Oscar Peterson Blues Etude

This LP finds pianist Oscar Peterson at a transitional point in his career. Louis Hayes was the new drummer in his trio and, although veteran Ray Brown was on bass during the earlier of the two sessions, he would depart by 1966 (after 15 years) and be replaced by Sam Jones. However, the basic sound of the Oscar Peterson Trio remained unchanged (Peterson was the dominant voice anyway) and the personality of the group remained intact. Peterson contributed three originals (including the hard-swinging title cut) to this program and also sounds typically fine on "Let's Fall in Love," "The Shadow of Your Smile," "If I Were a Bell," and a definitive version of "Stella by Starlight."

Vol. 1. One of the nice things about jazz is the cross-pollination of different players in multiple settings. No one would've thought of pairing swing violinist Stéphane Grappelli and bop pianist Oscar Peterson, for instance, but the match works very well. The pair have expanded into a quartet on this reissue with the aid of double bassist Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen and drummer Kenny Clarke. The set, recorded in 1973 in Paris, includes a handful of standards, from Pinkard/Tracey/Tauber's "Them There Eyes" to Rodgers & Hart's "Thou Swell." As one might guess, Grappelli is in his own element on upbeat, swinging pieces like "Makin' Whoopee" and "Walkin' My Baby Back Home." Peterson likewise joins in the spirit of these pieces, making them the most interesting interpretations on the album. Other material, like the lingering "Flamingo" and "My One and Only Love," are also enjoyable, but seem rather tepid in comparison…

Some guest soloists get overshadowed by Oscar Peterson's technical prowess, while others meet him halfway with fireworks of their own; trumpeter Clark Terry lands in the latter camp on this fine 1964 session. With drummer Ed Thigpen and bassist Ray Brown providing solid support, the two soloists come off as intimate friends over the course of the album's ten ballad and blues numbers. And while Peterson shows myriad moods, from Ellington's impressionism on slow cuts like "They Didn't Believe Me" to fleet, single-line madness on his own "Squeaky's Blues," Terry goes in for blues and the blowzy on originals like "Mumbles" and "Incoherent Blues"; the trumpeter even airs out some of his singularly rambling and wonderful scat singing in the process…

West Side Story was a bit of an unusual session for several reasons. First, the popularity of both the Broadway musical and the film version that followed meant that there were many records being made of its music. Second, rather than woodshed on the selections prior to entering the studio, the Oscar Peterson Trio spontaneously created impressions of the musical's themes on the spot. "Something's Coming" seems like a series of vignettes, constantly shifting its mood, as if moving from one scene to the next. Ray Brown plays arco bass behind Peterson in the lovely "Somewhere," while the feeling to "Jet Song" is very hip in the trio's hands. The snappy interplay between the musicians in the brisk setting of "Tonight" turns it into a swinger. "Maria" initially has a light, dreamy quality, though it evolves into a solid groove…

Guitarist Joe Pass and bassist Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen both play well on these live performances, but the reason to acquire this set is for the remarkable Oscar Peterson. The pianist brilliantly investigates several jazz styles on "Blues Etude" (including stride and boogie-woogie), plays exciting versions of his "Chicago Blues" and "Easy Listening Blues," tears into "Secret Love," and shows honest emotion on "Come Sunday." Peterson really flourished during his years with Norman Granz's Pablo label, and this was one of his finest recordings of the period.

For nearly 80 years, legacy has been the spinal cord of the glorious jazz tradition – but maybe never more so to its fans than during these challenging days of the pandemic. Unable to hear music in person, all of us have only been able to access new music through technology, resulting in many looking back upon what may have been missed. But when one can look back on something that is at the same time entirely new, that is a most special situation. And when that something new is coming from jazz immortal Oscar Peterson – even more so. And that is exactly what is in hand with A Time for Love: The Oscar Peterson Quartet – Live in Helsinki, 1987 from Two Lions/Mack Avenue Records.

While it's true that Oscar Peterson compilations appeared with regularity form the early '60s on, only a few of them – as with most recording artists – have any real merit. This two-disc collection from the Concord Music Group's Telarc label, is one of them. Appearing less than a year before his death, this compilation concentrates on recordings issued from the '50s through the middle of the '80s on Dizzy Gillespie's Pablo label, and those made for Telarc between 1990 and 2000. Many live dates are included here from both labels, including "Tenderly" with Herb Ellis and Ray Brown at the J.A.T.P. concerts in Japan; the trio dates at Zardi's in 1955 ("How High the Moon"), in Copenhagen with Joe Pass, Stéphane Grappelli, and Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen in 1979, and Mickey Roker in 1979 ("Nuages")….

Oscar Peterson - Live at the Blue Note… The Complete Recordings (2004) {4CD Set, Telarc CD-83617 rec 1990}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 1.27 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 666 Mb
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© 1990, 2014 Telarc | CD-83617
Jazz / Bop / Mainstream Jazz / Piano

This four-disc set collects the previously released CDs of Peterson's legendary three-night stand in 1990 at the renowned New York City club. Featuring longtime compatriots Herb Ellis and Ray Brown, the "trio" here is actually a quartet with drummer Bobby Durham, who'd played with Peterson in the late 1960s. The collection offers prime playing and stands as a sort of summation of Peterson's longstanding work with both Brown and Ellis. It was only a few years after these performances that the pianist suffered a stroke, from which he recovered, but which altered his style, costing him the stridency of his left hand. Among the first jazz recordings for what up until then had been a classical label, the sets were captured with the warmth and clarity for which Telarc has become known.

Vol. 16 of the Verve Jazz Masters series features pianist Oscar Peterson, who recorded prolifically for them from his start in the early '50s up to the early '70s. A single CD could never do Peterson justice, but this one, featuring 15 solid tracks, is evenly balanced between trio and guitar-accented small ensembles, with three big-band tracks added in. The hottest numbers are "Woody 'n You," his original (one of only three of his compositions) "Evrev," and "The Honeydripper." The jazz orchestras nearly consume Peterson during "West Coast Blues," "O.P.," and the stringy "Someday My Prince Will Come." No matter; it's the brilliant voice that listeners admire and are awed by that always shines through, and even though his discography for Verve is gigantic, this remains a good place to start, especially for the student or novice to Peterson's genius.

The Trio is a 1973 live album by Oscar Peterson, Joe Pass and Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen. At the Grammy Awards of 1975, The Trio won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance by a Group. In his Allmusic review, critic Scott Yanow complimented the playing of Pass and Pedersen, but wrote "the reason to acquire this set is for the remarkable Oscar Peterson. The pianist brilliantly investigates several jazz styles… Peterson really flourished during his years with Norman Granz's Pablo label, and this was one of his finest recordings of the period."