Glenn Crytzer Songbook Sessions, Vol. 1

When we’ve covered Glenn Crytzer over the years it has usually been to focus on his original material and his full orchestra, but if you’re a Glenn fan living in or visiting NYC, you’re more likely to find him at one of his many regular quintet, quartet, and trio gigs playing from the inexhaustible well of period material. Attending these smaller performances gives you the opportunity to learn and enjoy the individual styles of some of New York’s best players, and these gigs lean more often into trad than the swing our readers might associate with Crytzer. While it’s fun to peek in on these shows on YouTube and get a sense for the room, the sound quality and audience noise can leave something to be desired. Now there’s a new way to take a deep dive into Crytzer’s small-group work.

During the lockdowns of 2020 and 2021 many musicians turned to online streaming; Crytzer was no exception, but his project had an interesting twist. While some groups assembled remote recordings and others played their kitchens as solo or duo acts, Glenn turned a room into a recording studio and formed a “pod” to record together live and in person. The quartet for these performances included Mike Davis (trumpet), Ricky Alexander (reeds), Ian Hutchison (bass), and Glenn on guitar. On Sundays at 2:30 p.m. they would perform live, followed by a Q&A chat in Zoom with fans—weekly donations strongly encouraged.

Here’s where it gets interesting. Each week the Songbook Sessions focused on ten titles from a specific year, starting with 1920 and running chronologically for 25 weeks through 1945—what amounted to a six-month course in jazz, told in 250 titles. To encourage participation, the streams were live events: if you weren’t there, you missed it. They aren’t on YouTube. That always felt a bit unfortunate given how unique the concept was. Now, four years later, Crytzer is giving you a way to discover or revisit them.

Beginning October 3, he will release a new title to streaming services every Friday for several years. Each session (one year of material) will also be released on Bandcamp as a downloadable digital album. A print-to-order LP edition is in the works (something I didn’t know was even possible). Songbook Sessions, Vol. 1 technically releases on December 5, after its tracks have been rolled out on streaming services, but you can already stream and download it on Bandcamp.

Doing the math, this endeavor is going to take a number of years to complete, with the last album arriving when lockdowns are a distant memory. I love this approach! Rather than dropping a huge digital box set that few would actually peruse in full, several albums a year, moving slowly forward in time, will mirror that initial weekly appointment with friends to enjoy some jazz.

You can sign up to have the weekly drops added automatically to your playlists on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, or Tidal, with a free EP of unreleased material promised for subscribers. If ownership is more your style, Songbook Sessions, Vol. 1 (covering 1920) is $10 on Bandcamp. Titles include “Whispering,” “Lena from Palesteena,” “Aunt Hagar’s Blues,” “Margie,” “Avalon,” “Look for the Silver Lining,” “Singin’ the Blues,” “(I’ll Be With You) In Apple Blossom Time,” “I’ll See You in C-U-B-A,” and “San.”

The playing is exquisite—truly. I’ve listened through a number of times already in just a few days. We’re lucky to have someone who plays as warmly as Mike Davis; Ricky Alexander is also fantastic (and a great bandleader in his own right). Ian Hutchison holding it all together on bass, is the least familiar to me, but apparently not to New Yorkers. A search of our site shows him with Glenn at least as far back as 2016, as well as with a number of the current hottest groups in NY.

Glenn Crytzer, of course, is a guitar wonder, and these sessions will be especially enjoyed by lovers of jazz guitar. Crytzer also deserves credit as the visionary continuing to shepherd this worthy project into 2026 and beyond. Jazz has always depended on musicians, like Glenn, who are natural organizers with a mind for business, and he is approaching this thing the right way.

An album release party is planned for January 11th.

Songbook Sessions, Vol. 1: 1920
Glenn Crytzer
glenncrytzer.bandcamp.com