The discovery of new material from old masters is always exciting - it's like hearing them again for the first time. A contradictory sentence I know but hopefully you'll get where I'm coming from.
Oscar Peterson was indeed a master musician of the highest order. Many would say the greatest jazz pianist ever and, in what would have been his hundredth year, I wholeheartedly concur. Tatum may have matched his technique but he didn't have the swing that Oscar generated.
Over the years the personnel varied: The long running version with Herb Ellis on guitar, this one with drum ace Ed Thigpen replacing Ellis, then Bobby Durham took over from Thigpen and finally with Martin Drew on drums and NHOP on bass.
All had plenty to offer and it's difficult to single one out above the rest nevertheless, on the strength of this album it would be difficult to bet against the triumvirate of Peterson, Brown and Thigpen. Twenty-two tracks impeccably played. A mix of standards, bebop classics, a couple of originals and, to finish off with, the most swinging version ever of When the Saints go Marching in! All combine to make this the piano trio record of 1960, the year it was recorded ar Detroit's Baker's Keyboard Lounge. I guess it also deserves the same award posthumously in 2026.
Release date is April 17 and it's available on CD, vinyl and whatever. Start queuing now - it's that good! Lance
Autumn Leaves; Django; Confirmation; Whisper Not; Billy Boy; The Touch of Your Lips; Ill Wind; Chicago; I Love You: Closing; Dancing on the Ceiling; Politics and Power; Where do I go From Here?; I Didn't Know What Time it Was; Liza; Yesterdays; Softly as in a Morning Sunrise; S'Posin'; I Remember Clifford; Let There be Love; Swamp Fire; Closing/Blues For Big Scotia; Satin Doll; Woody 'n' You; My Funny Valentine; Scrapple From the Apple; Closing announcement (When the Saints go Marching in).
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