king ubu Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 Isn't the Tatum comparison overstretched? There's lots more of Nat Cole there... at least to my lacking lousy ears.
alocispepraluger102 Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 i seem to remember an item about a very early oscar playing free avant garde at a concert in n.y. in the early 50s. early on he eased into the more commercialy viable(if anyone can say that of jazz) acceptable stylings. about the subject at hand: petersons's wordy style was unbearable to me much, if not most, of the time. other times, his music was heavenly and magnificent.
B. Goren. Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 There's lots more of Nat Cole there... at least to my lacking lousy ears. Oscar Peterson was known fan of Nat Cole.
mikelz777 Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 (edited) There's lots more of Nat Cole there... at least to my lacking lousy ears. Oscar Peterson was known fan of Nat Cole. He's also known to sing very much like him to the point where it can be hard to tell the difference vocally. Re: playing "too many notes". There's a lot of OP to be had and loved, both busy and more restrained. Pick which you like best and stick with that. I'm not a fan of Art Tatum or that style of playing so I prefer his more restrained playing and love him as an accompanist. Edited July 22, 2011 by mikelz777
Swinging Swede Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 (edited) And if you think that Oscar Peterson's piano playing was influenced by Nat "King" Cole - then listen to his singing! It is amazingly similar to Cole's. Edit: mikelz777 beat me to it! Edited July 22, 2011 by Swinging Swede
RayB Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 I've always loved OP's playing, Night Train was one of the very first albums I bought back in the 60's when I started collecting jazz and I've got dozens since then. I love him because he swings like the dickens and you know what they say 'It don't mean a thing ......'
king ubu Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 "Night Train" is funnily one I've still not been able to get too much pleasure out of yet. From that time, I much prefer "Affinity"!
John Tapscott Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 "Night Train" is funnily one I've still not been able to get too much pleasure out of yet. From that time, I much prefer "Affinity"! I think you're on to something. "Night Train" is Ok, but the problem with it IMHO is that the tunes are too short. Just when the trio starts to really groove, it's time to wrap things up. And I've never been a big fan of "Hymn to Freedom" - too much tremolo for my taste. "Affinity" is the better and more appealing date, again IMHO. The trio stretches out more.
Peter Friedman Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 I went through a few changes in my reaction to Oscar Peterson's playing. In my early years of becoming a jazz fan, I thought Oscar Peterson was magnificent, and a strong favorite. Some years went by, and a snobbishness kicked in and I no longer believed Oscar to be so wonderful. "Not deep enough and too commercial". A few years later I got over that silly attitude and saw Oscar as a master at one way of approaching jazz piano. There are many very fine jazz piano players, and I realized that each of them could be enjoyed for what they give to the music. I would not say Oscar Peterson is among my top 10 favorite jazz pianists, but I do find much to both admire and enjoy in his playing. In contrast with what some others here said, I find Oscar's earliest recordings to be my least favorite.
David Ayers Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 I like the fact he plays with two hands.
JSngry Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 Some years went by, and a snobbishness kicked in and I no longer believed Oscar to be so wonderful. "Not deep enough and too commercial". A few years later I got over that silly attitude and saw Oscar as a master at one way of approaching jazz piano. Now see, this is what bugs me if somebody doesn't like somebody like OP, the assumption is frequently made by those who do that there's some kind of elitism, snobbery, or some kind of extra-musical factor at work, when in truth, speaking for myself, I just don't like the way the motherfucker plays! Period. Believe me, I loves me some shallow music, and I loves me some commercial music of all sorts, and I loves me some flash, but I do not loves me some Oscar Peterson. I just don't. He does not speak to me at all, which has notihng to do with anything other than not everybody speaks to everybody, and sometimes it really is that simple. Wynton-heads are the same way - if you don't like his music, it's got to be for some extra-musical reason, it can't be that you just don't like him and that all that extra stuff follows from that. Can't be, it's just not allowed! Hell, I don't even have that extra-musical shit with Peterson. No question of his ability or his sincerity or his very real value to a certain place and time. Unlike Wynton (or Elvis), I'm glad that he existed and that he played music. I just don't like the way the motherfucker plays! Simple as that. Really.
johnlitweiler Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 His relentless bumpety-bump swing when he plays with Lester Young or Ben Webster, for instance, still bugs me. But there's some Peterson I like.
David Ayers Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 I like the fact he plays with two hands. I said that already, but I crave endorsement.
JSngry Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 I like the fact he plays with two hands. I said that already, but I crave endorsement. Try these folks: http://www.eastonbaseball.com/the-equipment/batting-gloves.html
Chuck Nessa Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 I like the fact he plays with two hands. I said that already, but I crave endorsement. Somebody please give him what he wants.
mjzee Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 Has anyone noticed this thread starting to take a nasty tone?
Chuck Nessa Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 no. if i missed something, please point it out.
JSngry Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 I just don't like the way the motherfucker plays. That's not nasty, that's just a fact.
Chuck Nessa Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 I hear you. The corner has now been turned.
JETman Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 Why do you find it necessary to call him a "motherfucker", though?
JSngry Posted July 22, 2011 Report Posted July 22, 2011 Has anyone noticed this thread starting to take a nasty tone? Dude, you're the cat who don't dig Ornette, right? Well, you don't like the way that motherfucker plays. Same thing, really. We all got motherfuckers who we don't like how they play. Oscar Peterson is one of mine. Another one is Bobby Durham, and it's got nothing to do with his work with Peterson, although I must gotta say that the two of them together is some kinda exponential motherfuckerness of motherfuckers whose playing I don't like. But that's math, not nastiness. Now "square root" - that's some nasty math! Why do you find it necessary to call him a "motherfucker", though? Common parlance in my world. And totally value-neutral in the written world.
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