Oscar Peterson: 'Baker's Keyboard Lounge,' 1960

Finally, Verve releases this magnificent live date long listed as "unissued"

In 1960, pianist Oscar Peterson was in the fourth of his many remarkable career peaks. There was the early duet peak for Clef/Mercury (1949-1951), the first trio peak for Clef/Mercury (1951-1953), the 1950s classic 12-inch trio peak for Verve and the touring trio recordings of the late 1950s and the early 1960s.

The year 1960 has long included a sizable gap in the discography of Peterson, Ray Brown (b) and Ed Thigpen (d). In March and April they toured extensively in Europe. In July they performed at the Newport Jazz Festival and then Baker’s Keyboard Lounge in Detroit. By then, Peterson was one of jazz’s most acclaimed and in-demand live trio performers and as fluid as can be.

Yet for years, the Baker’s Keyboard live performance tracks appeared in the Oscar Peterson Trio’s discography as “unissued” and the tapes simply sat in Verve’s vaults. It’s unclear why that was the case. Now, Verve has finally issued the complete 27 tracks recorded on April 19, 1960 as The Oscar Peterson Trio: Live at Baker’s Keyboard Lounge: The Complete Recordings. It’s quite a marvelous set.

Opened in 1934, Baker’s Keyboard Lounge sits at 20510 Livernois Ave. in Detroit and is considered the world’s oldest continuously operating jazz club. Yep, it’s still hosting artists today.

Founded by Francis Baker, the location began as a beer-and-sandwich restaurant in May 1934. After his father Francis’s stroke in 1939, Clarence Baker (1910-2003) took over management and turned it into a jazz club.

When the workload became overwhelming for him in 1996, he sold the venue to ex-bar owner Juanita Jackson, formerly of Juanita’s Lounge in northwest Detroit, and her partner, John Colbert. Then Hugh W. Smith and Eric J. Whitaker bought the club in February 2011.

In the early 1950s, Art Tatum reportedly picked out the club’s seven-foot Steinway that to this day gets tuned every week. Also in the 1950s, interior designer Blain Ford crafted the famous keyboard-shaped bar. A more in-depth look at the historic club’s evolution and design can be found here.

What sets this Peterson touring period apart is the pianist’s relaxed and steady pace. Thanks to the rhythmic guardrails created by Brown and Thigpen, Peterson works calmly, without overdoing his signature flourishes.

Later in the 1960s, he would begin what I call his rococo phase, when tempos increased and his piano playing became heavier and loaded with knotty fireworks. For me, that approach is exciting for a track or two before the layers of runs and his glissandi become oppressive. Not always, of course, but often.

On the Baker’s Lounge recording, Peterson isn’t darting here and there; his approach shows off plenty of technique, but it’s also one that the ear, brain and heart can absorb effortlessly. Pure joy.

Oscar Peterson died in 2007 at age 82.

The Oscar Peterson Trio: Live at Baker’s Keyboard Lounge is available in multiple formats: The complete recordings are on vinyl (three LPs), as a digital download and streaming. There also is a single LP with nine tracks and a single CD with eight tracks. You’ll find the formats here.

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