This came out in 2002 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
Maybe it’s because most of the big-name pop and rock acts are hibernating. Maybe it’s because I spent the last month swinging to the Rat Pack Christmas album. Or maybe it’s just because they both start with the letters J and A. Whatever. All I know is I always seem to listen to a lot of jazz in January. Looks like this year is no exception — thanks mainly to a cornucopia of cool titles that landed in stores before the holidays. At least four respected labels — Blue Note, ECM, Impulse and Verve — have impressive and affordable new retrospectives or reissues on the racks right now. Even if you don’t know be-bop from doo-wop, I suggest you give one or two a try. Here’s a little primer to help you get into the swing on George Shearing:
WHO: Blind since birth, laid-back British pianist Shearing is famed for his “locked hands” style which emphasizes harmonized block chords over fancy one-handed arpeggios — though he’s no slouch when it comes to taking a solo.
WHEN: Despite releasing several recordings in the U.K. in the ’30s, Shearing’s career didn’t take off until he moved the U.S. in the mid-’40s and pioneered a quintet sound that blended piano, vibes and guitar.
WHAT YOU GET: More than an hour’s worth of material recorded between ’49 and ’63, most of which features his spryly swinging, cocktail-jazzy sophistication.
WHERE HE FITS IN: As the patron saint of lounge pianists the world over.
