Carl Peterson

Carl was born and raised in Greenock, Scotland, on the banks of the River Clyde, where a great shipbuilding industry flourished for hundreds of years. In the 1800's, many Irish came to these lowland shipyards looking for work, joining the throngs of Scottish Highlanders who had been chased from their hills and glens. Seafaring men from other nations as well, joined the ranks in the Clyde Valley shipyards. One of these adventurers, a Swedish sailor, married a highland lass in Port Glasgow - they were Carl's great-grandparents. Thus, Carl was born four generations hence, a Nordic Scot, with Swedes on one side and Highlanders on the other...an ancestry sprinkled with surnames such as McLean, McBryde, Caithness, Duke, and somewhere an Irish McGuire.

Radio and recordings introduced Carl to the likes of Burl Ives, The Kingston Trio, The Weavers, Robin Hall & Jimmy McGregor, The Corries, and Tommy Makem & The Clancy Brothers, to name but a few. Later, Peterson would meet and eventually perform with some of these entertainers.

In Canada, Carl Peterson performed from Newfoundland on the East Coast to British Columbia in the West. He played in Edmonton's Jubilee Auditorium, as well as in Montreal's Place Des Art, where the Montreal Gazette described him as "a folksinger with a most pleasing voice." Carl also did Canadian television shows: Edmonton's "Tommy Banks Show" and St John's "All Around the Circle". Peterson moved on to the United States, performing at Scottish and Irish festivals and concerts throughout the country. After a sold-out 1994 debut, Carl was remained a popular addition to Columbia Artists' Community Concerts touring roster for 6 years. He performed an average of 60 a concerts a year, traveling to and performing in 48 different states (The exceptions being Alaska and Rhode Island).

Carl has over two dozen published recordings to his credit. He has recorded with Capitol Records of Canada, London Records, Nesak International and Music Minus One. He currently records for both his own company, Darach Recordings, and for Florida based Nesak International. Carl has also written his own material, some of which has been performed and recorded by other artists.

Other music markets are opening up to Carl Peterson as he pursues American music with Scottish and Irish influences. One of his more important works is compiled in the double CD "Scotland Remembers the Alamo", which illustrates that period music of the American South and in Texas is predominently Scottish, and Scottish tunes were used to compose songs about Southern and Texas historical events.