We Get Requests (VME - Remastered)

This 1964 studio session features the Peterson trio with bassist Ray Brown and Ed Thigpen, a group that had been together for five years by then and performed like a well-oiled machine. The repertoire is mostly pop songs of the day, including bossa nova tunes and film themes, and the treatments are fairly brief, with emphasis placed squarely on the melodies. Even in their lightest moments, though, the group demonstrates some of the qualities that made it among the most influential piano trios in jazz, a group that could generate tremendous rhythmic energy and a sense of developing musical detail. For all his legendary force, Peterson possesses a subtle rhythmic sense, and here he infuses even "People" with an undercurrent of swing. This is undemanding, tuneful music best suited for casual listening, but it still sparkles with the trio's customary élan. --Stuart Broomer