Unearthed Oscar Peterson Trio Showcase’s Ray Brown’s Genius
Oscar Peterson’s widow Kelly Peterson has been committed to keeping the jazz pianist’s legacy alive ever since his passing in 2007. She founded Two Lions Records and in 2017 teamed with Mack Avenue Records to present gems from his archive. Now the latest in the series has been released as Con Alma: The Oscar Peterson Trio – Live in Lugano, 1964.
The six songs contained feature Peterson alongside his classic band including drummer Ed Thigpen and genius bassist Ray Brown. This previously unheard record showcases the trio at the height of their powers during the last night of an extended European tour.
Brown’s perfect bass lines are on point, as always. From the blazing take on “I Could Write A Book” to the flowing ballad “My One And Only Love,” he supports Peterson while locking in with Thigpen. Brown has solos on both of those tracks as well as “Blues For My Landlady” and “Waltz For Debby,” but he also has a great intro in the arrangement of the title track that utilizes arco and pizzicato playing.
Con Alma: The Oscar Peterson Trio – Live in Lugano, 1964 is out now on CD, as a digital download (iTunes and Amazon MP3), and on vinyl as a Record Store Day release.
Con Alma: The Oscar Peterson Trio – Live in Lugano, 1964 Track List:
- Waltz for Debby (Live)
- My One and Only Love
- Blues for My Landlady
- Con Alma
- I Could Write a Book (Live)
- It Ain’t Necessarily So (Live)
