Oscar Peterson Exclusively For My Friends Vol. I: Action Super-Audio CD

This is a hybrid Super Audio CD playable on both regular and Super Audio CD players.

In the early '60s Oscar Peterson befriended producer Hans Georg Brunner-Schwer, who recorded Peterson on a number of occasions in his private studio while the veteran pianist was still signed to Verve. Action is made up of the earliest sessions recorded by Brunner-Schwer, featuring Peterson with bassist Ray Brown and drummer Ed Thigpen circa 1963 and 1964. Before an audience invited by the producer, the trio begins with a midtempo "At Long Last Love," followed by a gently swinging treatment of Billy Taylor's infrequently performed "Easy Walker" and an understated interpretation of "Tin Tin Deo." Peterson's lyricism is at its peak in his arrangements of "I've Got a Crush On You" and "A Foggy Day." But it is the trio's extended and intricate workout of "Like Someone in Love," clocking in at just over 11 minutes, that leaves the most lasting impression. Not only is Peterson extremely reserved, but Brown's first-rate solo and Thigpen's delicate brushwork help to make this track a masterpiece. Previously reissued as a part of the Exclusively for My Friends box set in 1992, this Super Audio disc features even better sound. ~ Ken Dryden

Oscar Peterson developed a friendship with Hans Georg Brunner-Schwer, who proceeded to record the pianist in his first-rate studio beginning in the early '60s, even though Peterson was under an exclusive contract to Verve at the time. The solution to this problem was to wait until after it expired, and then a number of these sessions were released on various BASF or MPS LPs (and later on Pausa LP reissues). Action represents some of Peterson's earliest work for Brunner-Schwer; these sessions were recorded before an invited audience in the studio, with the pianist's working trio of Ray Brown and Ed Thigpen. The group seems extremely relaxed and inspired by the small group of loyal fans, with a brisk waltz treatment of "At Long Last Love" and an extended workout of fellow pianist Billy Taylor's ballad "Easy Walker" starting things off with a flourish. Their approach to "Tin Tin Deo" is remarkably subtle, while Peterson is at his most lyrical during a pair of Gershwin selections, "I've Got a Crush on You" and "A Foggy Day." The influence of Art Tatum is apparent with Peterson's darting runs in "Like Someone in Love." Out of print for a time following the demise of the reissue label Pausa, the complete album was included in the 1992 Verve CD box set compilation Exclusively for My Friends. ~ Ken Dryden

Personnel: Oscar Peterson (piano); Ray Brown (double bass); Ed Thigpen (drums).

Liner Note Author: Hans Georg Brunner-Schwer.