Guy MacPherson’s writing has such a beautiful cadence that's unhurried, personal, unflashy, resonant, and understatedly affecting. Like Guy himself and his dad, Fraser MacPherson. This is a much-needed book that conveys so much about a sublime jazz artist, Vancouver's characterful music scene, and the saxophonist's son. Guy has left an invaluable legacy with his indelible words.
Chris Wong
author of Journeys to the Bandstand:
Thirty Jazz Lives in Vancouver
About Fraser &
Guy MacPherson
Fraser MacPherson: I Don’t Have to Go Anywhere – I’m Already Here, written by Fraser’s son Guy MacPherson, reveals a loving portrait of a brilliant musician and a private man, along with stories of the Golden Age of Vancouver nightlife and a bygone era when professional musicians could make a living without having to move away from Vancouver. Fraser’s career
included playing in dance bands at the Palomar Supper Club and leading the band at the famed Cave Supper Club, resulting in great stories about working with show biz icons such as Mitzi Gaynor, Jayne Mansfield, Bobby Darin, Ella Fitzgerald and Tony Bennett. Whether as a bandleader, a sideman or a member of a trio, Fraser was a well-respected musician everywhere.
Later in life, Fraser put together a jazz trio and financed his own recording (which was a rare move at the time).
The resulting album, Fraser: Live at the Planetarium, received rave reviews, and kick-started shows at jazz festivals and packed theatres in Canada, Australia and the US, along with a record four tours of the former Soviet Unio – all documented in this biography.
Fraser won a JUNO Award for Best Jazz Album, was awarded the Order of Canada, was an inaugural inductee into the BC
Entertainment Hall of Fame, and was the first non-Quebec musician to win the Oscar Peterson Prize at the Montreal Jazz Festival.
His son, Guy MacPherson, who interviewed over 50 contemporaries, colleagues and family members, infused fascinating stories of Fraser’s career with humour and anecdotes. Sadly, Guy passed away on January 31, 2024.
