Table of Contents

Part one: The key to Oscar: Canada; beginnings; early teachers; my dad - Daniel Peterson; the formative years; subcultures and bigotry; runs, chords, and girls; decisions, decisions; from sixteen to three ; Collie Ramsey - mystery piano player; departure and arrival - part 1; departure and arrival - part 2; America - the 50s; early American days; from duo to trio; Herbie's story; trio control and growth; membership flow in the trio; early trio life and dealing with the road; the dinner battles; a different kind of taping; the bus - part 1; the bus - part 2; kissing bandit; ice-cream Charlie does it again; the slasher; the return of the Dallas flash; five cameos; the knowledgeable media; the southern draft - Norman Granz; Norman Granz - reluctant genius; Norman the gourmand; lifetime achievement grammy - Jazz people; Coleman Hawkin - the enigma; meet the president - Lester Young; the legend is real - Lady Fitz; Billie Holiday - the mysterious Lady Day; the Lady Day sessions ; Buddy Rich; Roy (Speedy Gonzales) Eldridge; Harry Edison; Bill Harris; Stuff Smith; Stan and Zoot; Carmen McRae - the special one; the other Lady Day - Anita O'Day; a glance at my confreres in the piano world; Wynton Kelly - brimsha man; in the studio - the proving ground; the verve Charlie Parker jam session; the role of the accompanist. Part Two More keys: the 60s onwards; the percussive group - Ray Brown and Ed Thigpen; the Night Train album; membership flow in the trio - 60s and 70s; the long and the short of it; the MPS years; those unrelenting bassists; persuasive percussion; Joe Pass - guitar eternal; Porgy and Bess with Joe Pass ; hang out in Japan; the hands hassle; preparation for solo piano performance; Duke Ellington - monarch supreme; the trumpet kings; Clark Terry - unsung hero; Ronnie Scott - "The Rev"; Mr Pretty - Alan Claire; four vignettes - James Mason, Jonathan Winters, Clint Eastwood, back up friends; Paul De Marky's Chopin-like eggs; Benny Green - critic supreme; "Oscar's piano parties"; pianos - my lifelong friends; the electronic revolution; promoters and their ways; the royal wedding album; the new quartet; the order of Canada; the Glenn Gould prize; the Praemium Imperiale. Part three Matters political: bigotry starts early; Nigger!; my favourite politician; pitfalls of the profession; cultural politics - the betrayal of Jazz. Part four Matters personal: true moments of greatness - the outdoorsman; the great hotels of the world; the continual search for true friends; night child; marriage and fatherhood; surgery, resurgence, stroke!; the perfect retreat; the elusive control of emotion; the will to perfection.

About the Author

Jazz pianist Oscar Peterson is, in the words of Quincy Jones, 'one of the greatest musicians on the planet.' Richard Palmer is a lifelong jazz fan and has been a staff writer for Jazz Journal since the late 1970s.

Reviews

."..the authorial voice [Peterson] projects in his vivid memoir...is decidedly straight, no chaser blunt, incisive, competitive, and confident. Most impressive is the lack of solipsism; Peterson never fails to ground the events of his life within the context of his times." Jazziz, November 2002

"anecdotes with a richness that moves beyond the 'facts' and provides readers with a personal (and often humorous) glimpse into his world...Highly recommended. The casual fan to professionals." Choice, April 2003

"[A] thoughtfully introspective, often remarkably revealing self-examination of more than 50 years as a professional jazzman....especially interesting for the insights into the musicianship of such stars as Ella Fitzgerald, Lester Young, and many others. Peterson's discussion of the dynamics of the jazz trio and, in particular, the styles of the many outstanding bassists with whom he has played is a particular highlight....[a] fascinating look at the jazz life." Booklist

"[Peterson's] biography is a lot like his music - honest, passionate and clear" Montreal Gazette, August 31, 2002

"A Jazz Odyssey is one of the most important jazz books published for quite some time...Graced by perhaps the finest front cover image and design ever seen on a jazz book, A Jazz Odyssey is splendid complement to such regal achievement. It should be in every serious jazz enthusiast's library." Jazz Journal International, February 1, 2003

"Entertaining." Publishers Weekly, June 10, 2002

"One of the principal delights of this extraordinary autobiography is that it sounds like Oscar Peterson's music expressive, soulful, playful, complex, and altogether beautiful .Peterson offers invaluable insight into the life of a working jazz musician the camaraderie, the practical jokes, the nicknames, and inevitably, the poisonous racism that he had to deal with constantly." Wholenote Magazine, November 2003

"OP's autobiography is an amiable, fascinatingly eccentric memoir of a life in which he mostly appears to have had a ball." Mojo Magazine

"Peterson's insightful and often humorous vignettes...are a delight for jazz fans....an entertaining and personal account of the jazzman's life on the road." Austin Chronicle, 10/25/02

"The mystery of jazz performance can be understood only through participation, but this description of a single jazz event is as close as words can come...The book is rich with jazz lingo...a charming and colorful touch to a revealing autobiography." Tampa Tribune, 1/26/03

."..I can think of no other jazz autobiography that has made the mysteries of music-making so readily accessible to the lay reader..."-Terry Teachout, Commentary, October 2002

"Entertaining."--Publishers Weekly, June 10, 2002

..". I can think of no other Jazz autobiography that has made the mysteries of music-making so readily accessible to the lay reader..."