For those fortunate enough to hear and own the immaculately produced Germany/Black Forest based MPS recordings, distributed as imported pristine virgin vinyl LPs that were pressed in the '70s, you already know the quality of this four-CD set of George Shearing's trio. With the peerless Dane Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen and Ireland's genius guitarist Louis Stewart, they can hardly do anything wrong musically. The first three CDs have Shearing playing standards, occasionally contemporizing his repertoire on Chick Corea's "Windows" and "500 Miles High," doing NHØP's "Cowboy Santa" and "My Little Anna," and offering two of his own originals, "The Fourth Deuce" and "G & G." The final CD has the threesome accompanied by strings, arranged and conducted by the brilliant Robert Farnon, and while a bit syrupy, lend pleasant late-night contrast at the end of a long day to the proceedings. This is a welcome addition to Shearing's collections discography, and a reminder of how good, in a short time period, MPS and producer Hans Georg Brunner-Schwer were.
CD 1
01. Tricotism (2:54)
02. Windows (4:25)
03. No Moon At All (5:22)
04. Some Other Spring (2:50)
05. Wait Till You See Her (4:13)
06. Tune Up (3:37)
07. The Party's Over (5:23)
08. The Lamp Is Low (3:44)
09. Lazy Afternoon (5:33)
10. Cowboy Samba (4:54)
11. Cheryl (2:54)
12. 500 Miles High (4:51)
13. I Wished On The Moon (5:33)
14. Old Folks (4:34)
CD 2
01. Jordu (5:17)
02. P.S. I Love You (7:37)
03. Everything Happens To Me (3:57)
04. Here's That Rainy Day (5:43)
05. Invitation (3:06)
06. In Your Own Sweet Way (6:15)
07. Alice In Wonderland (6:18)
08. All This And Heaven Too (7:07)
09. No Greater Love (5:19)
10. Con Alma (5:57)
CD 3
01. The Fourth Deuce (5:36)
02. The Wine Of May (4:40)
03. Don't Get Around Much Anymore (6:21)
04. Consternation (5:15)
05. Sweet And Lovely (7:09)
06. My Little Anna (3:50)
07. Sweet Lorraine (4:02)
08. Lois Ann (3:00)
09. G & G (5:54)
10. Poinciana (3:21)
11. This Can't Be Love (6:26)
CD 4
01. Fjarlins Vingor (5:01)
02. Last Night When We Were Young (4:53)
03. Amaryllis (3:50)
04. Strange Enchantment (5:11)
05. Look At The Face (4:14)
06. Portrait Of Jenny (5:22)
07. Song Bird (5:32)
08. This Is All I Ask (5:44)
09. A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square (4:56)
