Makin' Whoopee - Oscar Peterson, Donaldson, Walter
Looking at You - Oscar Peterson, Porter, Cole
Walkin' My Baby Back Home - Oscar Peterson, Ahlert, Fred E.
My One and Only Love - Oscar Peterson, Mellin, Robert
Thou Swell - Oscar Peterson, Hart, Lorenz
When Stephane Grappelli entered the recording studio with Oscar Peterson in 1973 to record this collection of standards, it marked his 50th anniversary as a professional musician. Grappelli's most famous collaboration was ... more »of course his six-year stint in the 1930s with the Gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt, but it wasn't until he started playing with pianists like Peterson that he really developed into a world-class soloist. Peterson's lush, full chords suit Grappelli's unabashedly romantic style perfectly, and on ballads like "My One and Only Love" his fiddling is lyrical, but with a melancholy depth that keeps it from descending into mere prettiness. The other musicians include bassist Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen and drummer Kenny Clark, whose supple, swinging rhythm gives the solos a gentle lift while driving them forward. Peterson and Grappelli were both old pros when they made this record, but the charm of tracks like "Thou Swell" and "Makin' Whoopee" show that even after decades in the business, they hadn't lost the ability to surprise and delight each other. --Michael Simmons« less
When Stephane Grappelli entered the recording studio with Oscar Peterson in 1973 to record this collection of standards, it marked his 50th anniversary as a professional musician. Grappelli's most famous collaboration was of course his six-year stint in the 1930s with the Gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt, but it wasn't until he started playing with pianists like Peterson that he really developed into a world-class soloist. Peterson's lush, full chords suit Grappelli's unabashedly romantic style perfectly, and on ballads like "My One and Only Love" his fiddling is lyrical, but with a melancholy depth that keeps it from descending into mere prettiness. The other musicians include bassist Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen and drummer Kenny Clark, whose supple, swinging rhythm gives the solos a gentle lift while driving them forward. Peterson and Grappelli were both old pros when they made this record, but the charm of tracks like "Thou Swell" and "Makin' Whoopee" show that even after decades in the business, they hadn't lost the ability to surprise and delight each other. --Michael Simmons
"What a great album, fans of Grappelli or Peterson will not be diappointed. They really swing on tracks 3 + 7. Peterson's piano stands out on track 5."
Decent recording, terrific artists...
theinsipiduncles | dark wet place | 04/21/2006
(1 out of 5 stars)
"fatally marred by the cheapest cardboard CD case imaginable and stuck with Sony's illegal DRM sofwtare that installs spyware on Windows computers without your permission. (Is there any limit to these idiots' greed?)
If you can possibly find another printing of this CD, get that instead."
Excellent pairing of two greats
COMPUTERJAZZMAN | Cliffside Park, New Jersey United States | 09/30/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Wonderful CD, great arrangements, beautiful melodies, excellent musicians. Backing up Oscar and Stephane are Neils Henning Orsted Pederson on bass, who recorded a lot with Oscar Peterson, and Kenny Clarke on drums. The whole Jazz In Paris series is great."
Sébastien Melmoth | Hôtel d'Alsace, PARIS | 01/16/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"
This is a great disc. The Jazz in Paris series is highly recommended."
Piano and Violin: A Charming Combination
Rebecca*rhapsodyinblue* | CA USA | 05/16/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
""Jazz In Paris, Volume 1" by Oscar Peterson and Stéphane Grappelli was recorded in 1973. The album was digitally remastered on a CD format and released in 2001 by Verve Records. This is the first of two volumes. Peterson had always been the favorite musician of the mogul of record production, Norman Granz, who produced majority of Peterson's body of work under Verve Records. On this recording he shares the spotlight with a genius of violin, Stéphane Grappelli. Together with drummer Kenny Clarke and Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen, Peterson and Grappelli present a set of tunes played in the most ingenious renditions. Grappelli shows his expertise in violin and is pretty at ease with his deliveries while Peterson consistently plays so effortless and precise. The two legends of jazz perfectly complement each other making all the tunes delightful and enjoyable to fans of jazz piano and violin alike.
The entire recording is such a pleasure to listen to, but I believe they are at their utmost best in "My One And Only Love," "Walkin' My Baby Back Home" and "Makin' Whoopee."
If you want to experience the genius of two jazz greats in piano and violin, this is a perfect CD to own. For Peterson and Grappelli fans, this is a rarity and a keeper. A perfect companion CD is Jazz in Paris: Oscar Peterson-Stephanie Grapelli Quartet, Vol. 2. Wholeheartedly recommended.