Resonant two-photon ionization (R2PI) spectrum of p-methoxybenzyl alcohol prepared in the supersonic jet has been obtained. Long-progression bands associated with torsional mode of the CH 2 OH moiety with respect to the rest of the molecule in the S 1 state are observed in the wide spectral range of 35,500-37,500cm - 1 . The torsional barrier height is found to decrease when the torsional mode is combined with other low-frequency bands at 84 (ν 1 =1) and 163 (ν 1 =2)cm - 1 , indicating that this low-frequency mode is modestly coupled to the torsional mode. On the other hand, when the torsional mode is built on the higher-frequency band at 798 (ν 2 =1) and 1595cm - 1 (ν 2 =2), torsional frequencies are found to be little changed from those located at the origin. Ab initio calculation suggests that this relatively high-frequency mode may be associated with ring-deformation motions, which does not significantly modify the distance and angle between the CH 2 OH moiety and aromatic ring. Rotational contour analysis suggests that the transition dipole moment is oriented along the molecular b-axis. The torsional progression bands in the excitation energies higher than ~800cm - 1 are found to be much broader than those located at the origin, indicating that intramolecular vibrational redistribution (IVR) becomes quite efficient at such excitation energies.