Dizzy, Fay, a killer band, a horn section and 28 strings later, Hooked is their second album and a thank-you-card to the American Songbook.

Dizzy & Fay - Hooked - 04 - I'm Alright

Jazz arrangements of the Great American songbook, standards and originals 

Fiets Don't Fail Me Now

Christmas is a time when you need to be strong if you're gonna spend it alone.  Or not.

CHRISTMAS AND I AM NOT AFRAID

“Bout 30 years ago I was a happy child from a happy home
Now the grey has come, the lines are here I guess it’s part of being grown

There’s just no way of knowing
Where my life is going

(But it’s) Christmas and I am not afraid...
It’s Christmas and I am not afraid...

Each falling snow flake brings me back to all the Christmas’ gone past
I remember thinking that the joy and love they brought would always last

But the snow keeps blowing
There’s no way of knowing

Where my life is going
But the fire is glowing

(But it’s) Christmas and I am not afraid...
It’s Christmas and I am not afraid...

Pretty gifts with pretty bows are here for me but not to keep
Now the twilight of my life begins to beckon me to sleep

And the snow keeps blowing
There’s no way of knowing
Where my life is going
But the fire is glowing

(‘Cause it’s) Christmas and I am not afraid...
It’s Christmas and I am not afraid...

Credits:
Lead Vocal : Deborah Jones
GD : Programming, FX
JT : Electric guitar, Roland Guitar
Back ups : Marci Geller, Deborah Jones
Recorded at Sonic Underground Studios,Stony Brook, NY


Christmas and I Am Not Afraid

ONE SOLID ANSWER

Once I used to have a sister soul
Who’d played me jacks and wax about the future
When times were hardest
And my spirits were feeling low
She would tell me - kid you’ll always be loved

‘Cause love is:
One solid answer for one zillion whys
One solid answer that can’t be denied
Ya got a life full of questions but one true reply
That I know can make this heart skip a beat

Sister used to be my sunny world
Then she died and left me on my own
So I hit the road for the Chinese Rose
To feed my emptiness
And my fortune cookie read:
“Kid you’ll always be loved”

‘Cause love is:
One solid answer for one zillion whys
One solid answer that can’t be denied
Ya got a life full of questions but one true reply
That I know can make this heart skip a beat

Sister used to kiss my teardrops
Some would tumble down and dry up on her clothes
When I’d cry before the bus stopped
She would calm me down and make me feel at home

Sister I am calling from my dreams now
Sister all my questions have no fear now
Sister we will meet again when it’s my cloud...
That shadows the places we’ve been

‘Cause love is:
One solid answer for one zillion whys
One solid answer that always survives
Ya got a life full of questions but one sure reply
That I know can make this heart skip a beat

One solid answer for one zillion whys
One solid answer that can’t be denied
Ya got a life full of questions but one true reply
That I know can make this heart
That I know can make your heart
That I know can make our hearts
Skip A Beat

Credits:
John Tabacco : Vocals, Casio programming 
Recorded and Mixed at Sonic Underground Studios, Stony Brook, NY

One Solid Answer

This is my instrumental cover of Rodgers and Hart's pretty song, My Romance.  From the 1935 Broadway musical, Jumbo.   This cover is for piano, bass and drums.   Recorded in Logic.  I hope you enjoy listening to it.

My Romance by Rodgers and Hart cover by Dan Donohue - 01 19 25

The First Time You Fall in Love

I, Greg Halvorson, am a Nashville-based songwriter… Not a performer, I've nonetheless written 350+ songs — roots, gospel, country… Train songs, plains songs, love songs, ballads.. My goal is to connect with musicians, artists, and managers … Want to meet up?  I'm on Facebook (Halvorsong) and at YouTube (Greg Halvorson)… Would love to show/share my entire catalog. Bring the band!

 “A Holy God”      

  The fog outside my window reminds me of buffalo 
A time more innocent, with more prairie and less cement  

I don't know what I can do, to make this world more true 
When I peek into this fog, I see His face, a holy God

Ridin' out of ol' Cheyenne, I left a letter on the bedstand 
You'll know just what it says, it may take time, a pint of red

  It's Easter now, I'm damn depressed… Car won't start, no Sunday's Best 
So I'll ride before the dawn, upon a horse, a church of one  

Fumaroles of equine breath, day’s first light, no sign of death
 When I peek into this fog, I see His face, a holy God  

We'll set a card game up, right soon… Bring that deck that shows Miss June Quarter ante, Jacks are wild… We’ll get a sitter for your child

Wind is blowing' from the north… It’s after midnight on this porch  
Sometimes I sit until the dawn, wondrin' if I'm right or wrong 

Smell of leather, cows come home… They leave the draws when it gets cold When I peek into this fog, I see His face, a holy God

  Fumaroles of equine breath, day’s first light, no sign of death 
When I peek into this fog, I see the face, a holy God

  The fog outside my window reminds me of buffalo
 A time more innocent, with more prairie and less cement  

I don't know what I can do, to make this world less cruel 
When I peek into this fog, I see His face, a holy God

  When I peek into this fog, I see His face, a holy God

"A Holy God"

I, Greg Halvorson, am a Nashville-based songwriter… Not a performer, I've nonetheless written 350+ songs — roots, gospel, country… Train songs, plains songs, love songs, ballads.. My goal is to connect with musicians, artists, and managers … Want to meet up?  I'm on Facebook (Halvorsong) and at YouTube (Greg Halvorson)… Would love to show/share my entire catalog. Bring the band!

“I Wish I Had A Girl”  

I wish I had a girl, who wears white pearls 
 I wish I had a girl in cowboy boots I wish 
I had a girl who kisses like fire, 
 and when the rubber hits the road can change a tire —
 who tucks her jeans into the leather,  
would rather talk sports than the weather,  
tells me, Babe, I love you, now, forever... 
Mmm, yeah, that girl 

I wish I had a girl, with big blue eyes, 
with long black lashes, like railroad ties —  
who can dance a jig and take a shot, 
cook a six egg omelette, sizzlin' hot, 
would rather smoke a ham than organic pot... 
Mmm, yeah-haa-haa, that girl 

I wish I had a girl, with curly hair, 
the color of leaves, in the autumn air —  
 but I'll take straight black or dirty blonde, 
 as long as she knows right from wrong,  
and the radio plays our forgotten song... 
Mmm, yeah, that girl 

I wish I had a girl, with no front teeth, 
who can spit a country mile, while shootin' skeet — 
 who loves Las Vegas but would rather camp,  
believes that Jesus is the Holy Lamp,
 makes me laugh till my belly cramps... 
Mmm, yeah-haa-haa, that girl   

I wish I had a girl, who wears white pearls 
 I wish I had a girl in cowboy boots 
I wish I had a girl who kisses like fire, 
and when the rubber hits the road can change a tire —  
who can dance a jig and take a shot, 
cook a six egg omelette, sizzlin' hot, 
would rather smoke a ham than organic pot... 
Mmm, yeah-haa-haa, that girl 

Yeah, yeah — yeah, yeah, yeah… Yeah, yeah -- yeah, yeah, yeah  
Yeah, yeah that girl... Mmm, yeah-haa-haa, that girl x 2

"I Wish I Had a Girl"

Enjoy this Exclusive World Premier Presentation of Nathan & Noah East's FATHER SON with SmoothJazz.com Global Founder Sandy Shore featuring interview segments and song samples with artist song introductions!

Presentation originally aired on SmoothJazz.com Global Radio on Saturday, April 12, 2025. Album available Worldwide, April 18, 2025.

On Demand Experience edited by Rowan Meert for SmoothJazz.com, 2025.

Father Son

Nathan & Noah East - FATHER SON (World Premier)

All Lyric's Written By Ken Capozzi All Rights Reserved 
Music and Arrangement Done By the Suno App

Relax Have a Drink

Short version of the 1961 Mercer & Mancini Oscar-winner.  Linked to the story behind the song - and the long songwriting career of Johnny Mercer - here: https://medium.com/song-stories/days-of-wine-and-roses-77c790266bb1. With a Spotify playlist  of some his best known songs: "Something’s Gotta Give," "Jeepers Creepers," "Autumn Leaves," "Moon River", "One For the Road" etc.

The Days of Wine and  Roses

All Lyric's Written By Ken Capozzi All Rights Reserved 
Music and Arrangement Done By The Suno App

The Overcast

Just Another Rainy Day

Witchcraft

Historical Background
Composed in 1931 by Harold Arlen with lyrics by Ted Koehler, Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea emerged during the golden age of American popular music. Originally written for the Cotton Club revues in Harlem, the song quickly became a jazz staple, performed by artists like Cab Calloway, Ella Fitzgerald, and Thelonious Monk. The title plays on a vivid idiom, evoking a sense of emotional turmoil: caught between danger and despair, love and loss — a theme deeply resonant with the blues tradition.

About the Arrangement
This arrangement by the Ricardo Farão Jazz Trio embraces the tune’s playful ambiguity and rhythmic vitality. The guitar introduces the melody with bouncy articulation and syncopated accents, nodding to early swing while weaving in lush, modern voicings. The bass dances freely, alternating between walking lines and expressive fills, while the drums bring a subtle drive with brushes and cymbal play. Harmonically, the arrangement exploits the blues-inflected dominant chords and chromatic motion, offering space for improvisation without losing the tune’s vintage flair.

🌐 Discover more
Find this and more jazz arrangements at https://ricardofarao.com/
Subscribe to https://www.youtube.com/@rfviolao for more jazz performances and releases.

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea - H. Arlen

Composed in 1941 by Harold Arlen, with lyrics by Johnny Mercer, Blues in the Night is a quintessential American torch song that blends the spirit of jazz, blues, and Broadway. Written for the film of the same name, the song’s evocative melody and Mercer’s vivid, down-home lyrics (“My mama done told me...”) capture the lonely, restless heart of the blues. The tune was nominated for an Academy Award and soon became a favorite for singers and jazz musicians alike.

Blues in the Night stands out for its dramatic melodic lines, moody harmonic shifts, and inventive use of bluesy idioms mixed with Tin Pan Alley sophistication. The haunting phrase “A wailin’ song and a moan” became iconic, and the piece was famously recorded by artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, and Artie Shaw. The song’s lyricism, with its night trains, distant whistles, and heartbreak, paints an unforgettable portrait of longing in the American night.

Curiosities:

The song’s opening verse, “My mama done told me…”, is one of the most quoted lines in jazz and pop music.

“Blues in the Night” was so popular that the film’s title was changed after the song’s release.

The bluesy, chromatic harmonies became a model for later jazz and torch songs.

🌐 Discover more
More arrangements available at https://ricardofarao.com
Subscribe to https://www.youtube.com/@rfviolao for performances and releases.



Blues in the Night - H. Arlen

I think I like you

Just a storyteller through lyric's that I write
Inspired by life

John Tabacco is an American composer, singer songwriter, producer, recording engineer, multi instrumentalist and graphic artist. He has engineered /mixed and mastered music for hundreds of New York recording artists as well as projects released on BMG: The Kemelions, RCA: Faze, Rampage/Rhino: Rhett Forrester, Columbia: Rebbie Jackson, Rykodisc : Bob Marley, Columbia: Chris Jasper, Electra: Sonia Dada and Nickleodeon’s Are You Afraid Of The Dark? He is the CEO of It Iz What It Iz Music Publishing which currently holds over 750 songs in its catalog. He has been an associate producer for IndiMusic TV and hosts a bi-weekly radio program (CLAM RADIO) on college radio WUSB.fm since 1999. He is currently the head of A&R at Modern Voices Digital Distribution.

His musical background consists of extensive study of orchestration with noted 20th century composer John Lessard, harmony with the late electronic music maverick Bulent Arel, and composition with Stony Brook University professor Peter Winkler. He received his BA in Music from Stony Brook University in 1983. 

Like an unfolding musical diary / puzzle, Tabacco’s music and art are constantly being re-worked, juxtaposed and intertwined. His style is a melding of pop - jazz -rock - avant garde / aleatory, classical and comedy.  He has been recording his music non stop since 1979.

Of note: In 1989 the satirical, absurd house song "Go House Yourself" co-written by Tabacco, Pati and DiMauro reached position 39 on Billboard's dance chart. 

In 2014 Tabacco signed a record deal with Texas, indie label, Muffin Records. They released his CD “Unfulfilled Shopping Carts Syndrome” internationally.

Anne Burnell & Mark Burnell have delighted audiences the world over from Paris and Amsterdam, Chicago to New York, with their unique vocal harmonies, jazz, pop and blues classics.  They are Illinois Presenters ArtsTour and City of Chicago Band Roster artists. Anne is a 2023-2024 Individual Artists Program Grant award recipient  from the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE). Mark taught vocal jazz for 10 years at Carnegie Mellon University, after receiving two degrees there. BurnellMusic.com

Southside Entertainment is Singapore’s newest and most dynamic record label and production company, dedicated to discovering and showcasing the unparalleled talent of our region. Rooted in the cultural crossroads of Asia, we are on a mission to bridge the East and West, creating a global platform where diverse artistry meets cutting-edge innovation.

At Southside Entertainment, we believe in the power of music to transcend boundaries. Our vision is to nurture local and regional talent, transforming raw potential into world-class artistry. We’re not just a label; we’re a movement. A movement that’s all about crafting sounds that resonate worldwide, celebrating the unique identities of our artists while creating music that connects hearts across continents.

We are currently building our artist roster and searching for the next wave of superstars. Whether you’re an electrifying performer, a soulful songwriter, or a visionary producer, Southside Entertainment is the place where your talent can shine on the global stage. Together, let’s redefine what it means to be a global artist from Singapore.

Join us at Southside Entertainment—where East meets West

I'm using this site to demo some songs I've recorded with bands and some solo recordings I've done.

I'm a Nashville songwriter interested in bucking trends, resurrecting artistry, and returning soul to multiple musical genres... Red dirt, Gospel, bluegrass, folk...  I write across spectrums and present variety among my 200 (and counting) songs.

Lyrics (all "chordified")available... Will meet with anyone.  @gchalv@gmail.com

SmoothJazz.com is the World's #1 Destination for Smooth Jazz, Contemporary Jazz, Groove Jazz and Chillout dancy vibes on Smooth Lounge! Log on at SmoothJazz.com or download the Smooth Global App on Apple & GooglePlay! #smoothgloballiving

New tracks tagged #american songbook