TRACKS AND TIMINGS:

1) Falling In Love With Love 8:17

2) I Didn't Know What Time It Was 5:32

3) He Was Too Good To Me 5:59

4) Johnny One Note 7:09

5) Wait Till You See Her 4:27

6) Ev'rything I've Got 10:43

7) This Nearly Was Mine 8:21

8) Have You Met Miss Jones? 8:31

9) I Have Dreamed 5:26

10) Happy Talk 8:54

11) With A Song In My Heart 4:35

(All compositions by Richard Rodgers)

CRITICAL ACCLAIM

"Richard Rodgers' melodic genius has long been a favoured playground for jazz musicians, but few reimagine his work with the intellectual depth and intuitive poetry of pianist Denny Zeitlin. On With A Song In My Heart, Zeitlin offers a riveting solo piano exploration of eleven Rodgers classics, combining architectural reharmonization, rhythmic invention and unflinching emotional insight. This is not mere homage; it is a deeply personal conversation with one of the 20th century's great composers… the album is a triumph of imagination and craft as Zeitlin does not simply interpret Rodgers but illuminates him."

      Pierre Giroux, allaboutjazz

"It's a glorious recording that features Denny's singular approach to solo piano, rumbling seamlessly between a straight-ahead approach and the avant-garde…. His approach is a special joy for those who know the songs, since you get to hear Denny's masterful deconstruction and adventurous expressiveness with the original in mind. Through textured distillation, he tunnels to the elements of what makes a standard beautiful and timeless… Denny's new album is jazz as it was meant to be heard: Music that makes you think and feel as you're taken on a moody journey through uncharted territory. He has never sounded better."

      Marc Myers, jazzwax

"Sublime solo piano from Denny Zeitlin – a player who just seems to keep on growing musically… Zeitlin really opens up the tunes and makes them little masterpieces of personal introspection-- often leaving the melody behind for a bit, while he shows all these secret ideas that are lurking right below the surface of the tune…the whole thing is great…"

      Rick Wojcik, dustygroove

"… as an artist Zeitlin blends many virtues: chops, fearless creativity, taste. As a man he is a force of nature… Zeitlin takes bold liberties with Rodgers's material… he frequently surrounds the composer's harmonies with new counter lines and unexpected digressions… Zeitlin, with his clean strong touch, ingenious modulations, and imaginative addenda, cannot touch a song without making it his own."

      Thomas Conrad, stereophile

"…Zeitlin has honed the fine art of interpretation and re-examination of the standards to a razor-sharp edge…He proves himself again as one of the jazz world's most adept and daring interpreters, working with the established melodic frameworks and taking them to unexpected places, going 'out there,' sometimes wildly out there, while maintaining threads, sometimes tenuous but always present, to the melodic themes written by the composer. Nobody does it better…"

      Dan McClenaghan, allaboutjazz

"…You can't listen to Denny Zeitlin without a certain anticipatory thrill…with one foot in the past, paying homage to Rodgers' melodic understanding, and the other out the door, ready to unravel new mysteries far ahead of his time, Zeitlin's new album satisfies the fan, the curious newbie, and the exploratory jazz in-between… With a Song in My Heart never gets stale, no matter how often you listen to it, and that's all him and his weathered, magic hands."

      Carol Banks Weber, carolbankswebercoggie.substack

"…the playing throughout is elegant in its phrasing, with the composer's ever-lovely melodies at the forefront of Zeitlin's inventive improvisations…Concluding the album is a straight ahead version of the oft-played With a Song in My Heart. This exquisite rendition of this popular standard neatly sums up the session with its graceful beauty. Definitely recommended."

      Stuart Kremsky, mrstusrecordroom

" .. With a Song In My Heart: Exploring The Music of Richard Rodgers sees Zeitlin applying his masterful interpretive abilities… Denny Zeitlin always offers a unique insight whenever he covers even very familiar songs… Accompanying the ingenuity used in freshening these songs is the advanced facility Zeitlin possesses on piano… The songs of Richard Rodgers are timeless tunes but that doesn't stop Denny Zeitlin for putting forth the extra effort to make these songs like new again with modern and imaginative interpretations that take nothing away from the sweet essence of these classic strains."

      S. Victor Aaron, somethingelsereviews

"…This latest album of his, a solo recording of him taking on the compositions of Richard Rogers, is one that you simply don't want to end. And he plays the songs in a way that you want him to continue exploring each piece as well. Of how many artists would you really say, 'please, one more chorus'?"

      George W. Harris, jazzweekly

"…Words alone do not do justice to the experience of being submerged while listening to the musical cornucopia that comes out of this artist's fertile mind…. You can't help but marvel at the man's unpredictable ideas that he often comes up with on the fly…With a Song in My Heart is a pure delight. Zeitlin continues to prove that the American songbook can still be a plentiful treasure trove… when the canon is examined and played by a true piano master like Zeitlin, one who has never shied away from challenge, the sky can be the limit."

      Ralph A. Miriello, notesonjazz

"…Dr. Zeitlin takes his time, often having the melody dance across the keyboard. There's a vitality and vivaciousness to his explorations… Denny Zeitlin belongs to a long line of great interpreters/improvisors that includes "Fats" Waller, Art Tatum, and Dick Hyman (to name but three) who burrow into the songs they play, looking for the essence as well as the emotion… pure delight!"

      Richard Kamins, richardkamins.substack