Peterson at his inventive best

Press, 13 June 1984, Page 17

Peterson at his inventive best

Bv ALLAN FRANCIS OSCAR PETERSON. Piano Giant — Special Birthday Edition. Oscar Peterson, piano, with various combos plays 16 tracks of standards and originals. WORLD RECORDS issue from MPS 29-22499-6. Peterson’s “Easter Suite” will have undoubtedly put the final seal of quality on his powers of composition, proving once and for all what a fine and sensitive artist Peterson is. This current release underlines this assertion. To get the niggles over first — and these are only little ones — it must be pointed out that someone in the factory is an atrocious speller and hitches in the labelling of sides 2 and 3 are confusing. However, noone could possibly mistake “Wave” for “Seven Comes Eleven,” and so, this, too can be overlooked in the superb over-all quality. Nor does the ragged start to the programme have any material effect on the high standard generally expected. In the opening “Exactly Like You” Herb Ellis has a mild disagreement with Peterson, and the ensemble playing is not quite as immaculate as usual. From here on, only superlatives are in order. Peterson is at his inventive best and one can sit back and enjoy the merits of each successive combination. Even the trite “This Guy’s In Love With Love” sounds wonderful under Peterson’s deft arrangement. Cole Porter, Charles Chaplin, Benny Goodman and Michel LeGrand provide Peterson with the material he uses as a springboard for his improvisation skills. In the old blockbuster, “Seven Comes Eleven,” Herb Ellis pays a fine tribute to Charlie Christian, and the Singers Unlimited add a little flavour of their own in “Sesame Street.” The youthful zest of tracks such as “Ja Da” and “Seven Comes Eleven” brings out the boyish glee in any middle-aged fan, equalling the satisfaction of comparing the relative merits of each percussionist. Louis Hayes, perhaps, comes off best as a soloist and in ensemble while Bobby Durham relates more to the traditional style.

Niels-Henning OrstedPedersen. bassist, a mouthful by name but striking in his prowess, assuredly matches the long-standing Ray Brown, who makes only one appearance in this programme. It is easy to recognise Peterson's preference for these German-re-corded sessions, always a delight to the fastidious ear and obviously the favourite choice of the Canadian-born pianist. Even in the unlikely numbers. such as “Smile" or “Watch. What Happens." Peterson extracts all the jazz possible. His lyrical phrasing is almost as immaculate as that of Bill Evans and his nimble fingering in the faster numbers is still a matter of wonderment. What the mature Peterson has achieved is avoiding the danger of becoming mechanical, a fault that was becoming apparent in those ancient Jazz at the Philharmonic sessions of Norman Granz so long ago. Other tracks which break up the pattern are the standards, “I Love You,” “You Stepped Out of a Dream,” the Disney tune, “Some Day My Prince Will Come,” and the other Goodman, “Soft Winds.” One can live with this album as a perfect cross-section of Peterson the virtuoso, of Peterson the composer — “Wheatland” — and Peterson the general, with auspicious sidemen of the calibre of Milt Jackson and others. This is essential listening. AL JARREAU. Ain’t No Sunshine. Eight popular tracks by Al Jarreau. MUSIC WORLD LUCKY SERIES LUC 004. Obviously the better they come the shorter they are; the barometer of popular demand guides the volume of playing times. Coming from a company which is renowned for tremendous value for money, these discs could hardly be listed in the bargain bin with a bare 25 minutes all up. Still, it remains an attractive proposition for all Jarreau fans looking for numbers such as “You,” “Grandma’s Hands” “Lonely Town, Lonely Street,” or “Lean On Me.” Recorded sound is excellent with a satisfying amount of bass and treble on all tracks.