André Previn Live in 1947

My main blog has documented a great many of André Previn's early recordings as a jazz pianist, dating back to when he was in his teens. Here is a small contribution to that effort, comprising four songs apparently recorded live in 1947. The material was issued on the small Modern label, which was primarily devoted to R&B and country music, with occasional forays into jazz.

Sources suggest that the occasion was one of Gene Norman's "Just Jazz" concerts, held at the Civic Auditorium in Pasadena. It's possible, perhaps likely, that it is from the April 29, 1947 concert - Modern also issued performances from many of the other acts who were on the bill that day.

Live, Previn sounds much as he does on his Victor studio dates - his pianism is propulsive, imaginative, many-noted and immaculate. The solid, if generally muted support is probably by one of Previn's usual backing trios of the period - Al Viola or Bob Bain, guitar, Lloyd Pratt or Chic Parnell, bass, and Jackie Mills or Ralph Collier, drums. The guitarist does wedge in a few solos here and there.

André Previn in 1946

The songs include the usual jazz warhorses - "Indiana," "Air Mail Special," "All the Things You Are" and "Lady Be Good." 

The audience sounds impressed by the proceedings. It's impossible to know how much the response we hear has been "enhanced," but if so, any augmentation is not obvious. Overall, the sound is about what you might expect from live recordings of the period. The main drawback is some discoloration on the piano tone, possibly from an overloaded microphone or too high a recording level, or simply from the worn pressings I harvested from Internet Archive. This doesn't detract too much, however, and the overall balance is good. [Note (July 2023): these transfers are now available in ambient stereo.]

All in all, this brief set is just as enjoyable and impressive as the teenaged Previn's studio recordings of the period.