Oscar Peterson got his statute

Year was 2004, Oscar Peterson played but I see him old. My first live experience with him was in Chicago 1967 or 68. He was lively. I got tear too easy for him.

Yes, we all die. And I am feeling it quite realistic by being 70 years. He mentioned that he has lost Jone Lewis, Ray Brown, Milt Jackson, right before he started playing this tribute. They are all my favorites. 

 I am wondering how he came up with a title, "Sushi" the next tune. Lively, I like it, first time to hear it though.

http://youtu.be/bkX6rZgR1qI?t=30m

Statute of Oscar Peterson, the Great!

Right, life is too short. You realize it as being close to your end. I am the one. I hospitalized on January 6th for broken thigh bone due to prostate cancer spread to there. I had been depressed by swollen left leg for over a month. I had aches and the medicine to cure worked to give me the tantalizing constipation.

I see Peterson got  fat. There should be too much for him just to walk around. Don't you think?
Yeah, right, we all die. He lived three more years from this date and pased away on Dec 23rd, 2007. A day before Christmas Eve. Nice,

But jazz music are here to stay. There is no
reason to doubt it, right?

Here's his official site, just in case you didn't know: http://www.oscarpeterson.com

John Lewis, tribute to self

My first encounter with jazz was MJQ headed by John Lewis, a noble man. I went to Tokyo for their New Year's concert in early 60es. There was no Internet at the time and no jazz station in Japan. I have visited so-called "Jazz-coffee" shops where they play LP records with the high fidelity audio system of the time. MJQ was quite popular.

If you sit in the coffee shop, you are supposed not to move or converse but to listen. That was the time when I started smoking. I didn't like Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane, Sony Rollins. They were just too loud to listen to.

I wanted you to know that I like John Lewis best. The below video was recorded in 2000, a year before his death. He died on March 29, 2001, 80 years old. He lived long enough to be rewarded and respected, I believe.




I hear his tribute to himself. His left hand plays tribute and right hand wishes to keep living forever. A beautiful tune and pretty hard to play. Have you heard anyone played this tune other than John?

Art Tatum, Clint Eastwood, Ray Charles and Peterson

Hallelujah!

What kind of a group is it?

I was fishing through Art Tatum for I haven't picked his play before. I started listening jazz early 60es. We had FEN, Far East Network then. That is the only one who broadcast jazz. But the main stream was Glen Miller, Charles Bennet? and those who were top runner at the time. Yes, the broadcast was for military people in far east.

It was mid 1960 when I stared to realize there are lots of styles in jazz. Then Art Tatum and Lenny Tristano came into my vision. As far as I am concerned, both of them tell some kind of philosophy through piano. Tristano had never been my favorite. His phrasing was too sarcastic, let's say. As for Art, we didn't have any LP as that time. There was no internet of course.

This is my first time to really listen to him. I have known that he had done lots of tricks with his magical fingers. He could be better than Oscar Peterson. Peterson sounds to enjoy playing complicated phrase just for its sake. Art sings with it. Well, at the least I hear him pretty nice with this You Tube presentation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNAJlqn0nO4

Recording is good for the age.



 I found this astonishing video. It's conceivable for me. Ray Charles is talking with Clint Eastwood while watching a video of Art Tatum playing piano and saying comment on both Oscar Peterson and Art Tatum. Interesting, right?

There is a comment attached to this video saying that Peterson is a band men and Art Tatum is for solo. I agree with that. Art Tatum might have been too strict to play with, I guess. He just cannot accept what the sideman's say with their instruments.