In recent decades, male jazz singers have become an endangered species. For every male jazz singer who debuted in the 1970s and 1980s, there were at least a dozen or more female jazz singers. And yet, some promising young male jazz singers emerged in the 1990s, including Kevin Mahogany, Kurt Elling, Allan Harris and Ian Shaw. Another young male who is doing his part to keep jazz singing alive and healthy is the Philadelphia-based Lou Lanza, who has fashioned a distinctive and recognizable style that successfully unites the vulnerability of Chet Baker, Mel Torme and a young Frank Sinatra with the hard-bop risk-taking of Mark Murphy and Jon Hendricks. "As far as the current crop of younger male jazz vocalists goes, most of them are either esoteric hard bop singers like Kurt Elling--whose risk-taking I admire--or they fall into the crooner vein a la Harry Connick and Allan Harris," explains Lanza, who provided three albums in the 1990s and is planning to release at least two or three more in 2008 and 2009. "There aren't too many who are in between, but I like to think that I'm a combination of the two."

Listening to Lanza's CDs, one hears a singer who has developed his style by paying close attention to a variety of artists--not only male jazz singers, but also, jazz instrumentalists, female jazz singers and classic pop crooners like Sinatra. "I feel that I'm a bit of a wild card and that I'm a combination of a lot of different influences," asserts Lanza, who is unrelated to the Philadelphia opera singer Mario Lanza. "Chet Baker taught me the importance of showing your vulnerability, whereas Ella Fitzgerald showed me that I could move my voice around like an instrument whether I'm scatting or using words. Chet phrased beautifully, and obviously put a lot of thought into the impact and meaning of the lyrics he was singing. Mark Murphy is probably the best conglomeration of all those things because he has the vulnerability as well as the ability to use his voice as an instrument." Lanza continues: "I think what I got the most from Sinatra was knowing the importance of the lyric. And Miles Davis showed me that you could improvise musically, yet still convey the meaning of the lyrics through the notes--without words."

Lanza's recording career began in 1995, when he recorded his promising debut album, The Road Not Taken, for the independent J-Bird label. That album was followed by his second album, Corner Pocket, a more eclectic outing that he recorded in 1997. "With Corner Pocket, I was concerned with hitting the jazz element especially hard, and I got more into bebop, scatting and vocalese," Lanza recalls. "I wanted someone to be able to pull out any song and say, 'This is definitely a straight-ahead jazz album.' " But if Corner Pocket illustrated his more aggressive, hard-swinging side, Lanza favored a more pensive, reflective approach when he recorded his third album, Shadows and Echoes, for the Dutch Challenge Records. Shadows and Echoes was produced by jazz veteran Chris Ellis, a British singer who is also among the most respected jazz producers in Europe. And just as The Road Not Taken, Corner Pocket and Shadows and Echoes were three very different albums, Lanza's next two releases will show the jazz world different sides of his artistry. One of them is An Intimate Portrait in Blue, a moody, often melancholy album of ballads and torch songs. The other album, Opening Doors: A Jazz Tribute to the Doors , is a hard-swinging, more aggressive effort that finds Lanza paying tribute to one of the top rock bands of the 1960s. The singer plans to release both Opening Doors and An Intimate Portrait in Blue on his own label City Sounds.

While Lanza isn't the first jazz artist to record songs by The Doors, Opening Doors marks the first time that an entire jazz vocal album has focused on their music exclusively. And make no mistake: Opening Doors is very much a jazz album. From "Light My Fire" to "Break On Through" - from "Hello I Love You" to "Riders on the Storm," Lanza brings a jazz improviser's mentality to songs that have a rock background. "The Doors were among the most jazz-influenced rock groups of the 1960s," explains Lanza, who recorded Opening Doors in 2002. "You had a rhythm section comprised of people who had either played jazz at some point, or at least enjoyed it. And then you had a lead singer, Jim Morrison, who liked to improvise. So you had a rock group that had a lot of improvisational qualities. The Doors used some of the modalities and blues forms of jazz." On Opening Doors, Lanza is joined by some of the finest jazz musicians in Philly, including trumpeter John Swana, drummer Byron Landham (who regularly plays with organist/trumpeter Joey DeFrancesco) and guitarist Rob Budesa (among others). Orrin Evans, who is primarily a pianist, is heard on Hammond organ.

But there are no horn players, organists or drummers on An Intimate Portrait in Blue; Lanza's only accompaniment on that album is Philly pianist Jason Long. Because Long is such a lyrical and melodic player, he was perfect for an album as introspective as An Intimate Portrait in Blue. If one notices that Lanza's voice sounds a bit rougher than usual on An Intimate Portrait in Blue, it is because he was battling a cold when he recorded the album in 1998. And as Lanza sees it, that cold turned out to be a blessing in disguise. The singer explains: "An Intimate Portrait in Blue isn't meant to be the work of a high school student who got his heart broken for the first time. It's coming from the perspective of a man who has been a loser in the game of love, and someone like that is going to have a rougher edge to his voice." Having a cold was the least of Lanza's problems when he recorded An Intimate Portrait in Blue. At the time, he was involved in a troubled marriage that only went from bad to worse--one that eventually ended in Lanza filing for divorce.

No discussion of Lanza's history would be adequate without some mention of his upbringing in Philadelphia--a musical hotbed that gave us John Coltrane, Lee Morgan, The Heath Bros., Jimmy Smith, McCoy Tyner and many other jazz giants. Born in Philly on July 20, 1970, Lanza is the grandson of opera singer Louis Lanza, Sr. (an immigrant who moved to the U.S. from the southern part of Italy in the 1920s) and classical violinist Louis Lanza, Jr. (a long-time member of the Philadelphia Orchestra). Lou Lanza's mother, the late Joan Trombetta-Lanza, was a classical pianist, organist and music teacher. But the family member who did the most to encourage Lanza's interest in jazz was saxophonist, arranger and music teacher Vince Trombetta, who served as musical director of "The Mike Douglas Show" when it was Philly-based. Trombetta's students have included Michael & Randy Brecker and Stanley Clarke.

"Growing up in Philadelphia definitely gives your music more of an urban perspective," stresses Lanza, who performs traditional Christian music in addition to his jazz singing. "Philadelphia has a rich cultural and musical heritage. I love the city. An amazing variety of music came of Philadelphia--classical, swing, bebop, pop, rock, R&B, disco and more recently, hip-hop and alternative rock. It's been a very fertile area for music even if it isn't always terribly supportive of its artists." Lanza is an actor as well as a singer; in the early 1990s, he appeared in some off-Broadway productions. But in recent years, he has chosen to focus on his singing instead, although he hasn't ruled out the possibility of doing some acting again. In the 1990s, Lanza's music teachers included guitarist Jimmy Bruno and tenor saxophonist Larry McKenna (who is considered a local legend Philly). Lanza's live performances in Philly, New York (where he has enjoyed six-night engagements at Tavern On The Green), Los Angeles and Atlantic City have earned him the admiration of everyone from Philly tenor saxophonist Bootsie Barnes and jazz singer Mark Murphy to pop legend Tony Bennett, who told him, "Lou, you are great! Keep on singing!"

Another strong Lanza supporter, Philadelphia Inquirer jazz critic Donald True Van Deusen, said of him: "There is an intensity to (Lanza's) singing that is unique, upbeat and hip; his musicianship is extraordinary." And Bob Perkins, Philly's most famous jazz deejay, stressed: "Keep your eyes on this Lanza kid, because not only does he have a thorough understanding of classic pop and jazz vocalizing, he is also an accomplished instrumentalist, songwriter and actor." Far from a so-called "jazz snob" who hates any music that isn't jazz, Lanza has listened to rock, R&B, classical and Brazilian music extensively and can carry on a long conversation about any of those forms. Perhaps it is that type of open-mindedness that gives Lanza's music its freshness. "People often ask me what my musical preference is," notes Lanza, who plans to do more composing on future albums. "'What do you like doing the most--bebop, scat singing, vocalese, bossa nova, ballads or torch singing?' And my response is that I like to do them all and bring variety to an album or a live performance. When I first met Mark Murphy, his advice was to keep them guessing--and I'd like to think that keeping them guessing is exactly what I'm doing."

"Opening Doors" added new fans to The Doors music and Lou Lanza made it happen with his groundbreaking cd paying tribute to The Doors...You have never heard Doors music this way before...A great cd."
- Jim Stone, Jazz DJ at WLNZ, Lansing, MI

"No one could do a better jazz vocal album of Doors songs than Lou Lanza."
- Paul Olsen - allaboutjazz.com

"Far superior to Kurt Elling, Michael Buble, Peter Cincotti, and Jamie Cullum, already finds himself, in spite of the difference in age, at the same level of expressiveness of Mark Murphy, Al Jarreau, and Andy Bey."
- Arnaldo DeSouteiro - Tribuna da Imprensa

Top male jazz vocalist of 2004 in the reader's poll of Rio de Janeiro's Tribuna da Imprensa:
1. Lou Lanza ("Opening Doors/a jazz tribute to The Doors" - Cexton);
2. Tony Bennett;
3. Al Jarreau

"There is an intensity to his singing that is unique, upbeat and hip; his musicianship is extraordinary."
- Donald True Van Deusen, Philadelphia Inquirer

"Lou, you are great! Keep on singing!"
- Tony Bennett, Legendary Vocalist & Recording Artist

"Most impressed...This handsome young man proved himself a winner, showing a deft knowledge of his material,...a welcome breath of fresh air."
- John Hogland, Backstage

"The young singer successfully fused the crooning & vulnerability of Mel Torme and a young Chet Baker with the risk taking vocalese and scatting of Mark Murphy and Jon Hendricks."
- Alex Henderson, All-Music Guide

"Fine, Young-tude, light baritone sound...a voice that uses a perfect scale, control...Lou Lanza - remember that name."
- Mark Murphy, Legendary Jazz Vocalist, Recording Artist & Educator

"Falls squarely between Tony Bennett and Bob Dorough. He switches effortlessly between classic ballads, vocalese, and high velocity scatting."
- Phillyjazz.org

"Lou Lanza, Philly's ultimate crooner, has proven he belongs with the crème de la crème of the Phill jazz scene, or any jazz scene for that matter"
- JD Walter, Vocalist, Recording Artist & Educator

"Lou Lanza has come along with a voice to be reckoned with."
- Jack Lebo, Dancing USA's "Big Band Report"

"He would go down a treat if you happened into a bar or nightclub at which he was performing...he has an airy melodic charm...quality material."
- Bruce Crowther, Jazz Journal International

"Excels at the difficult style called vocals...uses his voice as a musical instrument...a master at the lost art of scat singing."
- Anthony DiFlorio, Italian Tribune

"Lou is very talented, and great to listen to"
- Henry Mancini, Legendary and Award Winning Composer

"Lanza's spontaneous phrasing is reminiscent of instrumentalists, he uses dynamics as another means of expression."
- Abbe Klebanoff, Northeast Times

"Over the years I've worked with many singers, Lou is one of the best!"
- Jimmy Bruno, Guitarist/Concord Jazz Recording Artist

"A wonderful voice - capable of many different styles, an excellent musician, both instinctive and well trained."
- Michael Leonard, Composer ( Broadway & Film )/Arranger ( Bill Evans )

"Lou is unerringly hip, and has an unfailing sense of swing."
- Peter Nero

"Your CD...it's terrific. You sound great...I think your writing is very impressive as well."
- Bill Mays, Pianist/Arranger ( Al Jarreau, Sarah Vauhan, Mark Murphy )

"Lanza more than holds his own on "the road not taken" With guitarist Jimmy Bruno, and tenorman Larry McKenna." "
- Bob Perkins, Welcomat

"Lou, with a voice like yours I should be jealous, but with your personality who could be."
- Allan Harris, Vocalist/Mons Recording Artist

"Not only does Lou have a promising future as a singer and performer, but also as a composer of beautiful songs and sensitive lyrics"
- Carlo Menotti, Voice teacher ( Bobby Darin, Tony Bennett )

"Lanza has such a great voice."
- John Flautz, Morning Call

"The road not taken is one of the best new jazz releases of March of 1995!"
- Dr. Jack Beurkle, WRTI 90.1 FM in Philadelphia

"Utterly charming...with an extraordinary comprehension of each individual song."
- Gianni Stellamonte, Intelligencer-Record

"A bright singer on the rise...shows substantial growth and maturity...hits the right notes with feeling and ease."
- Al Hunter, Philadelphia Daily News

"The next Sinatra, Bennett, Torme, and Astaire shares the same name as you."
- Thatcher Longstreth

"Queued for success with his new CD "corner pocket",...a multitalented musician who handles vocalese and scat singing with the assurance of Eddie Jefferson, Jon Hendricks, and Mel Torme."
- Bob Perkins, Philadelphia Weekly

"It's the talent of young vocalists like Lanza that keeps the music going."
- Richard Grudens, "The Music Men: The Guys Who Sang With The Bands & Beyond"

"Lanza, a singer, songwriter, leader, is perhaps the most accomplished male vocalist working in this area."
- Donald True Van Deusen, allaboutjazz.com

"Exquisite taste and wonderful musicianship."
- Ron Gill, WGBH-FM DJ in Boston

"A great combination of music and vocals"
- Sandi Mayor, Bucks County Courier Times

"I don't generally like singers, but I like you: you're great!"
- Bill Watrous, Grammy Award winning Trombonist/Recording Artist

"Superb...a wonderful singer...such a great artist."
- Arnaldo Desouteiro

"A marvelous singing voice."
- Steven Lally, Bethlehem Globe-Times