Oscar Peterson - Plays Count Basie

On the face of it, pianist Oscar Peterson (whose virtuosity always allowed him to play an infinite amount of notes) and Count Basie (who made inventive use of silence and space by emphasizing single rhythmic sounds) would seem to have had little in common. However they both swing, and there was a definite overlapping in their repertoire. Peterson's Basie tribute is a near-masterpiece. With guitarist Herb Ellis, bassist Ray Brown, and guest drummer Buddy Rich all playing quite sympathetically, Peterson's arrangements make the nine Basie-associated songs (along with Peterson's original "Blues for Basie") all sound quite fresh and lightly swinging. Quite a few of these renditions (particularly "Easy Does It," "9:20 Special," "Broadway," and "One O'Clock Jump") are instantly memorable. - by Scott Yanow, AMG

Oscar Peterson was a great pianist to interpret Basie's repertoire: he had a great sense of swing and his virtuoso fingers could use the piano in the orchestral manner; aided by very compact group of Herb Ellis(g), Ray Brown (b) and Buddy Rich (dm) this album is everything I expected it to be... Admittedly, Oscar's fast fingering could get a bit mechanical and it occasionally happens on the faster swingers on this album, but the slower tracks make up for that small fault. There's a lot of feeling and beauty on this album, a must-have for all Basie and/or Peterson fans (Oscar's "Blues for Basie" is a good evidence for my claim). Also, I think this is mainstream jazz at its best. BTW - the Basie's songs from this album are not all written by Basie; this is a tribute to Basie's orchestra, not just to his noble Countness... by  Nikica Gilic, Amazon.co.uk

Artist: Oscar Peterson
Album: Plays Count Basie
Year: 1955
Label: Verve (1993)
Total time: 45:11

Tracks:
1.  Lester Leaps In (Lester Young) 4:02
2.  Easy Does It (Sy Oliver/Trummy Young) 6:31
3.  9:20 Special (William Engvick/Earle Warren) 3:44
4.  Jumpin' At the Woodside (Count Basie) 5:45
5.  Blues For Basie (Oscar Peterson) 3:35
6.  Broadway (Billy Bird/Teddy McRae/Henri Woode) 4:33
7.  Blue And Sentimental (Count Basie/Mack David/Jerry Livingston) 2:30
8.  Topsy (Edgar Battle/Eddie Durham) 4:24
9.  One O'Clock Jump (Count Basie) 5:52
10.  Jive At Five (Count Basie/Harry "Sweets" Edison) 4:13

Personnel:
Oscar Peterson (Piano)
Herb Ellis (Guitar)
Ray Brown (Double Bass)
Buddy Rich (Drums)