ABSTRACT
The author first heard Oscar Peterson in person, playing solo in Oxford's New Theatre and has been in awe of his playing. He contributed notes to a number of his Telarc albums, but it never quite worked out that we were able to talk face to face. The author and Oscar Peterson finally met when he played at a reunion of the Very Tall Band with Milt Jackson and Ray Brown at the Blue Note. The results of their music-making were issued by Telarc, forming an accurate reflection of one of the last public meetings of these three giants of jazz. The author was glad to have had the opportunity to assist in helping his autobiography Jazz Odyssey into print, as it gives a very thorough and rounded portrait of this truly remarkable man. Oscar Peterson, however, garnered the added experience of having to find just the right backdrop for virtually all the high-profile soloists who appeared at Granz's concerts.
