Product Description

'I can't truthfully recall my first meeting with the piano,' begins Oscar Peterson's 'Jazz Odyssey', his long-awaited autobiography, which tells the full story of the world's most famous jazz pianist. Edited by Richard Palmer, it covers Peterson's childhood in Montreal, his meetings with giants such as Art Tatum, and his rapid rise to international stardom after appearing on 'Jazz at the Philharmonic'. As might be expected from such a great communicator, this is a beautifully written, candid account of a stellar career, with Peterson's down-to-earth attitude providing insights into his colleagues, his many recordings, his philosophy, and his long love affair with the piano.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #886265 in Books
• Published on: 2002-07-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 400 pages

From Publishers Weekly
In this muddled and confusing autobiography, Canadian pianist Peterson pays a long-winded tribute to his many jazz pals in lieu of revealing much about his own life. It's a shame, considering so little is known about him; with well over 200 albums spanning six decades, Peterson (b. 1925) is widely considered one of the greatest and most prolific jazz musicians ever. Unfortunately, from the outset Peterson is a reluctant subject. He supplies some of the bare facts of his speedy rise to jazz superstardom from musical training under his Caribbean immigrant father, who administered lickings for wrong notes, to his being discovered in 1949 by legendary jazz promoter and Verve label owner Norman Granz, who set up Peterson's American debut at Carnegie Hall. There are some entertaining anecdotes, such the first time a wide-eyed Peterson attended one of Billie Holiday's drugged-up soir‚es and was met at the door by the tumbling body of her accompanist ("Billie was at the top of the stairs hurling invectives at him, and she ended this scene by throwing a couple of Coke bottles after him as he landed at my feet"). But there are never enough personal details to make Peterson come alive for readers. One hundred pages into this hefty tome, Peterson abruptly abandons his narrative to write a series of overwritten and uninsightful portraits of the jazz greats he's worked with, such as Lester Young and Coleman Hawkins; many vignettes are accompanied by poems. Instead of returning to the story of his life, Peterson chooses to end this odd book with a series of unrelated "essays" on great hotels and his experiences in the outdoors. B&w photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
The title of this autobiography says it all: the life of renowned jazz pianist Peterson (b. 1925) has truly been an odyssey. Born in Montreal to parents of West Indian descent, he first made a name for himself as a teenager in the Johnny Holmes Orchestra, Canada's top big band, before moving to New York City to record for RCA. During the 1950s, he became known as a gifted accompanist for Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic tours as well as for Dizzy Gillespie, Lester Young, Louis Armstrong, and Billie Holliday, among others. These encounters with the famous, along with his struggles with racism from a Canadian perspective, are all shared with great sincerity. Overseen by Palmer, the author of Oscar Peterson (o.p.), the narrative as a whole flows nicely. This latest entry on Peterson's life and work should help update other works, including Palmer's book and Gene Lees's Oscar Peterson: The Will To Swing, recently reissued by Cooper Square Press. Recommended for large public and academic libraries and wherever patrons are interested in jazz. [This is being issued in conjunction with a best-of CD, also titled A Jazz Odyssey (Verve). Ed.] Ronald S. Russ, Arkansas State Univ. Lib., Beeb.
- Ronald S. Russ, Arkansas State Univ. Lib., Beebe
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Because jazz musicians live in a misunderstood, often besieged insular world, there is a natural tendency to be on guard against mainstream society. Thus, jazz autobiographies tend to be less than candid. Legendary pianist Oscar Peterson largely avoids this sugarcoating effect in his thoughtfully introspective, often remarkably revealing self-examination of more than 50 years as a professional jazzman. Playing with chronology much as a jazz soloist plays with melody, Peterson begins with his childhood in Montreal and moves through his career as a musician but frequently veers off path for profiles of fellow jazz greats or reflections on such topics as politics, racism, and his personal life. The profiles are 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. His prose occasionally tends toward the flowery, but this is a small irritant in an otherwise fascinating look at the jazz life. Bill Ott
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Customer Reviews

Warm and endearing
Aside from having one of the most beautiful cover jackets I've seen on a book in a long time, this is an engaging, lovely book to read. I have to take issue with the reviewer from Publishers Weekly above - once you know that Oscar has suffered a stroke, I don't think it's fair to expect a perfectly written or perfectly structured book. What we get, instead, is a collection of reminiscences - nearly all of which shine with Oscar's warmth and intelligence and extraordinary feel for his subject: the life of a jazz man. Here's a good example, where he discovers a new piano, as a child:

'Early on I imagined that all the pianos I would play would be uprights. Not so! One day I was sent to the auditorium of my High School on an errand, and there stood a beautiful baby grand piano. I couldn't resist it: the errand vanished from my mind as I sat down to play this exquisite discovery. It was fantastic! The sound from its horizontal strings was a revelation after the vertical, harp-like strings I was used to: it seemed to reach inside me and grab at the pit of my stomach. The bell-like treble end particularly intrigued me, as I tried out numerous harmonic clusters in my left hand against moving phrases in the upper register, and I came away determined that one day one of these musical marvels would be mine. My own grand piano.' (page 297)

I can truly recommend this book if you're a fan of jazz piano. According to the book, there is a CD available of some of Oscar's best work to tie in with this, but I have not seen it anywhere yet.

A heavy gold bracelet
Almost 25 years ago when Oscar Peterson last performed here in Winnipeg, my wife and I enjoyed prime seats at our concert hall for what would be the most remarkable musical performance by ANYONE, that either of us has ever had the pleasure to witness.

It was Oscar Peterson at the peak of his powers, `alone together' with Joe Pass (the guitar genius, who was born Joseph Anthony Passalaqua in New Jersey, and who died in L.A. 13 years ago). I remember we could see a heavy gold bracelet, glinting in the spotlight, dancing on Oscar's right wrist as he made music at the speed of light!

In the years since, whenever we'd see that glint of gold on Oscar's wrist -- during rare television appearances - we'd say to ourselves, What's the story on that bracelet?

Tonight I picked up a copy of this "Jazz Odyssey" autobiography, and went straight for the index, looking up "Sinatra, Frank" (my favorite male singer - Oscar's too) and . . . sure enough, there was the answer to my question! (on page 206).

"At the end of the final (recording) session with Fred Astaire, Fred presented each member of the group with a beautiful gold identification bracelet -- which he had autographed.

"I have worn mine ever since; years later, when I met Fred Astaire at a party Frank Sinatra was giving for me, he told me he'd seen me on television a few nights before and had been `thrilled' to see I was wearing his bracelet!

-----

Oscar's "report" on those marvelous recordings with Astaire - his acute observations of little things he noticed and vividly recalls fifty years later -- is what makes this musical autobiography truly unique. How many musicians have we heard interviewed, who think and express themselves at the following level?

"As I waited for Fred (to arrive) I started toying with a few phrases I thought unusual in the songs likely to be used - Top Hat, for example (and) As I sat there engrossed, I became aware of a presence nearby, and looked up into the smiling face of Astaire himself. He wore a tweed sports jacket a soft pair of brown slacks (engagingly held up by a man's tie) and a hat set at an almost rakish angle.

"He was at once immensely likeable, and awe-inspiring: sensing my diffidence, he said kindly, `Sounds awfully good to me, Oscar!'"

"After the initial rehearsal went very well - although Fred voiced some doubts about his competence as a vocalist - he was very clear on the feel and treatment he wanted on most of the songs; on others he was less sure, and wondered aloud, `I've never understood why he wrote that kind of lyric for this particular tune," or "I've never felt comfortable with this passage.

"It would be idle to pretend that the sessions passed without a hitch. For all his rhythmic feel, Fred was not naturally attuned to jazz phrasing, and it was at times perilously easy to throw him, via the wrong intro or a misplaced fill.

"We learned to gauge our ad lib lines around and behind him very carefully, giving him enough time to hear his place of re-entry coming up. We also stuck firmly to the normal harmonic clusters, as any kind of `modern' dissonance could faze him, or make him worried about his own intonation.

"I found it fascinating to discover how different were Fred's senses of time as a vocalist and as dancer: Dancing, his time was so strict that he could make an accompaniment sound early or late; his vocal time however, was VERY loose, uninhibited, and unmeasured.

"I found the best way to accompany Fred was to give him a long harmonic chord cushion and let him take his natural liberties with metronomic time.

"It was also riveting to watch Fred on some of the slow ballads. His normal posture was to hold one hand cupped over his ear as he sang, but on some tunes he would lower the hand and instinctively fall into a semi-swirl, so familiar from his gliding ballroom performances.

"And we were all touched by his nervous, boyish anxiety: he'd rush to the piano after every take asking, `How was that?' or `Did I stay in tune?'

"One or two surprises remained. We found out that he LOVED playing drums (he had a full set in his living room) and we cajoled him into sitting-in during a rehearsal! It was a riot! To hear his time, in conjunction with Ray Brown's vast sound was quite an event - and the look of rapt attention on his face was a joy to behold!

-----

In a sort of `afterward' titled "THE WILL TO PERFECTION," Oscar writes,

"Creating an uninhibited, off-the-cuff musical composition in front of a large audience is a dare-devil enterprise, one that draws on everything about you, not just your musical talent. It requires you to collect all your senses, emotions, physical strength, and mental power and focus them totally onto the performance - utter dedication every time you play."

The pay-off, Oscar says, is "scary (but) also uniquely exciting. Once it's bitten you, you never get rid of it. Nor do you want to: for you come to believe that if you get it ALL right, you will be capable of virtually anything. That is what drives me, and I know it will always do so."

Delightful reading!
Oscar's "autobiography" is delightful reading! It's written in a very conversational style. It covers various aspects of his youth, family, teachers and training, career, musical influences, and his fellow musicians. I have also read "The Will To Swing" by Gene Lees. Oscar's book is a great compliment to that book. It's nicer, in a way, since it's written by Oscar. The reader feels that we're meeting Oscar Peterson in person. In order to know Oscar beyond this, listen to the music. That was his life, after all!