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Farewell, Oscar Peterson

xcomp — Tue, 25 Dec 2007 09:23:04 +0000

It’s hard to put into words just how great a pianist Oscar was. I could tell you he was quite possibly the greatest pianist of all time, but such words are trite at best. Perhaps I might, instead, quote the words of the LGF poster “zombie” …

In memory of Oscar Peterson, I dug out the only record I own with him playing on it — a compilation album of “The Greatest Jazz Pianists of All Time.” Even in that elite company, the people who put the album together chose to put Oscar Peterson’s track FIRST on side one, and instantly you can tell why — the guy was unbelievable right out the gate. I had forgotten how talented he was — kind of stunning on one hand, and on the other depressing for all the other would-be pianists out there, because one listen to Oscar Peterson and you know you will never, ever be as good as him, or anywhere close.

You know what, I’ll just let his fingers speak for themselves.

When you’re done, go search for some of his other work on Youtube, like this insanely fast version of the Cubano Chant, or a 1958 performance of A Gal In Gallico.

Gospel Jazz Podcast

xcomp — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 04:43:06 +0000

I’ve recently taken an affinity to Norvell Molex’s Gospel Jazz Podcast, a weekly eclectic mix of jazz tracks with a Christian theme. The musical variety is particularly excellent: the styles range from radio-ey smooth jazz to avant-garde and blues. Some of the tracks feature vocals, but most are purely instrumental; and there are some great covers of popular gospel songs – Ron Brown’s cover of Israel Houghton’s “Come In From The Outside” and the oft-played Carl Allen & Rodney Whitaker’s take on Bob Carlisle’s “We Fall Down” are two of my favorites. This week’s episode 107 features both of those tracks, as well as an excellent take on the traditional Christmas carol “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen”. Enjoy.

Amazing Grace Fall Short

xcomp — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 16:08:36 +0000

Hey guys … it’s been a long time. Time to bring ye ol’ blog back to life. And what better way than one of the funniest (and strangely, rarest) internet videos of all time: