Genres: Bop, Swing, Mainstream Jazz, Jazz Instrument, Piano Jazz Active: 40's, 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's, 2000's Born: August 15, 1925 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Hampton Hawes, Bill Evans, Erroll Garner, Nat King Cole, Art Tatum, George Shearing, Teddy Wilson, Bud Powell, James P. Johnson, Earl Hines, Count Basie Mickey Tucker, Monty Alexander, Marty Napoleon, Eddie Higgins, Eldar, Jay Leonhart, Todd Rhodes, Phil Nimmons, Joe Bushkin, Phil Wilson, Corky Hale, Mike Longo, Ramsey Lewis, Uli Lenz, Kevin Eubanks, Junior Mance, Bryce Rohde, Ronnell Bright, Michel Legrand |  |
Oscar Peterson was one of the greatest piano players of all time. A pianist with phenomenal technique on the level of his idol, Art Tatum, Peterson's speed, dexterity, and ability to swing at any tempo were amazing. Very effective in small groups, jam sessions, and in accompanying singers, O.P. was at his absolute best when performing unaccompanied solos. His original style did not fall into any specific idiom. Like Erroll Garner and George Shearing, Peterson's distinctive playing formed during the mid- to late '40s and fell somewhere between swing and bop. Peterson was criticized through the years because he used so many notes, didn't evolve much since the 1950s, and recorded a remarkable number of albums. Perhaps it is because critics ran out of favorable adjectives to use early in his career; certainly it can be said that Peterson played 100 notes when other pianists might have used ten, but all 100 usually fit, and there is nothing wrong with showing off technique when it serves the music.
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Release: April 20, 2010
Label: Verve
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Release: March 2, 2010
Label: American Jazz Classics
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