tabackin Trio, Michael Wolff Trio, Laura Osnes, Alyssa Allgood Quartet, Ladybugs, The Lineup with Susie Mosher, Jim Caruso's Cast Party, and more.

Come to Cafe Carlyle to hear arguably one of the best jazz/pop guitarist/vocalists of our generation. Also be prepared to laugh a lot during John Pizzarelli's show. He has that Seinfeld like ability to talk about anything and find the humor in it. This was a fun evening in every way, and even the unison single note conversations between the hammers hitting the strings by pianist Konrad Paszkudzki and John's fingers flying over the guitar's strings had a melodic jocularity to them. The Cafe Carlyle feels like a large living room and John Pizzarelli is about the best guest you could ever have at the party. He has done many different theme shows at The Carlyle and this Nat King Cole tribute has the tunes and stories to make it one of his most effective.

GHOSTLIGHT DELUXE, an imprint of Ghostlight Records, has announced the release of For Centennial Reasons: 100 Year Salute to Nat King Cole - the new album from the JOHN PIZZARELLI TRIO - in physical, digital and streaming formats today, Friday, February 8. Following high-profile collaborations with Sir Paul McCartney and Michael McDonald, Pizzarelli returns to his roots to honor his hero, the legendary jazz/pop vocalist and pianist Nat King Cole, whose centennial is being celebrated around the world this year with various concerts, books and recordings. For Centennial Reasons completes an epic trio of Pizzarelli albums saluting Cole, starting with Dear Mr. Cole, which helped put Pizzarelli on the map as an influential jazz guitarist and singer in 1994, and continuing with P.S. Mr. Cole, which cemented his legacy five years later. To order the album, please visit ghostlightrecords.lnk.to/pizzarelli-natkingcole

GHOSTLIGHT DELUXE, an imprint of Ghostlight Records, has announced the release of For Centennial Reasons: 100 Year Salute to Nat King Cole - the new album from the JOHN PIZZARELLI TRIO - in physical, digital and streaming formats on Friday, February 8. Following high-profile collaborations with Sir Paul McCartney and Michael McDonald, Pizzarelli returns to his roots to honor his hero, the legendary jazz/pop vocalist and pianist Nat King Cole, whose centennial is being celebrated around the world this year with various concerts, books and recordings. For Centennial Reasons completes an epic trio of Pizzarelli albums saluting Cole, starting with Dear Mr. Cole, which helped put Pizzarelli on the map as an influential jazz guitarist and singer in 1994, and continuing with P.S. Mr. Cole, which cemented his legacy five years later. To pre-order the album, please visit the label HERE.

On Tuesday night, HADESTOWN opened in the Olivier Theatre at the National Theatre in London.

World-renowned jazz guitarist and vocalist John Pizzarelli will perform at the Otesaga Resort Hotel ballroom on Sunday, August 5 at 7:30pm as part of the 20th anniversary season of the Cooperstown Summer Music Festival.

East West Players (EWP) and Japanese American Cultural & Community Center (JACCC) present stage, television, and film star George Takei in the Los Angeles premiere of the Broadway musical Allegiance.

Husband-and-wife duo John Pizzarelli and Jessica Molaskey make their annual fall pilgrimage to Caf Carlyle with an all-new show, The Little Things You Do Together, November 7-18.

East West Players (EWP) and Japanese American Cultural & Community Center (JACCC) are pleased to announce that for the Los Angeles premiere of the Broadway musical Allegiance, stage and screen star George Takei will be joined by Broadway cast members Elena Wang as Kei Kimura, Greg Watanabe as Mike Masaoka, Scott Watanabe as Tatsuo Kimura, and Janelle Dote as Hanako.

Jessica Molaskey, the acclaimed actress and singer, will present the concert Portraits of Joni - to celebrate the new album from Ghostlight Deluxe - at Birdland Jazz Club (315 West 44th Street in New York) on Monday, September 18 at 7:00 PM.

On August 11th, Hamilton released the official app for iOS and Android devices. Hamilton's mission was to give its fans a mobile experience that would provide unprecedented access to the show. One of the primary focuses of the team was to develop a product that could adapt to cutting-edge technologies.

East West Players (EWP) and Japanese American Cultural & Community Center (JACCC) have announced that stage, television, and film star George Takei will lead the cast in the Los Angeles premiere of the Broadway musical Allegiance, which will be co-produced by EWP and JACCC by special arrangement with Sing Out, Louise! Productions and ATA, with performances at JACCC's Aratani Theatre in Los Angeles from February 21-April 1, 2018. Previews will run from February 21-25, with the Opening Night performance and reception on February 28.

There is no one who possesses the skill set of John Pizzarelli.  Well, not quite. According to John, whenever he plays some intricate jazz guitar riff for his dad Bucky, his famous father says..'that's pretty good, but listen to this!' 

East West Players (EWP) and Japanese American Cultural & Community Center (JACCC) have announced the Los Angeles premiere of the Broadway musical Allegiance, which had its 2012 world premiere in a record-breaking engagement at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego and played on Broadway from 2015-16 at The Shubert Organization's Longacre Theatre.