Bucky Pizzarelli’s chronological age may be 85, but his hands haven’t heard the news.
Bucky glided through the Great American Songbook at The Minstrel last Friday with the ease of a guitar-slinger half his age. Coaxing rich tones from his seven-string instrument, he seemed ready to veer into rock and roll mode on a couple of occasions. He even inserted the signature riff from Deep Purple’s Smoke on the Water into one of his solos, just for laughs.
He reprised Stardust at the end of the show; he probably could have played it all night and nobody would have complained.
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Vocal duties were handled with style by his sidekick, Ed Laub, who studied guitar with Bucky as a teen and has accompanied him frequently over the last four decades.
The opening act could have headlined on most nights at The Minstrel. Diane Perry played violin and did a decent job on jazz vocals, considering the cold she was battling. Her pianist, John Colelli, has performed with a Who’s Who of jazz greats, including Mel Torme.
READ MORE ABOUT BUCKY PIZZARELLI:
Review: Almost snowed in with Bucky Pizzarelli, at the Bickford in Morris Township
