Very few jazz pianists have influenced other musicians besides pianists than the playing of Bill Evans. Evans created music that owed as much to jazz music as it did classical. He could create so many moods, but there was a purity about his music. It wasn't about how many notes or chords he could play in 3 minutes, it was more about a feeling that he was trying to convey and express to the listener. This aspect of his music is what made him different and a favorite among his peers.
Evans gained notice from playing in the bands of Charles Mingus, Oliver Nelson, and Art Farmer, but it was a session in 1959 for Miles Davis called "Kind Of Blue" that put him on the map. "Kind Of Blue" ended up being one of the best selling jazz records of all time. This alone, secured Evans' place in jazz history, but it was his innovations a year or so later that put him on the path to becoming the jazz legend he's regarded as today.
What Evans did with his trios was unlike any other piano trio in the history of jazz. Instead of a bass player playing a simple walking bass line and the drummer playing a simple 4/4 rhythm, Evans arranged the music to include dynamic new interplay never heard in a jazz piano trio, which resulted in more intricate improvisations from the musicians. They really had to listen to each other, which is not to say this didn't happen before, but Evans was able to make this concept sound new.
Throughout the years until his death in 1980, Evans recorded mainly with piano trios, as this was his favorite format, but he did several recordings that are notable with larger groups. Some musicians that Evans has played and recorded with throughout his career include: Miles Davis, Cannonball Adderley, John Coltrane, Paul Chambers, Philly Joe Jones, Charles Mingus, Scott LaFaro, Paul Motian, Freddie Hubbard, Jim Hall, Marc Johnson, Grady Tate, Stan Getz, Lee Konitz, and the list goes on.
Here is a list of selected recordings that everyone should own:
Miles Davis - Kind Of Blue - Columbia Records
Bill Evans Trio - Portrait In Jazz - Riverside Records
Bill Evans Trio - Explorations - Riverside Records
Bill Evans Trio - Waltz For Debby - Riverside Records
Bill Evans Trio - Everybody Digs Bill Evans - Riverside Records
Bill Evans Trio - Sunday At The Village Vanguard - Riverside Records
Bill Evans Trio - Moonbeams - Riverside Records
Bill Evans - Interplay - Riverside Records
Bill Evans Trio - I Will Say Goodbye - Fantasy Records
Bill Evans Trio - You Must Believe In Spring - Warner Bros. Records
