Michel Petrucciani: The Complete Dreyfus Jazz Recordings is a beautifully packaged boxed set containing 10 albums with bonus tracks and exclusive DVDs, including a previously unrel...
First ever DVD of all-new, never before released Michel Petrucciani material! Contains two feature-length programs: - Non Stop Travels With Michel Petrucciani: a brilliant documen...
The great pianist Michel Petrucciani recorded for the Dreyfus label during the six years before his 1999 death. Producer/label owner Francis Dreyfus is worried about Petrucciani being underrated if not completely forgotten, so he put together this sampler of previously released material covering the pianist's {2Dreyfus} period. Petrucciani is heard solo, dueting with his father guitarist Tony Petrucciani ("Michel's Blues"), interacting with organist Eddy Louiss, in a trio with bassist Anthony Jackson and drummer Steve Gadd, collaborating with violinist Stephane Grappelli (the boppish "Little Peace in C for U" and "Pennies From Heaven"), playing in a sextet with valve trombonist Bob Brookmeyer, and being joined by the Graffiti String Quartet. "Pennies From Heaven" was only previously out on a privately issued CD. Dreyfus did a fine job of picking out the most exciting and emotional selections from his catalog of Petrucciani gems, so one gets to hear one highpoint after another throughout this single-CD sampler. Michel Petrucciani was one of the greats and So What offers plenty of evidence.
Track #
Track
Time
Composer
1
Summertime
7:40
Gershwin
2
Little Peace in C for U
3:03
Petrucciani
3
Home
9:19
Petrucciani
4
J'Aurais Telement Voulu (From the Original Soundtrack: Une Femme ...)
Back to the topThe Days of Wine and Roses: The Owl Years 1981-1985
Review by Judith Schlesinger, All Music Guide
Released:
June 18, 2002
Label:
Sunnyside
Rating:
Genre:
Jazz
Styles:
Post-Bop
Contemporary Jazz
This two-CD set contains 15 tracks selected by producer Jean-Jacques Pussiau from the six albums Petrucciani recorded for Owl Records from 1981-1985. The first CD includes six Petrucciani originals and two by drummer Aldo Romano; the second is all standards. Petrucciani's playing is not as strongly individual as it eventually became, but then he was only 18 in 1981. If there's an excess of self-indulgent noodling, particularly on the Jarrett-ish "My Funny Valentine" and "Prelude to a Kiss," there are also intimations of his later voice, with all its power, clarity, and chromatic romanticism. Petrucciani doubles himself on some of the solo tracks on the first CD, though this is not noted in the liners (which are a bit confusing). Two highlights on the first CD are "Mike Pee," a meditation that wanders -- but beautifully -- and is full of Petrucciani's signature clean, flowing runs and lyrical harmonies, and "Cold Blues," where the fast-walking basslines of Ron McClure provide an inspiring scaffolding for a joyful . That same piano/bass format swings "There Will Never Be Another You" on the second disc, where Petrucciani's thoughtful, Tatum-esque solo version of "'Round Midnight" is nothing less than astonishing for a teenager to pull off. For his fans, these discs are historically important as early evidence of his remarkable promise; for others, they offer more energy and imagination than many pianists are displaying today.
Michel Petrucciani was not quite 20 years old at the time of this trio session with drummer Aldo Romano and bassist Furio Di Castri, but he was already displaying incredible potential as a pianist. Petrucciani's risk-taking interpretation of Bill Evans' turbulent "Very Early" is the highlight of this release, closely followed by his own bittersweet ballad, "I Just Say Hello." Romano's rapid fire "Samba Des Prophetes" is superior to his rather bland and predictable "Pasolini." Michel Petrucciani made a number of dates for Owl and The George Wein Collection around the same time period as these recordings which are superior to this CD, yet none of them have remained in print. Even though this can't be considered an essential release for Michel Petrucciani fans (especially with its brief playing time of under 35 minutes), it is an enjoyable session.
Michel Petrucciani always excelled in front of a live audience, and this 1992 concert with his father Tony accompanying him on guitar is no exception, though it's a shame it wasn't released until 2001, some two years after the pianist's death. An adventurous exploration of "Summertime" serves as a strong opener, followed by the playful waltz "Sometime Ago." The complex introduction to "All the Things You Are" and well disguised path into "My Funny Valentine" are by themselves worth the price of the CD. Michel gets a bit heavy-handed during parts of "Someday My Prince Will Come," overwhelming his partner's soft chords. There are solo features, too: Tony Petrucciani tackles Django Reinhardt's lovely ballad "Nuages" with finesse; while Michel is no doubt inspired by Bill Evans' many recordings of Miles Davis' "Nardis," he finds his own path during a dramatic improvisation. The sign off by the duo includes a rapid-fire take of "Billie's Bounce" and a gently swinging version of "Satin Doll." Recommended.
The exciting French pianist Michel Petrucciani overcame the physical limitations of his bone-diseased body and played some incredible piano with the likes of Charles Lloyd and Way...
Michel Petrucciani's diminutive stature was due to a genetic disorder that caused brittle bones and stunted his growth, but he figuratively stood tall among jazz pianists of the 1980s and 1990s, prior to his premature death at 36 in early 1999. This three-CD set consists of portions of three separate concerts by Petrucianni, none of which have been previously issued. The 1993 solo concert starts off with a breathtaking improvised introduction to "Autumn Leaves" that will fool all but the most attentive listener. He continues to tease his audience by adding a new vamp to "In a Sentimental Mood" that adds to the dreamy atmosphere originally conceived by its composer, Duke Ellington. "Take the 'A' Train" is played with an up-tempo boogie-woogie bassline with his right-handed improvisations played in his more familiar post-bop style. "Besame Mucho" was one of the pianist's favorite ballads (he complained that few people realized that it was written as a sad ballad), though this very poignant version is only slightly marred by his untimely coughing. The exotic introduction that he conceives for "Caravan" slowly builds the tension before the audience is finally tipped off as to his path. "'Round Midnight" is strangely mislabeled as "Around Midnight," which he signals with the repeated tolling of a single bass note; his interpretation is quite lyrical and haunting. His one original from this performance is "Hidden Joy," a somewhat meandering work that is not quite up to the level of his playing on the rest of this concert. The second CD in this set comes from a live 1994 club date with the marvelous Danish bassist Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen; they inspire one another greatly with their playful opener, "All the Things You Are." Both the pianist's lyrical playing and the bassist's atypical chord substitutions to "I Can't Get Started" make their interpretation of this classic ballad noteworthy. The very familiar "All Blues" receives more of a loping, cowboy-on-the-range-like treatment that is rather refreshing. "Beautiful Love" showcases both musician's formidable solo technique in a fine effort. A fun-filled romp through "Billie's Bounce" cracks up the audience in several places, while "My Funny Valentine" is a bop . The trio CD in this set dates from a 1994 Japanese concert with his brother Louis Petrucciani on bass and drummer Lenny White. The furious post-bop original "Manhattan" starts things in high gear, followed by a playful bossa nova original entitled "Charlie Brown" that was likely inspired by the late Vince Guaraldi's music for the Peanuts cartoon television specials. After flirting with a modal introduction only briefly, Petrucciani launches "On Green Dolphin Street" with a flourish, though occasional notes are hit hard enough to overwhelm the sound system. "Why?," written by Phillippe Petrucciani (the pianist's brother, a guitarist who doesn't appear on this release), is a spiraling bossa nova. "Tutu," the well-known Marcus Miller piece from Miles Davis' fusion era, seems a surprising choice for an acoustic trio, but it works rather well. The pianist's funky strut "Dumb Breaks" wraps up the set. Although the overall performances are not at the consistently high level one comes to expect from Michel Petrucciani, and there are sound problems in several places, fans of his music will overlook these minor flaws and seek out this set, which is warmly recommended.
