The group that
Oscar Peterson led between 1953-58 with guitarist
Herb Ellis and bassist
Ray Brown was one of the great piano trios of all time. It was never so much a matter of
Peterson having two other musicians accompany him as it was that they could meet the pianist as near-equals and consistently inspire him. And unlike most trios,
Peterson's had many arranged sections that constantly needed rehearsals and were often quite dazzling. This live double-CD from 1955 has previously unreleased (and unknown) performances of 31 songs (28 standards plus three of
Peterson's originals) that were released for the first time in 1994. The pianist is often in typically miraculous form,
Ellis (whether playing harmonies, offering short solos or getting his guitar to sound like a conga by tapping it percussively) proves to be a perfect partner, and
Brown's subtle but sometimes telepathic contributions should not be overlooked either. ~ Scott Yanow