Oscar, With Love

Tom McCarter
(multiple artists)
Oscar, with Love
Two Lions

An ambitious project featuring many veteran and upcoming pianists playing solo renditions of Oscar Peterson
compositions and arrangements as well as compositions dedicated to Oscar. All tracks are played on Oscar’s personal piano, and each note is gorgeous! Occasional tracks have bass accompaniment.
Genre: jazz
If You Like: Oscar Peterson, Bud Powell, John Hicks, Brad Mehldau
FCCs: none
Favorite Tracks: Blues for Smedley (disc 1), On Danish Shore (disc 1), If Only You Knew (disc 2), One for Oscar (disc 3),
The Smudge (disc 3)
Track Review:
DISC 1
1. The Contessa – slow ballad
2. Blues for Smedley – New Orleans feel
3. Celine’s Waltz – improve on waltz
4. Bossa Beguine - uptempo swing with bossa notes
5. Cool Walk – uptempo swing
6. Dream of Me – pretty improve
7. Sushi – uptempo swing
8. If I Love Again – slow ballad
9. On a Danish Shore - slow ballad with fast flourishes
10. Ballad for Benny Carter – slow ballad with gorgeous fills
11. A Little Jazz Exercise – uptempo bop, fingers flying
12. Tranquille – slow ballad
13. Take me home – slow ballad

DISC 2 (the track listing misses listing a track #3)
1. Announcement – slow ballad
2. If you Only Knew – slow ballad with flourishes
3. (no track)
4. Love Ballade – slow start to upbeat tempo
5. The Gentle Waltz – beautiful slow waltz
6. Summertime – starts slow and builds quickly to midtempo
7. Laurentide Waltz – beautiful slow waltz
8. Mornin’ – beautiful slow ballad
9. Harcourt Nights – beautiful slow ballad
10. Wheatland – mi8dtempo ballad
11. Why Think About Tomorrow? – (this track doesn’t appear on the CD)

DISC 3
1. One for Oscar – starts slow & transitions to midtempo then back to slow
2. The Smudge – struttin’ his stuff!
3. Sir Lancewell – midtempo swing
4. Dear Oscar – uptempo swing – radiating the 88s!
5. I Remember OP – slow ballad – gorgeous!
6. Oscar’s New Camera – midtempo swing transitions to uptempo
7. OP’s Boogie – stride piano boogie
8. Trust – slow ballad
9. Emmanuel – slow ballad
10. Look What You’ve Done To Me – slow ballad with vocal
11. Goodbye Old Friend – bass solo, slow ballad
12. Hymn to Freedom – slow ballad builds to uptempo then fades
13. When Summer Comes – slow ballad