“…singer-songwriter Bill Scorzari transcends titles like songwriter or poet. He catapults past categories into a dark ruminative and ultimately life-affirming realm where folklore, memories, pain, prayer, and incantation meet.”
- Acoustic Guitar Magazine - March/April 2020 issue
"...Bill Scorzari is more than Americana or some offshoot of country. …He is a songwriter, years from now the next mainstream rock success will reference as a turning point discovery in their life. …Scorzari’s music reflects against your own experiences... It makes sense to the roads you’ve travelled and the emotions you’ve felt. It is precisely that connection that makes Bill Scorzari more than a singer-songwriter, he is a modern gem and deserves to be recognized as such. The Crosswinds of Kansas… is yet another exhibit to reinforce the sentiment. ..."
-Nanobot Rock / August 12, 2022
BIOGRAPHY
Bill Scorzari is a New York based singer-songwriter. Since 2014, he has independently released four albums to critical acclaim including, "Just the Same” (2014), “Through These Waves” (2017), “Now I’m Free” (2019) and “The Crosswinds of Kansas,” (2022). A fifth release is in the works for 2024/2025.
Scorzari's songs explore the depths of the human condition with a life-affirming embrace. His music is captivating and nuanced, his lyrics intimate and compelling, and his voice is uncommon and unmistakable. With a resonance at times akin to spoken word and a delivery which yet remains melodic even in those extremes, he narrates spellbinding stories that will remind you of your own experiences. Peruse the reviews to date and you will find comparative descriptors such as, "...perhaps Dylan or Townes could go toe to toe...," "...a modern-day Rod McKuen," "...you might want to think about Tom Waits a little...," "...Tom Waits or Malcom Holcombe, Scorzari's voice is in that neighborhood but still stands apart...," "...a little less sandpapery than Dave Van Ronk's..," "...the spoken poetry...that Sam Baker has perfected...," "...Kris Kristofferson...," "...Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Neil Young...," "Artists that have this ability are rare—Waits, Dylan, Cohen, and today’s John Moreland and Jason Isbell..."
"BILL SCORZARI IS A MASTER STORYTELLER.
HE PUTS IT TO MUSIC AND CREATES PURE MAGIC!!"
- JAY VEE MUSIC REVIEW by Jeff Vallet / July 22, 2022
Since 2014, Bill has performed at venues and terrestrial radio stations across the country. He has completed two national tours (“Through These Waves” in 2017 and “Now I’m Free” in 2019) and has performed as the opening act for such artists as Billy Strings, Whiskey Myers, Big Country and more. Other performances of note include AmericanaFest 2016 and Newport Folk Festival 2019 (for the “For Pete’s Sake” program curated by Chris Funk of The Decemberists).
Artists who have performed in the studio with Bill, and who can be heard on Bill’s records, include Chris Scruggs, Kim Richey, Joachim Cooder, Laur Joamets, Erin Rae, Marie Tomlinson Lewey and Cindy Richardson Walker a/k/a "The Shoals Sisters," Neilson Hubbard, Matt Menefee, Kyle Tuttle, Will Kimbrough, Eamon McLaughlin, Fats Kaplin, Michael Rinne, Danny Mitchell, Brent Burke, Juan Solorzano, Jonah Tolchin, Danny Roaman, John Estes and more.
For those who do not yet know how Bill's story began or how it has led him to the present, we invite you to read on.
On the day that Bill Scorzari was born, his dad (a preeminent New York Trial Attorney), and his dad's friend (the Dean of his dad's law-school alma mater), half-jokingly completed a “mock” application for young Bill’s “immediate enrollment” as a student of the law. 20+ years later, following in the footsteps of his proud father and role model, Bill officially applied to that same law school, graduated, was admitted to the New York State Bar, and at the age of 27, began his own accomplished career as a New York trial attorney. Bill's passion for music also took hold at an early age as a formative force, which his mom and dad both also encouraged. After all, there was music in the family. Bill's mom played classical piano, and Bill was fascinated by the piano that they had in their home. Both Bill's mom and dad were blessed with exceptional singing voices and with gifted ears for melody and artful phrasing. Bill still has two 45 records of his mom singing, recorded when she was in her 20's. Bill's 10-years-older cousin was another musical influence. He played a Hammond B3 organ in a 1960's rock band based in Queens, NY and Bill would often stay at his cousin's house for days at a time and listen to the band rehearse in his cousin's basement when his mom and dad would travel. Taking early note of Bill's passion for music, his mom and dad gifted him his first guitar when he was just 8 years old. 8-year-old Bill didn't much care for learning single-note elementary melodies from a lesson book though (think “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” “Go Tell Aunt Rosie” and such) and so formal lessons were thoroughly resisted and ultimately abandoned in favor of Bill's preferred method of learning, which was figuring out on his own, how to play the sounds he was hearing on the LPs and Cassettes that his older cousin had given him. His favorites included the Beatles/Abbey Road, The Who/Live at Leeds, Simon and Garfunkel/Bridge Over Troubled Water, The Rolling Stones/Hot Rocks, Grand Funk Railroad/Closer to Home, Deep Purple/Machine Head and many others. With that, Bill began his journey as a self-taught musician. He eventually formed a band with some of the older kids in the neighborhood, which in turn led him to playing his first club gig at the age of 13. His love for music continued to grow as he explored different genres throughout his childhood, high school, college and law school years. By the year 2008, Bill was practicing law as a trial attorney in his own law firm by day, and by night, he was performing in a “Classic Rock” that included some of the original "kids" from his old neighborhood band. Then, in 2010, he stumbled upon a Live-at-Paste recording of Justin Townes Earle performing “Mama’s Eyes.” It was a life-altering discovery - the kind that you hear people speak of as being that moment when “everything changed.” He bought every JTE album and EP that was then available, quit his Classic Rock band and began searching for and listening to every Artist that he could find within this new genre that he had discovered. Artists such as John Prine, Joe Purdy, Gregory Alan Isakov, Mumford and Sons, Sturgill Simpson, Old Crow Medicine Show, Jason Isbell, Brandi Carlile, Sarah Jarosz, Deer Tick, Hozier, Nathaniel Rateliff, Iron and Wine, The Lumineers, Frank Fairfield, Del McCoury, John Moreland, The Tallest Man On Earth, and so many more. And then Bill found HIMSELF by writing songs--acoustic songs, folk songs, "Americana" songs. He wrote a lot of them and there was no turning back. When Bill's dad passed in 2012, Bill was devastated. Confronted head-on with how fleeting life can be, he began to rearrange his obligations and focus, so that he could spend less time growing his law practice and have more time to devote to his music. In the four years that followed, he had put in motion and completed all of the things that one must do when making a “career change.” Around 2013, with the encouragement of a local recording engineer/studio owner and friend, Bill began recording his debut album, intentionally ironically titled, Just the Same. During the time when the album was being recorded, Bill performed as a solo artist in a local song-writing/performance contest and won by popular vote. The prize was that Bill would be the opening act for "Big Country" at The Paramount Theater - a 1500-capacity concert venue in Huntington, New York. He quickly formed a new band to accompany him for the show which was a great success. After the performance at The Paramount, he continued performing his songs live at multiple venues throughout New York City and in the surrounding areas, both with his new band mates and as a solo artist. In 2014, Bill independently released his debut album, Just the Same to critical acclaim. At this point in time, Bill's career change from attorney to full time musician, was complete, and everything that would follow would simply confirm what he had already always known - that music was his truth and his destiny. Bill attended AmericanaFest in Nashville, TN, later that year, and while there, he was introduced to then Yep Roc recording artist, Jonah Tolchin. They became friends, and on occasion performed together. Some months later they agreed that Tolchin would produce Bill's second album, Through These Waves. They began recording the album in November of 2016 at the famed Bomb Shelter in East Nashville, TN, together with engineer Billy Bennett and musicians Chris Scruggs, Kim Richey, Joachim Cooder, Laur Joamets, Eamon Mclaughlin, Will Kimbrough, Brent Burke and more. The Through These Waves album was recorded, mixed and mastered there in just 14 days and was released on March 10, 2017. A 10,000-mile national tour began, and Through These Waves jumped straight to #1 on the Americana Music Association’s Most-Added-Radio-Stations Top-50 chart, in its first week. The album later also landed on many Top-Albums-of-2017 lists, including Folk Alley and Elmore Magazine. No Depression said, "Bill Scorzari is a force. His songwriting is stellar, his picking above par and his voice fits his songs perfectly." “Tom Waits or Malcolm Holcombe... Scorzari’s voice is in that neighborhood but still stands apart. …thoughtful, cinematically shaped songs that continue to resonate after repeated listens. Yes, this is a 'must hear' for singer-songwriter aficionados." - Elmore Magazine. One such 'aficionado,' WFUV's John Platt, said, "Bill Scorzari has a lived-in voice that says, 'Listen to these songs. They spring from the earth and the ocean with an open heart and the wisdom of experience.’" “Artists that have this ability are rare—Waits, Dylan, Cohen, and today’s John Moreland and Jason Isbell….” -Lonesome Banjo Chronicles.
The following year, in early 2018, Bill and Artist/Producer Joe Henry, were introduced to discuss having Joe produce what would later become Bill's third release titled, Now I'm Free. They planned to start recording before year's end, 2018. An 11,000-mile national tour in support of the album was booked and scheduled to start in late July of 2019 beginning with Bill's landmark performance at Newport Folk Festival. The studio and hotels were booked, and the guest musicians that Joe had suggested for the recording sessions, were confirmed. Then came the terrible news that Joe had been diagnosed with cancer. The recording sessions were cancelled and rescheduled several times through the early months of 2019 as Joe continued to respond positively to treatment. In time, with the first tour dates drawing close on the horizon, and with Joe's need for further medical care, it was agreed that it would be best for Joe to fully devote his energies to continued healing. And so, rather than trying to resume his engagement in the recording project, Joe graciously offered to assist Bill in finding a replacement to fill the Producer's chair in his absence. Bill's third album, Now I'm Free, was recorded with Artist/Producer, Neilson Hubbard and Engineer Dylan Alldredge at Skinny Elephant Recording in Nashville, Tennessee, in April and May of 2019. It includes performances by Erin Rae, Will Kimbrough, Eamon McLoughlin, Michael Rinne, Juan Solorzano, Hubbard and more. The album was Mastered by Jim DeMain at Yes Master Studios in Nashville, in June of 2019, and on July 26th, 2019, Bill's “Now I'm Free” tour began with his performance at Newport Folk Festival in the "For Pete's Sake" program curated by Chris Funk of The Decemberists. Guitarist, Solorzano, Cellist, Jonathan Preddice and Upright Bass player, Charlie Meunsch accompanied Bill for the performance. At the end of Bill's set, the festival crowd demanded an encore, and with a nod from Chris Funk, an encore was performed and concluded to a standing ovation.
The 15-song, Now I'm Free album was Premiered by Billboard with an exclusive interview by Gary Graff on September 16, 2019, and was released mid-tour, on September 20, 2019. Singles from Now I'm Free were also Premiered by The Bluegrass Situation (“Treat Me Kind”) and Americana Highways (“It All Matters”). Billboard’s Gary Graff says, “Now I’m Free,” is “delicately nuanced” with “detailed arrangements.” "...Scorzari had good reason to enjoy the recording process this time around." The album performed well in the charts (coming in at #15 on the NACC Folk Chart and #8 on the Weekly Top 50 Alternative Folk Album Chart, with the single "Over Again" reaching #4 on the Weekly Top 50 Alternative Folk Song Chart). It later made its way onto many "Best of 2019" lists, including Americana Highways and Making a Scene. Producer, Neilson Hubbard said, “Bill tears himself open on these 15 songs and leaves it all out there in plain sight. He is an open book delivering a record of astonishing intimacy... and the gravel and whispers in his voice carry a true knockout punch.” Multi-instrumentalist, Will Kimbrough, who appears on the record, agreed saying, "... This is a fine record indeed." Excerpts from the album's many press reviews include the following:
"I love this album. I’m going on record and naming 'Now I’m Free' as the best album of 2019 and I’ll stand on anyone’s coffee table and say it. ...There are poets, there are songwriters, there are painters of fine art, and there’s Bill Scorzari. The new album, 'Now I’m Free' is a bold and delicate balance of each. To say it is a thing of beauty is an understatement. ...Perhaps Dylan or Townes could go toe to toe, but my money’s on Scorzari." - Making A Scene, By Viola Krouse. "Bill Scorzari scores one of 2019's finest... There may be a handful of songwriters as good as Scorzari but no one else could deliver these stunning songs. It’s even deeper and every bit as good as his last one. Bigger names will get more recognition but Scorzari’s getting there. He did play the Newport Folk Festival this year. He has my vote for Americana Album of the Year." Glide Magazine - By Jim Hynes. “This new album simply blows me away, I must say…. The lyrics are extremely important and the voice, that gritty kind of a voice... I tell somebody: Bill Scorzari is… you might want to think about Tom Waits a little, but better. I’m not saying that because you are sitting in front of me... I am really drawn to your voice... if someone hears this...hears this music, hears your new album, they are gonna know this is Bill Scorzari, because there’s not many people that have this voice and evoke this kind of emotion. The lyrics themselves, when you listen to the lyrics… yeah." Mostly Folk Podcast with Artie Martello - From the 8/25/2019 WIOX FM Radio Catskill's Cafe' Interview and Live Performance. “…That voice will make you pay attention to lyrics that can turn a phrase, make you think, or make you thankful that there’s someone out there to relate to.” Medium. “Scorzari sings, but his version of singing is more of the spoken poetry…that Sam Baker has perfected over the course of four albums and innumerable gigs. ... You listen and think, Yes—I’ve felt that…” Fervor Coulee. “A stunning work. Bill’s poetic lyrics are a frozen rope to the heart.” --Podcast interview on The Marinade with Jason Earle. “With a somber musical style and a hushed, gritty vocal that rises like the morning mist to mingle with Erin Rae’s grounded tones, ‘It All Matters’ is just outright pretty. Now I’m Free should be nominated for awards this year with its depth of grace and innovative tones; Scorzari taps into a nexus between the familiar and the uncanny.” --Americana Highways by Melissa Clarke -- Song Premiere of the single, “It All Matters." “Like the songs on his last CD... the ones here are all original, deeply personal and affecting; and Scorzari’s earthy vocals, which are just a bit less sandpapery than Dave Van Ronk’s, drive them home. With any luck, this guy is going places, and chances are, you’ll want to follow along for the ride.” --The Morton Report, Americana Highways, Jeff Burger. “Like singer-songwriters, Kris Kristofferson, Leonard Cohen, and Tom Waits, Bill’s raspy baritone snarls, hisses, and whispers through his heartfelt lyrics. Sometimes leaving the melody and just speaking the words, he comes off like a modern-day Rod McKuen, sweeping us up in his narratives and wringing out their plaintive content." --WTCA 106.1 FM & 1050 AM, South Bend Tribune, Kathy Bottorf. “Singer-songwriter Bill Scorzari skates in the ether with a sort of Ry Cooder ambient dream. But his voice is absolutely of the earth with its whiskey-borne rasp. Scorzari sings in the folk tradition of those who aren't afraid to jerk a few tears but doesn't mask his intentions or pull any punches. Sometimes the man gets mean.” --Rochester City Newspaper, Frank De Blasé. “Fans of Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Neil Young and anyone who likes quality song writing will dig this” --Live Music News and Review, Phil Simon. “A superb singer/songwriter with an outlaw rasp and a heavy-hearted soul” --The Ripple Effect. “Wonderfully gruff and oozing with emotion and raw honesty.” --Listening Through the Lens, Rob Dickens. "Once or twice a year, an album rolls onto the scene that is quickly and widely hailed as a game-changer...musically, the real standout feature on 'Now I'm Free' is Scorzari's voice. His gruff, halting style gives his singing the kind of authentic old-timer crackliness that some male C & W and Americana artists spend half their lifetime trying to acquire--and Scorzari has it in spades... given how heart-wrenchingly sincere, complex, painstakingly crafted an album like 'Now I'm Free' is, it's definitely worth a listen... 'Now I'm Free' is not to be taken lightly. Americana-uk.com
Now I'm Free can be heard at: → https://nowimfree.hearnow.com
After the "Now I'm Free" tour ended in late 2019, Bill returned to writing at home in New York, starting with the songs he had already begun creating while on the road during that tour. Ultimately, his plan was to finish writing enough songs for a new album and then return to Nashville to record them. He spent the first few months of 2020 continuing toward that end, before news of the Covid-19 pandemic began to circulate and forever changed the plans of an entire planet. With both in-person interactions and travel to Nashville no longer being an option, Bill adjusted his focus, and added to his list of immediate goals, the new task of finishing the construction of his New York recording studio, which he had been working on when free moments would arise from time to time in prior years. During the first few months of the pandemic in self-isolation, Bill completed the construction of what is now known as, “First Thunder Recording Studios.” With social distancing and lock downs in New York and elsewhere increasing, and with no end in sight, Bill then began to self-record his fourth album, The Crosswinds of Kansas, The “lock down” sessions began at First Thunder in May of 2020 and continued through July of 2021. Later, when the new Covid vaccines had been approved and adopted by many, and there was a brief return to less social distancing and isolation, Bill once again drove to Skinny Elephant Recording in Nashville TN to finish the new album there. With Dylan Alldredge again assuming the recording duties in August and September of 2021, the performances of guest artists Fats Kaplin (John Prine), Matt Menefee (Mumford & Sons), Michael Rinne (Miranda Lambert), Danny Mitchell (Miranda Lambert), Will Kimbrough (Emmylou Harris) Eamon McLoughlin (Emmy Lou Harris), Kyle Tuttle (Molly Tuttle and The Golden Highway), Juan Solorzano, Neilson Hubbard and more, were added to the recordings that Bill had started in New York. The final Nashville recording session was completed in 2022. The new album, The Crosswinds of Kansas, was coproduced by Scorzari and Hubbard in 2020 - 2022. It was Recorded and Mixed by Scorzari and Alldredge in NY and Nashville, TN in 2020 -2022 and was Mastered by Jim Demain at Yes Master Studio in Nashville, TN, in 2022. The album was finally released on Friday, August 19, 2022. Here are some of the reviews:
“The best 84 albums of 2023 (or so)” # 40. Bill Scorzari: The Crosswinds of Kansas (self-released) - And It Don't Stop Dean's List: 2023, by Robert Christgau / February 5, 2024
"Bill Scorzari: The Crosswinds of Kansas (self-released) …is packaged as a 70-minute double-fold CD complete with a 16-page lyric booklet. So I strongly suggest you follow along while you listen, which I even more strongly suggest. …Sadly, but also rather brilliantly, most [of the tracks] describe or ponder failed relationships… A MINUS” -And It Don’t Stop. Consumer Guide: July, 2023, by Robert Christgau / July 12, 2023
"Bill Scorzari: The Crosswinds of Kansas (self-released '22) …Christgau suggests reading along with the lyric sheet, but he has one, and would do that. … Seems like the surest way to a high grade around here is to remind me of John Prine, which happens when his usual Dylan gets off on a story." - Tom Hull - On The Web, The Best Non-Jazz Albums Of 2023, by Tom Hull / November 1, 2023
"A writer’s record for sure, the most singular thing about it is Scorzari’s… voice, full of tenderness and clarity as well as character. …an artful study of a constant explorer, full of little anecdotes and not-quite-jokes… Best American road music since Harpoons-era Ezra Furman. …” Semipop Life, by Bradley Luen / August 20, 2023
"...The Crosswinds of Kansas? Another level. ...Each song envelops the listener, sharing its secrets and truths... Man, to have been gifted such concise wisdom... I’ve not discovered many albums the quality of The Crosswinds of Kansas this year. I think that speaks more about Bill Scorzari than it does to what I’ve been listening to. A masterful creation…” - Fervor Coulee by Donald Teplyske / August 4, 2022
“From New York Trial Attorney to full-time musician, Bill Scorzari makes the seemingly 180-degree transition to a new life look natural.
The captivating folk n’ roots songwriter recently released his latest track, “The Broken Heart Side of the Road”, which is his second single from his forthcoming album, The Crosswinds of Kansas, set to drop later this month. ...With the resonating acoustic guitar strums and banjo lines prominent in the mix, along with a goosebump-inducing fiddle, the whole package resonates with deep down-home fervor.” - Music Mecca by Morgan Brady / August 2, 2022
"...Scorzari’s message is powerful and profound. The raspy, emotive voice and the chanting ruminations throughout are a joy… this listener cannot get enough of “All Behind Me Now”, “Try, Try Again” and the eleven-minute glorious, meditative opus “Tryin’, Tryin’, Tryin’, Tryin'”. Oh, and “Patience and Time” might well be the most tender and loving song I’ve heard this year. ...The Crosswinds of Kansas is an indisputable triumph and presented in a lavish, detailed CD package, which was an utter joy to review." - Listening Through The Lens - by Rob Dickens / July 20, 2022
"...His voice is the essential heart of his music and of this album as it delivers his thoughtful, crafted lyrics in a way very few others could… It is the kind of music that envelopes you. ...something that tends to bring you closer to its heart with frequent listening." - Lonesome Highway - by Stephen Rapid / July 24, 2022
"Singer, songwriter, Americana hypnotist Bill Scorzari effortlessly captivates with his forthcoming 'The Crosswinds of Kansas'... If you're familiar with his work at all, this will come as no surprise." “ ...Scorzari’s vocals immediately grab hold of your attention with this or any of his previous work, bleeding with honesty and conviction while gravelly capturing your imagination... The mixed textures of Crosswinds spellbind ...will have you diving into the lyrics, the assemblies, and contributions of each of the thirteen tracks. ...in a testament to the collective artistry and vision of Scorzari and supporting fifteen musicians. ...Bill Scorzari is more than Americana or some offshoot of country. ...He is a songwriter, years from now the next mainstream rock success will reference as a turning point discovery in their life. To review Bill Scorzari seems counter-intuitive. Scorzari’s music reflects against your own experiences... It makes sense to the roads you’ve travelled and the emotions you’ve felt. It is precisely that connection that makes Bill Scorzari more than a singer-songwriter, he is a modern gem and deserves to [be] recognized as such. The Crosswinds of Kansas is no exception, it is yet another exhibit to reinforce the sentiment. ...” -NANOBOT ROCK / August 12, 2022
“The Crosswinds of Kansas… from New York–based singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Bill Scorzari… may be his best yet. That’s saying plenty given the excellence of such earlier efforts as 2017’s Through These Waves and 2019’s Now I’m Free. Scorzari’s raspy vocals... add weight to his wise, poetic lyrics and contrast beautifully with the album’s frequently sweet-sounding music… Songs like “All Behind Me Now” and “Inside My Heart” will have you hanging on every word and wondering why Scorzari isn’t famous yet.” -AMERICANA HIGHWAYS by Jeff Burger / August 12, 2022
“Bill Scorzari has done it again. This writer finds it remarkable that the New York-based singer-songwriter and former trial lawyer could produce works as strong as his 2017 Through These Waves and 2019 Now I’m Free but his Crosswinds of Kansas is every bit their equal and maybe just a tad better. We throw around terms like a “songwriter’s songwriter” and Scorzari fits that to a tee. ...a blend of prose and poetry put to music, a Walt Whitman of sorts for our times. …” -Glide Magazine BY JIM HYNES / August 18, 2022
From January of 2023 through May of 2024 Bill self-recorded all of his parts for his presently untitled Fifth Album at First Thunder Recording Studios in New York. The recordings will be completed in Nashville, TN at Skinny Elephant Recording in August of 2024 with Neilson Hubbard again Coproducing, with Dylan Alldredge resuming as Recording Engineer and with an exciting cast of guest musicians. The album is anticipated for release in late-2024 / early-2025. And, the journey continues….
Sincere heartfelt thanks go out to all of you who are following and supporting Bill Scorzari's music. For the most up-to-date news on the new album and where he's headed next, please continue to visit www.billscorzari.com
Contacts
Bill Scorzari is available for performances, interviews, studio sessions and other media opportunities.
Bookings:
booking@billscorzari.com
Publicist:
DreamSpider Publicity
Erin Scholze
828-776-6248
erin@dreamspider.net
www.dreamspider.net
Radio Promoter:
Brad Paul // Brad Paul Media
bradpaul56@gmail.com
Web and Social Media Links:
www.billscorzari.com,
www.facebook.com/billscorzari,
www.twitter.com/BillScorzari,
www.instagram.com/billscorzari