Dick Hyman's Century of Jazz Piano [5 CD Set + DVD] [2009] Arbors Records, Inc. ARCD 19348 (Arbors Piano Series Volume 20)

 

Happy Birthday Dick Hyman - 96 years young!

Dick Hyman's Century of Jazz Piano was originally issued as two separate CD-R discs to allow jazz piano students and fans to hear many different styles of jazz as performed by the veteran pianist. Repackaged as a five-CD set with a separate DVD for reissue by Arbors, this improved edition has the ability to play in conventional CD and DVD players as well. Hyman has long been recognized as a very versatile player who is capable of playing any style in jazz history, one of a handful of artists who has such an ability. 

The five CDs, more or less, cover jazz piano roughly in the chronological order in which they came into the public domain, playing pieces either composed or associated with a number of different pianists. It is hard to imagine anyone else who can play in the manner of Jelly Roll Morton, James P. Johnson, Art Tatum, Teddy Wilson, Thelonious Monk, Lennie Tristano, Bill Evans, and McCoy Tyner (to name only a few), but Hyman does so with ease. Rather than just play straight re-creations of each player's recordings, Hyman generally incorporates his own variations and improvisations. The fifth disc may be the most interesting, as it consists of a series of Hyman's compositions and free improvisations in the manner of various pianists, along with a revisit to his 1968 piece "The Minotaur," a piece he originally composed to perform on Moog synthesizer; this version is a piano duet with Jack Fanning. 

On the DVD, Hyman offers more, playing examples of individual greats of each style while adding insightful commentary as to the unique aspects of each musician's approach, with the camera angles providing superb views of his hands in action. This set is complemented by a 40-page detailed booklet with Hyman's extensive liner notes. [AllMusic] 

The DVD is available on YouTube to watch in its entirety.

Tracklist:

Disc 1:

1. Gottschalk Sampler: Bamboula/Pasquinade 

2. Maple Leaf Rag 

3. Charleston Rag (Sounds of Africa) 

4. Heliotrope Bouquet 

5. Pleasant Moments 

6. Solace [A Mexican Serenade] 

7. Odeon 

8. Porto Rico 

9. The Crave 

10. Carolina Shout 

11. Snowy Morning Blues 

12. Caprice Rag 

13. You've Got To Be Modernistic 

14. Shreveport Stomp 

15. A Monday Date 

16. Night Life 

Disc 2:

1. Rialto Ripples 

2. Liza (All The Clouds'll Soon Roll By) 

3. Do-Do-Do 

4. Kitten On The Keys 

5. Nickel In The Slot 

6. Soliloquy 

7. In A Mist (Bixology) 

8. Little Rock Getaway 

9. Honky Tonk Train (Blues) 

10. (Pine Top's) Boogie Woogie 

11. Yancey Special 

12. Rollin' The Boogie 

13. Vicksburg Blues 

14. Fingerbuster 

15. Viper Rag 

16. Handful of Keys 

17. Tea For Two 

18. Body and Soul 

19. I've Got The World On A String 

20. Complainin' 

21. Three Little Words 

Disc 3:

1. The Clothed Woman 

2. Tonk 

3. Sophisticated Lady 

4. Lotus Blossom (Charolette Russe) 

5. Basie In Brief 

6. It's Only A Paper Moon 

7. 16 for McKenna 

8. Song Without Words 

9. All God's Chillun Got Rhythm 

10. How High The Moon 

11. Lullaby of Birdland 

12. Doodlin' 

13. Funkus Delictus 

14. Moanin' 

15. Rose Room 

Disc 4:

1. 'Round (About) Midnight 

2. Well, You Needn't 

3. Misterioso 

4. Blue Monk 

5. Evidence 

6. Blue Rondo a la Turk 

7. Kaleidoscope/A Delicate Balance 

8. Spain 

9. Dolphin Dance 

10. Topology 

11. Time Remembered 

12. Poor Butterfly 

13. Django 

14. Giant Steps 

15. What Is This Thing Called Love? 

Disc 5:

1. The Venice Concert 

2. Convocation of The Winds 

3. Three Short Ones 

4. Corkscrews 

5. Parable For A Parrot 

6. In The Fullness of Time 

7. Days With Julia 

8. The Last Word 

9. Have You Heard? 

10. The Minotaur 

11. The Charlap Line 

12. Impromptu For Two Pianos 

13. Waltzing With Hank 

14. Roger's 21st Century Funk 

15. A Little Bit of John 

16. Derek Chews It Up 

17. Ralph Stridemeister 

18. Elegant Dr. Billy 

19. A Small Memorial To Wellstood 

20. Is He Blue? 

21. Kansas City Dreamin' 

22. Joe Special Thing 

23. Christmas With Paul 

24. Decatur Stomp 

25. Struttin' On A Sunny Day 

26. Cuttin' Loose 

27. Ivory Strides 

28. Pass It Along 

29. South Side Boogy 

30. Ocean Languor 

31. Onyx Mood 

32. Bounding in F Minor 

33. Bird In The Roost 

34. Deep Groove 

35. Roses and Cream 

36. Time Play 

37. Passage