Oscar Peterson At The Concertgebouw CD

OSCAR PETERSON TRIO AT THE CONCERTGEBOUW is actually a live recording of a concert at The Civic Opera House and bonus tracks from an LP titled THE MODERN JAZZ QUARTET AND THE OSCAR PETERSON TRIO AT THE OPERA HOUSE which were originally recorded at the Shrine Auditorium. Although Oscar Peterson and his trio did perform a midnight concert on April 12-13, 1958, no recording of this concert has been found.

This album--the title has been a misnomer since its initial release in 1957--was not recorded at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam but at the Civic Opera House in Chicago. That bit of trivia aside, this is an exceptional snapshot of the magic produced by Oscar Peterson's mid-'50s trio. When guitarist Herb Ellis and bassist Ray Brown locked in with Peterson's piano, the three unfurled a tornado of musical ideas that wrapped bop, swing, popular balladry, and chamber music in highly complex, beautiful arrangements.

Brown and Ellis keep pace with Peterson's trademark velocity on hyper-accelerated takes on standards ("The Lady is a Tramp") and mid-tempo blues ("Bluesology"), moving between mainstream jazz ("I've Got the World On a String") and music that is quite advanced ("Budo"). Though Peterson would work in a trio format for much of his career, he seldom attained the heights reached by this ensemble, and AT THE CONCERTGEBOUW is one of the trio's finest offerings.

Principally recorded at The Civic Opera House, Chicago, Illinois and the Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles, California on September 29, 1957 and October 9, 1957. Includes an interview with Herb Ellis and liner notes by Reuel V. Lubag.

Personnel: Oscar Peterson (piano); Herb Ellis (guitar).

Liner Note Author: Reuel V. Lubag.

Recording information: Civic Opera House, Chicago, IL (09/29/1957/10/09/1957); Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles, CA (09/29/1957/10/09/1957).

Personnel: Oscar Peterson (piano); Herb Ellis (guitar); Ray Brown (bass).

Down Beat (12/94, p.49) - 3.5 Stars - Good Plus - "...it's clear that Peterson, guitarist Herb Ellis, and bassist Ray Brown...were in great, supple form. Ellis...and Peterson are like an old married couple who can finish each other's sentances without even trying. Outrageously impressive..."