The Oscar Peterson Trio & The Singers Unlimited - In Tune (1973/2014) [Official Digital Download 24/88]

Masterful piano playing meets elaborate vocal harmonies on this legendary 1971 release that teams up Oscar Peterson and his trio with jazz vocal group The Singers Unlimited. Peterson's trio mates on this session, bassist George Mraz and drummer Louis Hayes, feed off the languages of the two musical poles, whether in the swinging give and take of the opener, Sesame Street, or in the switch from the reverential choir intro to Peterson’s sparkling play on It Never Entered My Mind. It’s the same with the dreamy arrangement of The Shadow of Your Smile; in his role as delicate accompanist, Peterson narrows it down to the essentials. Two Brazilian excursions are highlighted: Antônio Carlos Jobim’s Children’s Game and Luis Bonfá‘s The Gentle Rain.

The Singers Unlimited were a logical extension of the Hi-Lo's. Gene Puerling and Don Shelton were both members of the Hi-Lo's and, after the group broke up, Puerling became a greatly in-demand arranger. In 1967 Puerling, Shelton, Len Dresslar, and Bonnie Herman came together to form the Singers Unlimited. They were a very unusual vocal group because Puerling wrote complex arrangements for the singers that utilized extensive multi-track recording. Rather than sounding like four voices, they often sounded like 16 or more, forming a dense choir. The group never performed live in clubs and concerts and was purely a studio group, recording 14 albums during 1971-1981. Oscar Peterson heard some of their work and recommended them to the MPS label. In 1971 his trio with bassist George Mraz (who at the time was known as Jiri Mraz) and drummer Louis Hayes recorded with the Singers Unlimited, or at least laid down tracks for the vocalists to overdub over. Most of the selections on In Tune are ballads with spots for Peterson to solo, although the voices naturally dominate. Among the more worthy performances are 'The Gentle Rain,' 'The Shadow of Your Smile,' and the 'Sesame Street' theme. While In Tune (a straight reissue of the LP and a bit brief at 32 minutes) is a minor entry in the extensive discography of Oscar Peterson, it is considered an early milestone for the Singers Unlimited.

Tracklist:

01 - Sesame Street
02 - It Never Entered My Mind
03 - Children's Game
04 - The Gentle Rain
05 - A Child Is Born
06 - The Shadow of Your Smile
07 - Catherine
08 - Once Upon a Summertime
09 - Here's That Rainy Day

Produced by Matthias Kunnecke & Hans Georg Brunner-Schwer.
Engineered by Hans Georg Brunner-Schwer. Recorded at MPS Studios, Villingen, July 1971.
Reissue is part of the 'MPS - Most Perfect Sound Edition'. The original master tapes were transferred to digital with dCS 904 (24-Bit/192 kHz).
Digitally remastered at Emil Berliner Studios, Hannover-Langenhagen, Germany.

Musicians:
Oscar Peterson - piano, vocals
Gene Puerling - vocals and arrangements
Don Shelton - vocals
Len Dresslar - vocals
Bonnie Herman - vocals
George Mraz - upright bass
Louis Hayes - drums


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