DUKE PEARSON - Profile

Original US - Blue Note - mono
Billboard : 03/28/1960
Duke Pearson is a young pianist from Atlanta who bas been performing in New York for the past six months or so. He is a lyrical pianist with a style that is very attractive and one that could as easily fit into the pop as the jazz groove. Tunes include a lot of pop items from Like Someone in Love and Taboo to Witchcraft and I’m Glad There Is You. Pearson is worth watching.
Duke Pearson proves to be a supremely lyric pianist, although his debut program also turns out to be somewhat baffling. A young newcomer from Atlanta, he seems intent on achieving the stature and independence of a Garland without having decided quite how to go about it. On two original works, he makes a determined bid for the admiration of jazz aficionados and fellow musicians, winning points by a wide margin with Gate City Blues, and Two Mile Run. Five standards are aimed at the large audience which has opened its collective pocketbook to Ahmad Jamal. Pearson not only plays considerably more piano, but is also more persuasive to my ears than Jamal. Gene Taylor provides a bass line as richly melodic as Israel Crosby’s on Witchcraft, Black Coffee, and I’m Glad There Is You. Drummer Specs Wright lays down an exotic background on Taboo. Some smart managerial genius is likely to decide Pearson’s future course. This may be the only chance to discover him before that happens.