Pat Tuzzolino At His Very Best At Castelli's Ristorante in Palm Desert

Pat Tuzzolino

Pat Tuzzolino

Patrick Tuzzolino

Robert Callister & Pat Tuzzolino

Ron Kastas & Pat Tuzzolino

I heard Patrick Tuzzolino sing and play piano for the first time at the Rizzo/Tuzzolino gig at the Purple Room Lounge last Sunday and I wanted to hear more from Pat. So I went to Castelli's Ristorante in Palm Desert where Pat performs Wednesday through Saturday. My first reaction about Pat proved to be on target. Sitting at one of the high-top tables in the bar area gave me the opportunity to see Pat close-up. He is a terrific musician.  He plays great piano and has a deep golden voice that when applied to great American standards it is hard to not be impressed.  What I especially liked about Patrick's singing is that he does not try to sing like the great vocalists who came before him.  He blazes his own vocal trail in his own unique style. His voice is like velvet, and I am sure that even if Patrick sang names out of the phone book it would great!

Patrick was born and raised in New York City, came to California and became part of the LA music scene.  While in LA he got to play with a lot of the musical greats like Pete and Conti Condoli, Ross Tompkins and Eddie Shaughnessy.  In 1991 Pat headlined in Las Vegas at the Aladdin Hotel Casino playing alongside Slide Trombone player Carl Fontana and the great Sax player, Sam Butera.  It was while Pat was working in Vegas that he met his now long-time-friend, Pat Rizzo. I learned that Patrick, in addition to playing piano and singing,  plays major league guitar and, in fact, he joined Jack Jones at a recent gig Jack did at Feinstein's in New York.  Patrick also has had a long career writing TV commercials and his own charts for some of the classic songs out the of the "Great American Songbook". 

Patrick Tuzzolino is a musical treasure to all music lovers here in the Desert.  When you go to hear Patrick play at Castelli's Ristorante you might want to reserve one of the high top tables in the bar area.  The view and sound from this location is perfect if you really want to be into Pat's music.

Castelli's Ristorante has been around for a long time and it is a great place to dine and hear wonderful music . It has a comfortable feel due to the excellent staff, the food is as good as any Italian food you can get even in the New York area,  The maitre d', Ron Kostas made us feel at home as soon as we entered the restaurant and our server, Robert Callister was attentive and friendly. Put Patrick Tuzzolino and Castelli's on your "To Do" list, you won't be disappointed.

I have a treat for you below, a YouTube video of Pat singing "I'll Remember April" live!

Mike Costley, A Singer's, Singer!

The first time I had the pleasure of seeing and hearing Mike Costley was at Jack Jones' birthday party at The McCallum Theatre in January 2011.  Mike introduced Jack and then sang "I am a Singer" with Jack to open the show. It was immediately evident that Mike had an excellent voice, and I knew I had to see if Mike was performing in the area so I could hear him in a more intimate setting.

Following the Jones' birthday party, I asked several of the local musicians that I respect and admire what they knew about Mike Costley and without exception they all said he was a great singer. I wanted to find how "how great" so I went to see Mike perform at Torme's, a great new Jazz Club in Palm Springs.  Mike performs at Torme's every Wednesday and Thursday night starting at 7:30pm.

From the moment Mike started singing, there was no doubt that he is a skilled and exceptional singer. Over the course of the evening, Mike demonstrated that he could handle a wide range of musical styles. He sang Sinatra, Ella, Jackson, Torme, Prima, and even the Beatles.  But unlike most singers that I have heard, Mike did not try to imitate these great singers.  Mike sang in his own unique singing style. It was so refreshing to hear Mike's interpretation of these songs. Only a singer with  great musical skills, a great voice and an unusual voice range could even dream of doing what Mike is able to accomplish. Mike is not only one of the best singers in the California desert but is one the of the elite singers in the US today. If you find yourself in the Palm Springs area, and you can only see one performer, you need to hear Mike Costley, period, end of story!

One last comment, Torme's Restaurant, in addition to just great music, has great food.  In my experience, normally this type of club has great music but only average food.  Torme's is an exception!   The prices are reasonable, and there is no cover charge for the music.  There is no better deal in the desert!

Jack Jones: An American Music Treasure

The last time I saw Jack Jones perform live was in 1965 in Vegas; that's 46 years ago.  At that time, I thought Jack Jones was an excellent young singer of popular songs. Over the years, I sort of lost contact with Jack's work until last year when I came across some CDs that Jack had done. I really was surprised by how great he sounded. I finally had the chance to see Jack in person again on Friday evening January 14, 2011 at The McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert, California. Jack sang with a 5 piece group led by the brilliant musician Mike Renzi on piano. As it turned out, most of the evening's performances were a showcase for Jack's marvelous voice and phrasing and Renzi's outstanding piano backup.  In addition to Mike Renzi, Jack also had his old friend and musical director Vinny Falcon playing piano.  If you are a Sinatra fan, you probably know that Vinny Falcon was Sinatra's musical director up until Sinatra's death. 

The audience froze when Jack inadvertently tripped.  That's when Jack showed what a consummate professional he is. He picked himself up, made light and continued singing without missing a note. A remarkable recovery for anyone but especially for a performer celebrating his 73 birthday. 

Jack sang a program of songs from the "Great American Songbook".  I thought his interpretation of the Brian Wilson song "God Only Knows What I'd Be Without You" was brilliant. He also did a great job on his version of the David Gates song "If A Picture Paints a 1000 Words" and also the Rod McKuen gem "If You Go Away".  Jack Jones even at 73 has remarkable breath control and voice range. He sang some complex songs tonight, and he did not  miss one note.  While I am sorry that I did not stay up with Jack's career over the years, I am so thankful that I got to hear his work on his CDs and finally got a chance to see and hear him perform in person again.  Jack Jones is truly one of the greatest singers of the "Great American Songbook". True to his professionalism, he performed for over 2 hours to a delighted and appreciative audience.