Art Tatum
The Best of Art Tatum

Art Tatum = waterfall of notes

This is the equation that can be derived from listening to this collection. Art Tatum was an American jazz pianist of great fame, directly proportional to his skill and class. In this "best of," we can find his two souls: in the album, Tatum plays both solo (one of his specialties) and with other musicians, among whom Ben Webster (in "Have You Met Miss Jones"), Buddy Rich (in "Hallelujah"), and Buddy De Franco (in "A Foggy Day") stand out.

The tracks played solely by Art are "Willow Weep For Me" (a beautiful interplay between low and high notes), "Can't We Be Friends?", "Caravan" (it really seems like you can hear a caravan passing by...), and "Elegy." In all four there emerges a burst not only of technique but also of the pianist's overflowing creativity. The "waterfall of notes" that, in my opinion (based only on listening to this collection), identifies Art Tatum is here pure and crystalline.

In the pieces where he is accompanied, Tatum adapts his technique and class according to the needs of the other musicians and the track in question. In the opening "Night And Day," for example, the pairing between the dynamism of the piano and the carefree joy (if you allow me the term) of Roy Eldridge's trumpet is simply devastating.

I won't describe each track one by one, but let me mention a couple: "(I'm Left With The) Blues In My Heart," an incredibly moving piece, with more than a minute of solo piano before the other musicians (Louie Bellson and Benny Carter) join in, and "Love For Sale," a famous song that needs no introduction, which Tatum performs, accompanied by Jo Jones on drums and Red Callender on double bass, in a superb manner: the piano blends with the other instruments in a combination of mystery and music so enchanting... there couldn't be a better way to close this best of! 

In essence, the collection is always on a high level, the musicians know their craft (an understatement), and above all, this piano emerges, these black and white keys, so distant in time and space yet so close to our smile and our heart.  I only know Art Tatum through this collection, which has convinced me to address this gap at the first opportunity. Do it too, if you haven't already.