Ray Brown – This is Ray Brown (1958)

Verve – MGV-8290Rec. Dates : February 27 & 28, 1958Stream this Album Bass : Ray BrownDrums : Osie JohnsonFlute : Jerome RichardsonGuitar : Herb EllisOrgan : Oscar PetersonPiano : Oscar Peterson Billboard : 02/09/1959 Ray Brown, one of the Oscar Peterson Trio, one of the top bassists on today’s jazz scene, is the featured soloist on this attractive new jazz set. It

Lester Young – The President Plays With the Oscar Peterson Trio (1956)

Norgran – MGN 1054Rec. Date : August 4, 1952Stream this Album (YT only) Tenor Sax : Lester YoungPiano : Oscar PetersonBass : Ray BrownDrums : J.C. HeardGuitar : Barney Kessel Billboard : 05/05/1956Score of 72 Another re-issue on 12-inch $3.98 vinyl of two complete previously listed 10-inch LPs. The President, of course, is tenor saxman Lester Young, featured here in some of

Lester Young and Harry Edison – Pres and Sweets (1956)

Norgran – MGN 1043Rec. Date : November 1, 1955Stream this Album Tenor Sax : Lester YoungTrumpet : Harry EdisonBass : Ray BrownDrums : Buddy RichGuitar : Herb EllisPiano : Oscar Peterson Billboard : 09/29/1956Score of 72 Lester (Pres) Young is less than a ghost of his once great self in this spotty set. Poor tone and feeble invention will scare off all

Stuff Smith – Stuff Smith (1957)

Verve – MGV-8206Rec. Dates : March 7, 1957, March 12, 1957Stream this Album Violin : Stuff SmithBass : Ray BrownDrums : Alvin StollerGuitar : Barney KesselPiano : Oscar Peterson A nice article about Stuff Smith’s violin, “Big Red,” from the June 2018 issue of Strings Magazine. Billboard : 08/05/1957Score of 70 An appealing slice of the jazz violin work that Smith has long been

Oscar Peterson Trio – At the Stratford Shakespearean Festival (1957)

Verve – MGV-8024Rec. Date : August 8, 1956Stream this Album Piano : Oscar PetersonBass : Ray BrownGuitar : Herb Ellis Billboard : 07/08/1957Score of 81 One of the best Peterson sets in a long while, with the buoyant pianist framed by Ray Brown on bass and Herb Ellis on guitar in “concert.” A loose, relaxed feeling pervades, with subtle ensemble changes giving way to

Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong – Ella and Louis (1956)

Verve – MG V-4003Rec. Date : August 16, 1956Stream this Album Vocals : Ella Fitzgerald, Louis ArmstrongTrumpet : Louis ArmstrongBass : Ray BrownDrums : Buddy RichGuitar : Herb EllisPiano : Oscar Peterson   Cashbox : 11/03/1956 This package has already made a strong appearance on the charts. Little wonder. Two sturdy entertainers are coupled in some rare moments of beautiful jazz

Oscar Peterson – Plays Count Basie (1956)

Clef – MG C-708Rec. Date : December 27, 1955Stream this Album Piano : Oscar PetersonBass : Ray BrownDrums : Buddy RichGuitar : Herb Ellis Billboard : 05/19/1956Score of 80 Peterson salutes Basie, the composer, pianist and bandsman by building a program on numbers long associated with the band (e.g., Lester Leaps In and Easy Does It). Peterson even adopts the “Count’s” sparse piano styling

Buddy DeFranco / Oscar Peterson – Play George Gershwin (1955)

Norgran – MGN 1016Rec. Dates : December 6 & 7, 1954Stream this Album Clarinet : Buddy DeFrancoPiano : Oscar PetersonBass : Ray BrownCello : George Neikrug, Kurt ReherDrums : Bobby WhiteFrench Horn : Dick PerissiGuitar : Herb EllisViola : Virginia Matewski, Louis KievmanViolin : Dan Lube, Saul Grant, David Frisina, Henry Hill, Eudice Shapiro, Mischa Russell, Ralph Schaeffer, Sam Caplan, Rickey Marino, Marshall SossonTrombone : Nick DiMaio, Murray McEachern, Dick Noel, Harry BettsWoodwinds : Marty Berman, Jack Dumont, Herman Gunkler, Jules Jacobs Billboard

Roy Eldridge and Dizzy Gillespie – Roy and Diz (1955)

Clef – MG C-641Rec. Date : October 29, 1954Stream this Album Trumpet : Roy Eldridge, Dizzy GillespieBass : Ray BrownDrums : Louis BellsonGuitar : Herb EllisPiano : Oscar PetersonVocals : Roy Eldridge, Dizzy Gillespie Billboard : 03/19/1955Score of 79 Roy and Diz playing together? Hard to believe, but true. These two great trumpet players, the outstanding stars of two different jazz eras, combine for

Lionel Hampton Quintet – Album #2 (1955)

Clef – MG C-642Rec. Date : April 13, 1954Stream this Album Vibes : Lionel HamptonBass : Ray BrownClarinet : Buddy DeFrancoDrums : Buddy RichPiano : Oscar Peterson Billboard : 03/12/1955Score of 80 It is hard to think of any recent album in which a group of instrumentalists sound so relaxed and at home with each other’s ideas as is the