Peter Friedman

A number of posters indicated that while they like (at least some) of Peterson's recordings with Ray Brown & Ed Thigpen and/ or the ones with Sam Jones & Bobby Durham and maybe Louis Hayes, they don't care for his playing on the Pablo label. Some of his things on Pablo are not items I care much for either. However there are quite a few on Pablo that I do like. Some examples are his series of duo sessions with trumpet players, especially the one with Dizzy Gillespie and the duo with Milt Jackson. Others I enjoy are his Montreux sessions with a variety of good players such as Milt Jackson, Dizzy, Lockjaw, Clark Terry & Toots Thielemans. The Oscar Peterson - Count Basie sessions are great fun to my ears. Also I like his Bach Suite on "Oscar Peterson Live". So while some don't like his playing on Pablo, I do not share that view. I should also say that some of his things on Telarc, perhaps his final recordings are also very enjoyable.

As so often happens for me. When there is an extended discussion about a musician here, it stimulates my interest in pulling some things off the shelf by that musician for current listening. So have listened in the last day or two to the Benny Carter Meets Oscar Peterson CD, and a Peterson Trio CD with Sam Jones and Bobby Durham called Tristeza on the MPS label. Have greatly enjoyed both of them.

Dvorak - String Quartet No.11, Op.61 and Quartet Movement in F Major - Allegro Vivace Mozart - Piano Concerto No.20, K.466 and Concert Rondo K.382

Mozart - K.376 & K.377 Saint-Saens - Piano Quartet Op.41

Complete Nocturnes

Personally I prefer to hear Oscar Peterson in a trio setting, or with horns. He swings hard in those contexts. His energy is often so powerful that the music can be highly exciting. He frequently makes me tap my toes and snap my fingers. His solo playing is where he tends to overplay, and often does not, to my taste, swing, and can be somewhat boring. Art Tatum was an amazing player with fantastic technique, and harmonic mastery. I can enjoy his playing in small doses, most often at the intellectual level. Often I get the sense that his demonstration of technical and harmonic mastery tends to be showing off his great skills. Though there are exceptions, I don't perceive Tatum's playing swings. his playing does not make me want to tap my toes or snap my fingers. Though Oscar Peterson is not one of my very favorite jazz piano players, I would (most of the time) rather listen to one of his recordings than to a recording by Tatum.

Drummond as a sideman recorded some wonderful things with Kenny Barron, Hank Jones and Bill Mays among numerous others. Here is a favorite with Ray as leader.

Symphony No.2