Joey Defrancesco

It is tempting to play up the "Italian Connection" on Joey's newest record. With Joey's previous nod toward the Goodfellas it would easy to claim that Frank Sinatra is the natural next step. But the simple fact of the matter is that this is tribute of one master of American Music to another. Perhaps no other singer in history defined the American Popular Songbook as Frank Sinatra and it is only natural that Joey DeFrancesco ? so instrumental in defining the new B-3 sound ? would turn to wealth of exceptional material from the Sinatra discography. Great music is great music and Joey knows it and has surrounded himself with great sidemen. The great Houston Person on tenor sax is on hand as is groove master guitarist Melvin Sparks and Joey's drummer of choice, Byron Landham. Together they swing through six tunes recorded by Sinatra and, while far from mimicking the original arrangements, they pay tribute to the legacy of Sinatra, refracted through the prism of their own talent and imagination.