Friday, January 04, 2008

Podcast Review: Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli

Along with being a top-notch jazz guitarist who has recorded about 40 albums and yet is only in his forties, John Pizzarelli is also a podcaster. Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli (apparently it's also a terrestrial radio program) has been around for about a year, but I've only just heard of it.

A quote on the podcast's Web page from the Los Angeles Times sums up the show pretty well: "...a syndicated radio show that combines the retro feel of a 1940s living room broadcast with a boomer's passion for the Great American Songbook..."

I don't know if the show is or isn't recorded in the living room, but co-hosts Pizzarelli and his wife, singer Jessica Molaskey, share songs and stories while talking with guest musicians. So it does have a nice informal, at-home vibe to it, like these musicians are just sitting around at home jamming and shooting the breeze, and you're sitting there with them in a comfy chair.

The New Year's edition of Radio Deluxe is a good example of the broad range of music heard on the program, with songs from Mel Torme, Patti Austin, Tierney Sutton, Tony Bennett, Judy Collins, and of course Mr. Pizzarelli himself.

As far as I can tell Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli is not available through iTunes, but you can download it or stream it from the show's Web site above. It's definitely worth checking out.

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