Chicago-based singer-songwriter Joanie Pallatto has been on quite a roll in the 2020’s. In 2021, she released My Original Plan, followed by Accidental Melody in 2023 and then a duo album in 2024 with fellow singer April Aloisio called April & Joanie Sing! This much musical goodness is now followed up by another duo album entitled Song with Joanie’s partner Bradley Parker-Sparrow.

Compared to the upbeat nature of the albums mentioned above, the 2025 release of Song sounds dark and mysterious. Joanie’s voice and lyrics are still excellent, yet the surprise here is the depth of quality and musical veracity of Sparrow’s songs and piano work. 

Some of these tracks are pure Sparrow compositions that feature Joanie on vocals and others are co-writes in the best sense of the word with Joanie often contributing lyrics and sometimes additional music.

While the title track is an essential co-write, along with the duo’s tribute to Antonio Carlos Jobim, other tracks like “The Ferris Wheel”, “Monk Is Drunk” and the album’s brilliant closer “Cottage Grove” are pure Sparrow.

While he may point out the fact that he’s not a “schooled” songwriter, Sparrow is very much able to take his raw talent into more providential directions on Song.

Another aspect worth considering here are the two Sparrow piano solo tracks, “Sparrow’s Solo” and “Another Solo”, that shows his expertise at conjuring deep musical moods with just his solo piano.

No surprise here is that Joanie sounds totally keyed into the words and music, and track for track, Song proves to be among Joanie’s most inspiring album releases yet.

With its 12 tracks showcasing the vast talent and cooperation between Joanie Pallatto & Bradley Parker-Sparrow, Song is a totally ear-opening masterpiece by these two gifted artists and composers.