Oscar Peterson: The Will to Swing

by Gene Lees

An engaging biography of a living musical legend, Oscar Peterson. A man Duke Ellington once called the " maharajah of the piano." Gene Lees carefully builds up the portrait of Peterson, his childhood and what it meant to be be black and talented in Montreal in the 1940s, hist three marriages and six children, his musical partners (Ray Brown, Herb Ellis and Ed Thigpen), his musical friends and colleagues (Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Art Tatum and Lester Young, amongst others) and the critical controversy and mythology that have long surrounded Peterson. This updated version has a new chapter that covers Peterson's appointment as Chancellor of York University; his receipt of ten honorary doctorates and the Order of Canada; his stroke and partial recovery; the origins and fallout of his cancelled North American tour and much more.

Genres: Biography, Music, Nonfiction, Jazz, Canada

304 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1988

About the author

Frederick Eugene John Lees (February 8, 1928 – April 22, 2010) was a Canadian music critic, biographer, lyricist, and journalist.

Lees worked as a newspaper journalist in his native Canada before moving to the United States, where he was a music critic and lyricist.

Reviews

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're reading this book, you're likely an Oscar Peterson fan, and as such you won't be disappointed in this book. It tells you, I think, all you would like like to know about OP and more. I'm a big OP fan and am also an amateur jazz pianist, so I've always had a large curiosity about OP. How did he develop such amazing technique? Why was he so criticized by some of his contemporaries and critics? Why was he recorded SO much? Was he the victim of racism growing up in Canada (spoiler alert...yes).

All the answers to these and other questions are answered by this book. In the end, he's a human being with faults and shortcomings just like the rest of us. He doesn't come out looking infallible -- Lees provides an honest portrait, I believe. But he was an amazing figure in jazz and music in general. As the great Benny Green has said, "No one will ever play the piano as well as OP...ever."

[D.J. Sylvis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Through so much of this book, I was enthralled and impressed - it reads at times as a pure biography, as an essay on jazz, as an instructional manual on the record business, as an analysis of the relationship between performers and critics ... but in the last few chapters it really fell apart, and I had to drop my rating accordingly. He repeats information (in detail) that he'd given earlier, he excoriates Peterson for a tour he cancelled while never really giving the details of his explanation, and he focuses on inconsistencies in statements Peterson made about his childhood - nearly fifty years after the fact. Certainly, it's a biographer's responsibility to show their subject as s/he lived, flaws and all, but it was a strange and unwelcome shift in tone for me.

[Meghan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've loved Oscar Peterson as long I've known about him. This book was written about 15 years before he passed away, so I'd like to read something additional that covered the rest of his life. Lots of interesting stories and memories. I especially liked learning about the different types of racism he encountered during his lifetime, his embracing of new technology, and the fact that he went to High School with Maynard Ferguson. :)

[Gerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a fan of jazz, and a HUGE fan of OP, I really enjoyed the history and the personal side of the most important era of jazz

[Paul Dokken · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book covers the life of Oscar Peterson pretty well. He was an amazing jazz musician.

[Linus Wyrsch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this in about a week, diverting book about a music giant

[Jeff Clausen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A comprehensive bio of one of the best jazz pianists ever, not necessarily just for jazz fans. Covering Canadian culture, including a surprising amount of racism, this insider’s perspective also gives us plenty of American anecdotes about the most productive era in jazz. Think Miles Davis, Duke Ellington and dozens more, along with great stories about O.P., as his friends called him, this is full of stuff that will make you search for Oscar on Pandora.

[Chris Fitzgerald · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best biographies I have ever read. After reading this book, I mistakenly thought that I really liked reading biographies of jazz musicians. As it turned out, I really like the way Gene Lees writes biographies about jazz musicians.

[Chris Elkjar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book about one of Canada's most interesting musicians. This biography reads like a lesson in jazz history as well as technique and style. Very interesting book with a great mixture of fun road stories thrown in for good measure.

[Jbondandrews · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found the book about Oscar Peterson to be quite fascinating. While he felt he wasn't appreciated in his own country. I think he hasn't been appreciated worldwide as much as be deserves.