Oscar Peterson - Tracks +Album Reviews

Jazz piano doesn't get any better than this

Kent Stallard | Gilbert, AZ USA | 10/14/1998

(5 out of 5 stars)

"My first exposure to Oscar Peterson was through this album(in LP format),a gift given to me from my high school music teacher in the 70's. I waited for years for it to arrive on CD,and it's been well worth the wait. Only Oscar's 2nd solo album("My Favorite Instrument" being the 1st),this collection showcases the pianist's versatility in a way that his trio recordings do not. Unfettered by other musicians,Oscar is free to explore his wonderful and complex ideas and harmonies. Oscar's breathtaking technique is on display here,but if you think that that's all there is to his playing,this album will change your mind. "Django" and "A Child is Born" both reveal the quiet,subdued side of Peterson,with beautiful results. "If I Should Lose You" finds Oscar combining his technical prowess with a marvelous lyricism and emotional expression. On "Give Me the Simple Life",Peterson is in full-flight,swinging as hard as any pianist ever has. I defy you to listen to this cut and NOT tap your foot. As a pianist myself,I listen to cuts like "Honeysuckle Rose",with it's awesome combination of runs and rhythm,and just shake my head--it's enough to make me want quit the piano and just be content to listen to this genuis! Well,I've just about run out of adjectives to describe Oscar's playing on this album. If you love jazz piano,this is a must-have for your collection."

Peterson knows his Debussy

MICHAEL MCCANLES | WAUWATOSA, WISCONSIN USA | 08/14/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"First, I want to second Kent Stallard's enthusiasm for this album. I too came to know it in its vinyl form, and also waited a long time to see it in digital format. My main interest is in classical music, and I play, too, mainly Bach and Debussy. In the quieter pieces I can hear chordal progressions that only Debussy could have composed, something that occurs also in the music of 1940s lounge pianist Frankie Carle. So I suspect that the Debussy connection has had some viability with jazz pianists, though I don't know either the field or the history all that well. Tracks was the first thing by Peterson I ever heard, and like Stallard, I too have been disappointed when comparing that disk with some of the trio performances. Though I appreciate Chick Corea--in some of his reincarnations--and McCoy Tyner, Tracks seems to me an inexhaustible musical experience."

A rarity

S. Hawkins | New York, NY | 10/15/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Oscar Peterson actually slows down from time to time on this album, and the results are quite refreshing.I bought this album about 6 years ago, and I find myself coming back to it again and again and still hearing new things. Whatever reservations I have about his tendency toward show instead of substance are put to rest when I listen to this album. It starts off with something of a technical romp in "Give Me the Simple Life," but immediately he settles into a fairly sedate and thoughtful rendition of "Basin Street Blues." Nearly every other track follows the Basin Street route - "A Child Is Born" is the gem of this CD. It's a gorgeous rendition.Like I hinted at earlier, this album really changed the way I looked at Oscar Peterson. For me this album showed me that he wasn't an Art Tatum copy, nor was he a horrendous show-off (well, not ALL the time). With that, I was able to go back and enjoy albums like Night Train.So get this album. I'm biased, but for me it's his best."

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	Oscar Peterson Tracks Genre: Jazz Limited edition Japanese pressing of the 1970 album has been remastered and is packaged in a miniature LP sleeve. MPS. 2005.
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