Oliver Jones
Oliver Theophilus Jones (September 11, 1934 – July 22, 2026) was a Canadian jazz pianist, organist, composer and arranger. In 2023, he was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.
Oliver Jones

Manji75 · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Name
- Oliver Jones
- Birth Name
- Oliver Theophilus Jones
- Born
- 11 September 1934
- Birthplace
- Little Burgundy, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Died
- 22 July 2026
- Place of death
- Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Occupation
- * Musician
- Full name
- Oliver Theophilus Jones.
- Nationality
- Canada.
- Fields
- jazz.
- Teachers
- Daisy Sweeney.
- Honours
- Officer of the Order of Canada, Juno Award for Traditional Jazz Album of the Year, Knight of the National Order of Quebec, Companion of the Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec and Governor General's Performing Arts Award.
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Documentary summary
Oliver Theophilus Jones (September 11, 1934 – July 22, 2026) was a Canadian jazz pianist, organist, composer and arranger. In 2023, he was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.
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Note VALÉORINE
Oliver Jones (1934–2026) was an actor, composer and jazz musician, among other activities, of Canadian nationality. The actor was born Oliver Theophilus Jones in Montreal and died in Montreal. Oliver Jones worked for Laurentian University and McGill University.
The work spans jazz. Languages used include English. Honours include Governor General's Performing Arts Award, Knight of the National Order of Quebec and Officer of the Order of Canada.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 26 September 2026
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In this article
Biography
Biography
Training under Daisy Sweeney is recorded. The recorded working language is English. Subjects and genres recorded for the work are jazz. Employment is recorded with McGill University and Laurentian University. Distinctions recorded are Officer of the Order of Canada, Juno Award for Traditional Jazz Album of the Year, Knight of the National Order of Quebec and Companion of the Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec.

Oliver Jones
Matt Jiggins · Flickr: Oliver Jones

Oliver Jones
Matt Jiggins · Flickr: Oliver Jones
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Oliver Jones • Honorific Suffix — OC, CQ • Birth Name — Oliver Theophilus Jones • Born — 11 September 1934 • Birthplace — Little Burgundy, Montreal, Quebec, Canada • Died — 22 July 2026 • Place of death — Montreal, Quebec, Canada • Genre — Jazz • Instrument — Piano • Occupation — * Musician • composer • arranger • educator • Years Active — 1940–2026
Musical career
Musical career
Oliver Theophilus Jones was born in Little Burgundy, Montreal, Quebec, on September 11, 1934, to Barbadian parents. He began playing piano at the age of five, studying with Mme Bonner in Little Burgundy's Union United Church, made famous by Trevor W. Payne's Montreal Jubilation Gospel Choir. He continued to develop his talent through his studies with Oscar Peterson's sister, Daisy Peterson Sweeney, starting at eight years old. In addition to performing at Union United Church when he was a child, he also performed a solo novelty act at the Café St. Michel as well as other clubs and theatres in the Montreal area. "I had a trick piano act, dancing, doing the splits, playing from underneath the piano, or with a sheet over the keys." Jones started his early touring in Vermont and Quebec with a band called Bandwagon, and in 1953–63 played mainly in the Montreal area, with tours in Quebec. From 1964 to 1980, Jones was music director for the Jamaican calypso singer Kenny Hamilton, based out of Puerto Rico. In late 1980, he teamed up with Montreal's Charlie Biddle, working in and around local clubs and hotel lounges in Montreal. Jones was resident pianist at Charlie Biddle's jazz club, "Biddles", from 1981 to 1986. His first album, Live at Biddles recorded in 1983, was the first record on the Justin Time record label. By the mid-1980s, he was travelling throughout Canada, appearing at festivals, concerts and clubs, either as a solo artist or with a trio: Skip Bey, Bernard Primeau, and Archie Alleyne. His travels also took him to Europe during this period. His tour of Nigeria was the subject of a 1990 National Film Board of Canada (NFB) documentary, Oliver Jones in Africa. His music also appears in the NFB animated short film Black Soul. In 1998, Jones wrote, arranged and performed the original score to the documentary film Season of Change (Rightime Productions) about Jackie Robinson's season with the Montreal Royals baseball club in 1946. In 2011, he was one of the big names on the lineup of the P.E.I. Jazz and Blues Festival of Charlottetown. Jones was headliner for the Jazz Sudbury Festival 2013, held in September 6–8, 2013.
Educator
Educator
Jones taught music at Laurentian University from 1987 to 1995, and at McGill University from 1988 to 1995. In 2009, Jones mentored jazz artist Dione Taylor through the Governor General's Performing Arts Award (GGPAA) Mentorship Program. The program pairs a mid-career artist with a past GGPAA recipient; the two artists work together to learn and grow from each other's experiences.
Death
Death
Jones died at a hospital in Montreal on July 22, 2026, at the age of 91.
Discography
• Year — Title — Label — Notes • 1982 — Oliver Jones et Charlie Biddle — Radio Canada — With Charlie Biddle on bass. Recorded at the Montreal International Jazz Festival. • 1983 — Live at Biddle's Jazz & Ribs — Justin Time — Oliver Jones Trio with Charlie Biddle and Bernard Primeau. • 1984 — The Many Moods of Oliver Jones — Justin Time — Solo piano • 1985 — Lights of Burgundy — Justin Time — With Fraser McPherson (tenor sax), Reg Schwager (guitar), Michael Donato (bass), Jim Hillman (drums) • 1985? — FIJM — Justin Time — With Charlie Biddle (bass); in concert • 1987 — Speak Low, Swing Hard — Justin Time — With Skip Beckwith (bass), Jim Hillman (drums) • 1986 — Requestfully Yours — Justin Time — With Skip Beckwith (bass), Anil Sharma (drums) • 1987 — Cookin' at Sweet Basil — Justin Time — Trio, with Dave Young (bass), Terry Clarke (drums); in concert • 1989 — Just Friends — Justin Time — With Clark Terry (trumpet), Dave Young (bass), Nasyr Abdul A-Khabyyr (drums) • 1990 — Northern Summit — Justin Time — Trio, with Herb Ellis (guitar), Red Mitchell (bass) • 1990 — Live in Baden Switzerland — Justin Time — Trio, with Reggie Johnson (bass), Ed Thigpen (drums); in concert; released 2012 • 1991 — A Class Act — Justin Time — Trio, with Steve Wallace (bass), Ed Thigpen (drums) • 1993 — Just 88 — Justin Time — Solo piano • 1994 — Yuletide Swing — Justin Time — Quartet, with Richard Ring (guitar), Dave Young (bass), Walt Muhammad (drums) • 1995 — From Lush to Lively — Justin Time — With orchestra • 1997 — Have Fingers Will Travel — Justin Time — Trio, with Ray Brown (bass), Jeff Hamilton (drums) • 1998 — Just In Time — Justin Time — Trio, with Dave Young (bass), Norman Marshall Villeneuve (drums); in concert • 2002 — Then & Now — Justin Time — Duo, with Skip Bey (bass) • 2005 — Just You, Just Me — Justin Time — Co-led with Ranee Lee (vocals); some tracks duo, some tracks quartet • 2006 — One More Time — Justin Time — Some tracks trio; some tracks with Dave Grott (trombone), Chet Doxas (tenor sax), Ingrid Jensen added • 2008 — Second Time Around — Justin Time — Trio, with Éric Lagacé (bass), Jim Doxas (drums) • 2009 — Pleased to Meet You — Justin Time — Co-led with Hank Jones (piano); most tracks duo; some tracks quartet, with Brandi Disterheft (bass), Jim Doxas (drums) added • 2010 — A Celebration in Time — Justin Time — With Ranee Lee, Trevor Payne and the Montreal Jubilation Gospel Choir. • 2013 — Just for My Lady — Justin Time — Some tracks trio, with Éric Lagacé (bass), Jim Doxas (drums); some tracks quartet, with Josée Aidans (violin) added
Awards and nominations
Jones was made Officer of the Order of Canada in 1993. In 1994, Jones was bestowed the National Order of Quebec, with the rank of Chevalier (Knight). He received the Governor General's Performing Arts Award in 2005, Canada's highest honour in the performing arts. In 1986, Jones won a Juno Award for his album titled Lights of Burgundy, and again in 2009 for Second Time Around. He was nominated nine other times, the latest being in 2012, with his album Live in Baden. Jones was given the Félix Award, in 1989, 1994, 2007 and 2008. He was voted keyboardist of the year, from the National Jazz Awards in 2006. Jones received the Oscar Peterson Award in 1990. In 1999, Jones was awarded the Special Achievement Award at the SOCAN Awards in Toronto. He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2023.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Benchetrit, Jenna. These are the inductees of the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. CBC.
- 2.Colin Larkin. The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Guinness Publishing. 1317. 1992. 0-85112-939-0.
- 3.Miller, Mark. The Miller Companion to Jazz in Canada. The Mercury Press. 106. 2001. 1-55 128-093-0.
- 4.Miller, Mark. Boogie, Pete and the Senator - Canadian Musicians in Jazz:The Eighties. Nightwood Editions. 153. 1987. 0-88971-112-7.
- 5.The Canadian Encyclopedia. Oliver Jones.
- 6.NFB Web page for Oliver Jones in Africa. Nfb.ca.
- 7.Sansregret, Marthe. Oliver Jones : the musician, the man : a biography. XYZ Publishing. 2006. 978-1-894852-22-7.
- 8.P.E.I. Jazz and Blues Festival. P.E.I. Jazz and Blues Festival schedule.
- 9.Sudbury Star. Oliver Jones to headline fest. June 14, 2013.
- 10.Governor General's Performing Arts Awards Foundation. Mentorship Program.
- 11.Wheeler, Brad. Revered pianist Oliver Jones transformed the jazz scene in Montreal and beyond. The Globe and Mail. July 29, 2026.
- 12.Le pianiste Oliver Jones s’éteint à l’âge de 91 ans
- 13.Tributes stream in for legendary late Montreal-born jazz pianist Oliver Jones. CTV News. July 23, 2026.
- 14.Governor General of Canada. Oliver Jones.
- 15.Ordre National du Québec - Oliver Jones.
- 16.Governor General's Performing Arts Awards Foundation. Oliver Jones biography.
- 17.Juno Awards - Artist Summary. Junoawards.ca.
- 18.Prix Oscar Peterson. Montrealjazzfest.com.
- 19.1999 Socan Awards | Socan.
- 20.'I'm really truly thrilled': watch jazz pianist Dr. Oliver Jones reflect on 80 years of music. CBC. May 17, 2023.
- 21.Cook, Richard. The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, LP & Cassette. Penguin. 593–594. 1992. 978-0-14-015364-4.
- 22.Dryden, Ken. Oliver Jones: Live in Baden, Switzerland. AllMusic.
- 23.Cook, Richard. The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings. Penguin. 796. 2008. 978-0-141-03401-0.
- 24.Yanow, Scott. Oliver Jones: Yuletide Swing. AllMusic.
- 25.Yanow, Scott. Ranee Lee / Oliver Jones: Just You, Just Me. AllMusic.
- 26.Yanow, Scott. Oliver Jones: One More Time. AllMusic.
- 27.Dryden, Ken. Hank Jones / Oliver Jones: Pleased to Meet You. AllMusic.
References
Citations
References
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 18 August 2026.
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