Oscar Peterson Centennial Celebration Continues With World Tour Box Set

Photo: Courtesy of Mack Avenue Music Group / Two Lions Records

Mack Avenue Music Group and Two Lions Records continue Oscar Peterson’s centennial celebration with World Tour, an expansive limited-edition live album honoring the jazz legend’s remarkable artistry through a compilation of exclusive performance, poetry, and writing from 1969–1996.

The collection will be released as a 6-LP 180-gram vinyl box set with a 48-page book, and will also be available as a 4-CD set with a 20-page booklet.

Continuing the celebration of Oscar Peterson’s centennial, Mack Avenue Music Group and Two Lions Records have announced their most expansive collection of work from the renowned pianist titled World Tour, a limited-edition, 6-LP 180-gram vinyl box set due out August 28. The collection celebrates the “Maharaja Of The Keyboard” with five never-before-heard live performances and a TV studio recording, spanning across nearly three decades, and is accompanied by a 48-page hardcover book with never-before-seen archival material, including Oscar’s own photography, poetry, and personal remembrances from family, friends, and fellow musicians.

The release is also available as a 4-CD set, paired with a 20-page booklet featuring notes from Kelly Peterson and Celine Peterson, plus tributes from his peers.

Pre-Order World Tour [Limited Edition Box Set]

When asked about the release, Kelly Peterson said, “The process of choosing the material to include, the effort to ensure this set captures and expresses as much as possible, all that Oscar deserves, in celebration of this significant occasion, was a joyful time.”

She continues, “This book is a Tour of Oscar’s World, designed to share a more personal view of Oscar with you. This is what we spent hours and days and weeks and months putting together. This is a tribute worthy of the man it represents. Along with photos of memorabilia, the book includes previously unpublished photos and poems from Oscar’s camera and pen.”

The announcement of World Tour follows the release of Around The World last year. Widely considered to be one of the greatest pianists of all time, Around The World celebrates Peterson’s profound artistry through a series of solo, duo, and trio performances from 1969 to 1981 and features never-before-heard live concerts.

Celebrating Peterson’s enduring impact since 1925, World Tour offers a more intimate and revealing portrait of the legendary pianist: from his vulnerabilities, to his passion and dedication, to even his family. The set features never-before-heard live concerts from Detroit, Michigan; Basel, Switzerland; Auckland, New Zealand; São Paulo, Brazil; and his home of Toronto, Canada, and features his own photography, poetry, and personal remembrances from family, friends, and fellow musicians, wrapped together in a 48-page hardcover book and abridged 20-page CD booklet.

Beyond the brilliance of the music, these performances reflect the genuine love and generosity that shaped his character. In each of these recordings, whether he was playing solo, with jazz guitar royalty Joe Pass, or in an assortment of legendary groups featuring such pioneers as Dizzy Gillespie, Ray Brown, Mary Lou Williams, and Louis Hayes, the listener can feel the way in which Oscar’s playing uplifted the entire bandstand and initiated new explorative journeys.

With every note packed with pure emotion and feeling, the album tells the story of nearly four decades of musical evolution, during which he pushed himself and the entire jazz tradition to new heights.

The enormous and spirited response of the audiences when Oscar stepped onto the stage vividly demonstrated far more than the enthusiasm of fans about to hear one of the music’s singular greats; it is the joyous and uplifted reception of greeting an old and cherished friend. In celebrating Peterson’s music, Mack Avenue Music Group and Two Lions Records are helping to usher in the next 100 years of his legacy with that same love.

World Tour Tracklist

1. Old Folks (Live at the Detroit Montreux Festival – August 30, 1980)
2. Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Live at the Detroit Montreux Festival – August 30, 1980)
3. Place St. Henri (Live at the Detroit Montreux Festival – August 30, 1980)
4. Blues of the Prairies (Live at the Detroit Montreux Festival – August 30, 1980)
5. Goodbye (Live at the Detroit Montreux Festival – August 30, 1980)
6. (Back Home Again In) Indiana (Live at the Detroit Montreux Festival – August 30, 1980)
7. City Lights (Live at the Detroit Montreux Festival – August 30, 1980)
8. Reunion Blues (Live at the Detroit Montreux Festival – August 30, 1980)
9. Medley: Body & Soul / Take the A Train / Mood Indigo / Rockin' in Rhythm / C-Jam Blues / Things Ain't What They Used To Be / Satin Doll / Caravan (Live at the Detroit Montreux Festival – August 30, 1980)
10. Kelly’s Blues (Live in São Paulo, Brazil – April 23, 1996)
11. Sushi (Live in São Paulo, Brazil – April 23, 1996)
12. The Lamp Is Low (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
13. Triste (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
14. I Concentrate On You (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
15. Tristeza (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
16. L’il Darlin’ (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
17. By The Time I Get To Phoenix (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
18. My Romance (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
19. Down Here On The Ground (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
20. L’Impossible (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
21. Let’s Fall In Love (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
22. You Look Good To Me (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
23. Billie’s Bounce (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
24. Fly Me To The Moon (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
25. Squeaky’s Blues (Live in Basel, Switzerland – November 8, 1969)
26. Soft Winds (Live in New Zealand – April 12, 1972)
27. On A Clear Day (Live in New Zealand – April 12, 1972)
28. You Stepped Out Of A Dream (Live in New Zealand – April 12, 1972)
29. Noreen’s Nocturne (Live in New Zealand – April 12, 1972)
30. A Child Is Born / Here’s That Rainy Day (Live in New Zealand – April 12, 1972)
31. People (Live in New Zealand – April 12, 1972)
32. Cute (Live in New Zealand – April 12, 1972)
33. Mean To Me (Live in Toronto, Canada – September 1980)
34. L’il Darlin’ (Live in Toronto, Canada – September 1980)
35. Stella By Starlight (Live in Toronto, Canada – September 1980)
36. Benny’s Bugle (Live in Toronto, Canada – September 1980)
37. Sweet Georgia Brown (Live in Toronto, Canada – September 1980)
38. A Lovely Way To Spend An Evening (Live in Toronto, Canada – September 1980)
39. It’s A Grand Night For Swinging (Live in Toronto, Canada – September 1980)
40. Willow Weep For Me (Live in Toronto, Canada – September 1980)
41. Groovin’ High (Live in Toronto, Canada – September 1980)
42. My Man (Live in Toronto, Canada – September 1980)
43. Salute to Duke Ellington: Take The A Train / Things Ain't What They Used To Be / Lush Life / Satin Doll / Caravan (Live in Toronto, Canada – September 1980)

ABOUT OSCAR PETERSON:

Dr. Oscar Emmanuel Peterson, CC CQ OOnt., is one of the most prolific jazz pianists of all time, lending his name and talents to more than 500 recordings and earning 8 GRAMMY Awards, including Lifetime Achievement. Born in Montréal’s Little Burgundy, his immense talent, fierce determination, and profound love for the artform caught the attention of jazz music’s greatest impresario and founder of Jazz at the Philharmonic (JATP), Norman Granz. After accepting an invitation to perform as a surprise guest at a JATP show at Carnegie Hall at just twenty-four years old, Peterson would continue to tour with the group, performing with the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Brown, Roy Eldridge, Herb Ellis, Clark Terry, Lester Young, and Lionel Hampton.

Peterson’s global admiration and respect as both a musician and humanitarian would later be recognized in the form of various international honours including: Praemium Imperiale World Art Award, UNESCO Music Prize, Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (France), and sixteen honourary doctorates. For most of his near seven-decade career, Peterson remained on the road, performing for eager audiences around the world, and always proudly representing his home of Canada.

Among his most cherished recognitions was being named a Companion of the Order of Canada, Chevalier of the Order of Québec, and receiving the Order of Ontario. Posthumously, Peterson was inducted into both the Canadian Songwriters and Canadian Music Halls of Fame and today finds himself a permanent part of Canada’s history with a statue in the nation’s capital created by Ruth Abernethy, a Canada Post stamp, murals, parks, and streets bearing his name. In 2022, a Commemorative Circulation Coin was issued by the Royal Canadian Mint paying tribute to Peterson.

The Estate of Oscar Peterson, run by Kelly Peterson, proudly honours his life’s work and commitment to artistic excellence and celebrates his centennial with a series of live concerts and exciting projects. It is through the invaluable contributions of the musicians whom Peterson has inspired that these initiatives are enriched.