Born in Montreal, Canada, Peterson began learning trumpet and piano from his father at the age of five, but by the age of seven, after a bout of tuberculosis, he concentrated on the piano. Some of the artists who influenced Peterson during the early years were Teddy Wilson, Nat "King" Cole, James P. Johnson, and the legendary Art Tatum, to whom many have tried to compare Peterson in later years. In fact, one of his first exposures to the musical talents of Art Tatum came early in his teen years when his father played an Art Tatum record to him and Peterson was so intimidated by what he heard that he didn't touch the piano for over a week.
He soon developed a reputation as a technically brilliant and melodically inventive jazz pianist, and became a regular on Canadian radio. His United States introduction was at Carnegie Hall, New York City in 1949 by Norman Granz; owing to union restrictions his appearance could not be billed.
Some of his musical associates have included Lester Young, Ray Brown, Ben Webster, Herb Ellis, Ed Thigpen, Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen, Louis Armstrong, Stéphane Grappelli, Ella Fitzgerald, Clark Terry, Joe Pass, Count Basie, and Stan Getz. An important step in his career was joining impresario Norman Granz's labels (especially Verve records) and Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic package, with which he was able to play with the major jazz artists of the time. Granz was also his manager for most of Peterson's career. Some cognoscenti assert that Peterson's best recordings were made for the MPS label in the late 'sixties and early 'seventies. For some years subsequently he recorded for Granz's Pablo Records after the label was founded in 1973 and in more recent years for the Telarc label.
In 1993, Peterson suffered a serious stroke that weakened his left side and sidelined him for two years. However he overcame this setback and went back to touring, recording, and composing on a limited basis. In 1997 he received a Grammy for Lifetime Achievement and an International Jazz Hall of Fame Award. He died on December 24th, 2007 of kidney failure.
'Round Midnight
Oscar Peterson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
'Round midnight, midnight
I do pretty well, till after sundown
Suppertime I'm feelin' sad
But it really gets bad
'Round midnight
Memories always start 'round midnight
When my heart is still with you
And ol' midnight knows it, too
When a quarrel we had needs mending
Does it mean that our love is ending
Darlin' I need you, lately I find
You're out of my heart
And I'm out of my mind
Let our hearts take wings'
'Round midnight, midnight
Let the angels sing
For your returning
Till our love is safe and sound
And old midnight comes around
Feelin' sad
Really gets bad
Round, Round, Round Midnight
The song 'Round Midnight by Oscar Peterson describes the feelings of loneliness, heartbreak, and longing. The lyrics begin by describing the setting of the song, which is 'round midnight - the time when the night is at its darkest and the world is quiet. The singer does well until sundown but after that, he starts feeling sad. The memories come back to him at this time and he can't stand those memories because his heart is still with someone he loves.
The singer questions the status of his relationship with his loved one, wondering if their quarrel means that their love is ending. He expresses the need for his loved one in his life and how he is out of his mind without them. In the end, he hopes that their love can be mended and they can be reunited with the help of the angels singing at midnight.
The song evokes a melancholic tone, as it brings to life the emotional roller-coaster of a heartbroken person. The lyrics' imagery of the night, the memories, and the love's absence conveys a sense of loneliness that pulls at the heartstrings of the listeners.
Line by Line Meaning
It begins to tell
The story usually starts
'Round midnight, midnight
Around midnight when it's dark
I do pretty well, till after sundown
I'm okay until the sun goes down
Suppertime I'm feelin' sad
I feel sad during dinnertime
But it really gets bad
It gets worse
'Round midnight
Around midnight
Memories always start 'round midnight
I always remember things around midnight
Haven't got the heart to stand those memories
I can't bear to remember those things
When my heart is still with you
When I'm still in love with you
And ol' midnight knows it, too
Midnight knows my feelings
When a quarrel we had needs mending
When we need to fix a fight
Does it mean that our love is ending
Does it mean our love is over
Darlin' I need you, lately I find
I need you, lately I've realized
You're out of my heart
You're not in my heart anymore
And I'm out of my mind
I'm going crazy
Let our hearts take wings'
Let's be free in our hearts
'Round midnight, midnight
Around midnight
Let the angels sing
Let's celebrate
For your returning
For your coming back
Till our love is safe and sound
Until our love is secure
And old midnight comes around
When midnight comes
Feelin' sad
Feeling depressed
Really gets bad
It gets worse
Round, Round, Round Midnight
Around and around midnight
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Cootie Williams, Bernard D Hanighen, Theolonious S Monk
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Steffen W. Brandenstein
To hear Oscar Peterson (a legend) talk about Thelonious Monk (another legend) in such high regard, truly speaks about not only the character of Oscar Peterson but also of the talent and skill of Thelonious Monk. Really a blessing to have both of them make such complex and beautiful music.
Bruno Gebarski
As Maestro Oscar Peterson said, the complexity of Round Midnight (Thelonious Monk) is so gigantic, complex and colorful that it takes an outstanding pianist to even dare to improvise on such a tune: I remember as a music student, sweating just studying the chord progression, trying to figure out what scales this genius mixed together to get such a jazz tapestry of chord development! Here again the brilliant and surprising treatment of Maestro Peterson's both magical hands and unique touch...
Learning
You can hear out the respect he shows to Thelonious Monk. He contributed his playing to the tune, he connected Thelonious' harmony. But he didn't change the tune, he didn't add his own ideas that directly. He demonstrated Round Midnight and explained it in his playing.
Smith W1984
It's hard not to like this, Peterson is great. But now I'm filled with an urge to listen to Monk playing it. No one can beat the original and I don't care about no speed, dexterity or whatever. There's no shredding, every note has it's exact place and purpose, resonating with the everlasting universal power of creation around us.
marktarmannpiano
And, though Monk's technique is not nearly as expansive as Peterson's, the technique he does use is crystal clean, the rhythmic placement always effective, and his phrasing is astoundingly original and influential. Peterson continued the tradition from Tatum a bit forward, but Monk takes it to completely new place, not only with his compositions, but with his playing. "every note has it's place and purpose". Exactly. No fluff and fill. Every note very much in the rhythm pocket.
CoolCat123450
Theolonious Monk was a jazz legend. Oscar showed that in his own light, and I think he did it quite well.
Brian Russick - Drummer / Percussionist
a legend playing a legend; so classy.
Louis Lark
A phenomenal Oscar Peterson's " Round Midnight" rendition played with a pensive, opulent, splendid, jazzy style precision with lots of 🎹 piano technical twists and turns. What a ravishing 🎹 piano opus! I immensely enjoyed!
kaleidoscopio5
He had the most beautiful technique I saw in a pianist. Like Rubinstein, smooth, relax and full of color. Amazing.
HauschkaEST
I swear, no one's sound travels up and out of the piano like Oscar's. It's lovely, never stuck but always free.