Jun 3, 2025 11:25 AM
In Memoriam: Al Foster, 1943–2025
Al Foster, a drummer regarded for his fluency across the bebop, post-bop and funk/fusion lineages of jazz, died May 28…
If Art Tatum was the “God” of the jazz piano, then his protege, Oscar Peterson, was his only-begotten son. Peterson died of kidney failure Sunday at his home in the Toronto suburb of Mississauga. He was 82.
From the time of his emergence in the early ‘40s, Peterson’s classically trained and blues-hued brilliance set the standard for jazz piano excellence. He was born to Jamaican immigrant parents in Montreal on Aug. 15, 1925. His classical studies started when he was 6, and eight years later he won a local talent competition. He went on to appear regularly on a Montreal radio station with the Johnny Holmes Orchestra. When Norman Granz heard Peterson, the young pianist had amalgamated the styles of Tatum, Erroll Garner and Nat “King” Cole. Impressed by his talent, Granz featured him in Carnegie Hall in his Jazz At The Philharmonic concerts and he signed him to his Verve record label. With an instrumentation that featured bass, guitar and piano, Peterson formed a popular trio with Ray Brown and Herb Ellis in the 1950s.
Later, drummer Ed Thigpen would be added and the combo worked steadily for the next two decades. His tribute to his homeland, The Canadian Suite was nominated for a Grammy in 1965, and his nod to Cole, With Respect To Nat, is one of his best loved recordings. He also recorded with Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie and Count Basie, among numerous collaborations.
In addition to the trio, Peterson performed and recorded in a number of configurations from solo piano to orchestral, always setting the keyboard standard.
In 1984, Peterson was elected by the Readers into the Down Beat Hall of Fame.
Foster was truly a drummer to the stars, including Miles Davis, Sonny Rollins and Joe Henderson.
Jun 3, 2025 11:25 AM
Al Foster, a drummer regarded for his fluency across the bebop, post-bop and funk/fusion lineages of jazz, died May 28…
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