Oscar Peterson - The Early Years 1945-50 (2020)

Oscar Peterson was one of the most brilliant and distinctive modern jazz pianists to come to the fore in the post-war era, as adventurous small-group music and virtuoso soloists established new strands of jazz in the wake of the demise of the big swing bands as post-war austerity took hold and public tastes evolved. Initially making his mark in his native Canada, he made his first records for RCA in Montreal, but soon captured the attention of jazz impresario Norman Granz and within a few years was recording under his auspices for Clef/Mercury in New York. This great-value 47-track 2-CD collection specifically addresses those early years, and comprises studio recordings in trio, quartet and duo settings with a variety of line-ups, performing well-known Great American Songbook standards which were the staple repertoire of jazz improvisers in that era along with original compositions. The recordings come from ten different recording sessions, and feature trio and quartet recordings with bassists Bert Brown, Albert King & Austin Roberts, drummers Frank Gariepy, Roland Verdon, Russ Dufort, Mark Wilkinson & Clarence Jones, and guitarists Armand Sampson & Ben Johnson, plus recordings as a duo with bass players Ray Brown and Major Holley. It’s an entertaining showcase for the already highly-developed talent of one of the great piano stylists of the genre, and offers an insight into how his music evolved during the key formative years of his career.