Brian De Lorenzo
Toast of the Town: Volume 1
June 30, 2025
Reviewed by Betsyann Faiella
With the release of Toast of the Town Volume I, vocalist Brian De Lorenzo has contributed a timeless recording of Great American Songbook classics. De Lorenzo sings to emphasize the story of each song and makes lyrics and emotional interpretation more important than vocal fireworks. Still, De Lorenzo dazzles several times with sustained, confident, and flawless high notes and all-around good singing!
The instrumental ensemble, which varies in size from song to song to enhance the intimacy, is restrained in the best way possible. The arrangements by pianist and music director Tom LaMark are meticulous and understated; they support the singer and never dominate. (That goes for the mix as well. Bravo! Why don’t more musicians and engineers get that right?). There’s great sensitivity in these arrangements, and I can see (hear) how they must have completely supported De Lorenzo during the recording process.
The opener, “The Best Is Yet to Come” (Cy Coleman/Carolyn Leigh) and the second number, “I Love Paris” (Cole Porter), are ebullient and fun, but for me the recording really comes alive with the medley of “Autumn Leaves” (Joseph Kosma/Jacques Prevert; English lyric by Johnny Mercer) and “Autumn in Rome” (Alessandro Cicognini/Paul Weston/Sammy Cahn). I rarely hear “Autumn in Rome,” and the two songs make a poignant pairing. The medley featured delicate cello work by Jennifer Lucht, and we are treated to one of De Lorenzo’s gorgeous high-note endings.
The same is true of “All the Things You Are” (Oscar Hammerstein II/Jerome Kern). Oh, that last note, preceded by fine singing. By including the verse to “My Foolish Heart” (Victor Young/Ned Washington), De Lorenzo perfectly sets the stage for this affecting story of yearning. It is one of my all-time favorite songs, and the singer did not disappoint.
“The Lady From 29 Palms” (Allie Wrubel) has been previously recorded by some greats—the Andrews Sisters, Doris Day, and Frank Sinatra. DeLorenzo’s interpretation and the vintage-style arrangement both play in a simple “aw, shucks” manner against the story of a woman (whose real identity was a subject of hot debate in the actual 29 Palms, apparently). She is a “looker,” and also seems to be somewhat of a femme fatale, or at the very least, a major gold digger. It’s a great interpretation.
The recording concludes with the 11 o’clock number, “I Was a Fool to Let You Go” (Barry Manilow/Marty Panzer) that has a gut-punching solo by saxophonist Mike Monaghan. De Lorenzo is in fine form here as well, and this is a wonderful choice to end the recording.
De Lorenzo was the executive producer on Toast of the Town, and he set himself up for success with arranger and music director Tom LaMark, as well as Doug Hammer of Dreamworld Productions as producer/engineer, engineer Peter Kontrimas of PBS Studios, and Emmanuelle Le Gal, who provided art direction and design.
A special mention must be made regarding the highly stylish cover art: it was created by the artist Robert Risko, who has been a regular contributor to Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, Rolling Stone, Playboy, Esquire, and Interview. Apparently, there is a Volume II on the way, and this reviewer happily awaits its arrival.
