Oscar Peterson was a virtuoso, but he was not distinguished by the subtlety of his improvisations. He was far from the exquisite style of Wilson and Gardner, but he was not discouraged and was popular, like none of his competitors. His speed cliches are predictable and boring, but where Peterson doesn’t try to play fast and for some reason holds back his temper, he’s not bad at it. Peterson’s piano sounds full-fledged and sometime you can get purely audiophile pleasure from it, while omitting the jazz aesthetic.
The orchestra recorded poorly, but the piano is of audiophile and musical value, and the percussion is perfectly recorded in the Cubana Chant with a separate microphone.
LP remastering – ℗ Anton Stepichev