Popular music Books

Book SynopsisThis volume includes over a hundred interviews, critical essays, reviews and memoirs, as well as Ellington's own writings, to provide an historical anthology about this leading American jazz musician. It provides insights into Ellington's work and reveals the profound impact his music has made.Trade Review`gripping, constantly fascinating miscellany of writings about and by Ellington...Tucker's book is full of classic descriptions of him at work, in a swaying train compartment or on a bus, with a manuscript pad on his knee and his hat tilted back on his head.' Humphrey Carpenter, Sunday Times`meticulous collation of critical responses' Times Literary Supplement'It would have been possible to put together a perfectly decent anthology of pieces from easily available sources, but Mark Tucker has done much better than that' Observer'A valuable book has just been published: The Duke Ellington Reader.' Alun Morgan, Kent Today/Kent Messenger'comprehensive collection of writings on the composer' Andy Hamilton, The Wire'Mark Tucker's splendid volume ... offers a rich harvest of information and insight without attempting a final appraisal - which is just how Duke would have wanted it.' Geoffrey Smith, Country Life, April 1994'All his admirers will want to own The Duke Ellington Reader, admirably selected and edited by a professor of music at Columbia University.' The London Review of Books. Nov '94a carefully selected anthology of well-known and fugitive pieces, offers multiple perspectives on an elusive reader, sardonic and mocking genius who transcended the constraints of white racism and paternalism...deserves serious attention. Mark Tucker, an authority on Ellington's early life, provides succinct introductions to this and another hundred 'Selections' in a compilation which is both a joy to read and an indispensible addition to American Studies, Ellingtonia and jazz criticism. * American Studies vol 29 part 1 *this mighty tome on a giant of jazz will please new and old aficionados ... "any book that brings together a selection of articles and reviews from these magazines, and some lesser known ones, is to be welcomed, and THE DUKE ELLINGTON READER is a must for fans of his music." * Colin Cooper, Beat Scene, No. 23 *

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Book SynopsisArt Tatum defined the limits of the possible in jazz piano. Gunther Schuller called Tatum''s playing a marvel of perfection.... His deep-in-the-keys full piano sonority, the tone and touch control in pyrotechnical passages...are miracles of performance. Whitney Balliett wrote no pianist has ever hit notes more beautifully. Each one--no matter how fast the tempo--was light and complete and resonant, like the letters on a finely printed page. His famous runs have been compared to the arc left against the night sky by a Fourth-of-July sparkler. And to have heard him play, one musician said, was as awe-inspiring as to have seen the Grand Canyon or Halley''s Comet. Now, in Too Marvelous For Words, James Lester provides the first full-length biography of the greatest virtuoso performer in the history of jazz. Before this volume, little was known about Tatum, even among jazz afficionados. What were his origins, who taught him and who provided early pianistic influences, how did he break intoTrade Reviewexcitingly depicts the New York City jazz scene during the rise of be-bop and the enormously rich activity of the 1930s and '40s. * Publishers Weekly *

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Book SynopsisThis study looks at the music and history of progressive rock, a genre criticized for its privileged, upper-middle class roots. By using an interdisciplinary approach it shows how progressive rock served as a vital cultural expression of the counterculture of the late 1960s and 1970s in England.Trade ReviewFor unreconstructed admirers of prog-rock this is a long overdue defence of a too-easily maligned genre, reason enough, if nothing else, to play those Genesis albums with pride. * Simon Evans, Birmingham Post *there is no getting away from its sheer vastness, tackling the quintessentially English subject with all the authority of a great American tome ... Macan's insight and detail is first-rate * Record Collector *

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Book SynopsisAn exploration of the music, players, and recordings that changed American culture. Vivid portraits of bebop's personalities - among them Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Miles Davis - are combined with an instrument-by-instrument look at the key players and their innovations.Trade Reviewa book that deserves a place on the shelves of all jazz lovers * Stage & Television Today *

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Book SynopsisBold and original, The Power of Black Music offers a new way of listening to the music of black America, and appreciating its profound contribution to all American music.Trade Review"Diligently traces the history of Black music--its African influences and evolution."--Emerge "Dares to take on the whole span of black musical history."--Chicago Tribune "Important...An exceptionally erudite and thoroughly readable work."--I.S.A.M. Newsletter "Impressive."--Booklist "[I]t brilliantly illuminates the centuries-old linkage between the music, myths, and rituals of Africa and the continuing evolution and enduring vitality of African-American music....Floyd clearly shows that black folk culture remains a driving force in the black music of America, a force with the power to enrich cultures the world over."--Black Media News "Samuel A. Floyd Jr...illuminates the connections between the music, myths, and rituals of Africa and the continuing evolution of African-American music."--The Washington Post Book World "A classic study inspired by pioneering monographs, it advocates a fresh critical account founded in the forms and traditions of the music itself."--Come-All-Ye of Legacy Books "Floyd's theories give him a solid basis by which to make judgments about black music, and also to describe that music."--Fanfare "In this singularly focused and highly articulate study, [Floyd] is attempting to place in proper perspective the true foundation of all forms of African-American music, a complex of several related core-culture practices generally ignored in previous histories. His work can only be judged fairly by its adherence to his intentions, and on that score he succeeds beyond measure."--The Mississippi Rag "A deeply personal and passionate book that dares to take on the whole span of black musical history, from ancient Africa to modern America....Striking....Bold....Never before has a black musical history drawn such sweeping links between centuries past and present, and Floyd is one of the few writers with the scholarly techniques, the musical training and the personal passion to make them persuasive."--The Chicago Tribune "An important contribution to scholarship on African-American music....By examining the ways in which a concern with the vernacular was reflected in diverse forms of African-American musical expression, from classical compositions to gospel music and blues, Floyd offers fresh readings of creative cultural production in its broadest reaches during the period....Floyd deploys his sophisticated theoretical framework in fruitful ways....The range of this book...is impressive....Floyd makes deft use of the tools of critical theory, yet his lucid writing style avoids the dense jargon often associated with this approach. As a result, The Power of Black Music is an exceptionally erudite and thoroughly readable work."--I.S.A.M. Newsletter "Floyd...diligently traces the history of Black music in America (the jazz of New Orleans funeral parades, blues, bebop, 1960s concert hall composers, rock)--its African influences and evolution."--Emerge "Floyd's work shows an uncanny coordination of ear, heart, and intellect. The author brings his subject into the realm of ideas while manifesting a love for the music and respect for the people who have made it. His grasp of the continuity of ring-shout values, and of what it means to Signify musically, uncovers and explains the vital core of African-American music making more convincingly than any other account I have read."--Richard Crawford, Professor of Music, University of Michigan "The most scholarly and imaginative exploration yet of the origins and development of black music....An invaluable contribution."--Sterling Stuckey, Professor of History and Religious Studies, University of California, Riverside "African American music deserves but seldom gets as much attention from academics as from music critics. Floyd takes a rare scholarly approach to it and sets a standard for subsequent studies. The range of genres he discusses is comprehensive...and the connections he makes are particularly perceptive....Academics, critics, scholars, and fans alike stand to gain much from carefully reading this impressive work."--Booklist "Offers a new way of listening to the music of Black America and appreciating its profound contribution to all American music."--National Black Employment Directory "Scholarly but never stuffy...a lively historical overview of all styles of African-American music....Contributing mightily to the book's excitement is Floyd's willingness to interpret music through folklore, literary criticism and soulful personal memories."--Pulse (Tower Records publication) "A sweeping, selective overview of black music in the US, beginning with the role of music in African society."--ChoiceTable of ContentsIntroduction 1: African Music, Religion, and Narrative 2: Transformations 3: Syncretization and Synthesis: Folk and Written Traditions 4: African-American Modernism, Signifyin(g), and Black Music 5: The Negro Renaissance: Harlem and Chicago Flowerings 6: Transitions: Function and Difference in Myth and Ritual 7: Continuity and Discontinuity: The Fifties 8: The Sixties and After 9: Troping the Blues: From Spirituals to the COncert Hall 10: The Object of Call-Response: The Signifyin(g) Symbol 11: Implications and Conclusions Appendix

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Book SynopsisWoody Herman was a central figure in the development of jazz - a musical giant whose career spanned the big band and bebop eras. Gene Lees has spent close to a decade interviewing Herman's friends and fellow musicians, to produce a vivid portrayal of the triumph and tragedy of a life in jazz.Trade Reviewthe kind of book that makes you want to go and listen to all the records * New York Times Book Review *

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Book SynopsisThis book provides the first independent examination of Dick Clark''s landmark television show, American Bandstand. It is both a history of the show and the changing styles of rock ''n'' roll music over four decades, and an examination of the business behind the show, revealing how Clark used his unique position as America''s only nationally televised disc jockey to fashion a financial empire from within the pop music industry. Based on extensive interviews with music business figures, recording stars and Dick Clark himself, American Bandstand reveals what took place behind as well as in front of ABC-TV''s cameras, and shares a story that few outside the show''s inner circle knew existed.Trade Review"Valuable and authoritative."--Publisher's Weekly "John A. Jackson's fascinating book shows how Clark worked the biz side of pop music to become a multimillionaire and how his show fit into 1950s American culture and society."--Jon Wiener, The Los Angeles Times Book Review

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Book SynopsisArmstrong recounts his early life in New Orleans, his experiences in Chicago and New York during the 1920s, his crowning as "King of the Zulus," and his late years in Queens, New York. Here is a dimension of Louis Armstrong that includes the history of jazz and, he history of American culture.Trade ReviewReview from previous edition 'a fascinating collection ... it's pretty damn entertaining.' * Mojo *Table of Contents1. "LOUIS ARMSTRONG + THE JEWISH FAMILY IN NEW ORLEANS, LA., THE YEAR OF 1907" (MARCH 31, 1969-1970); 5. "THE ARMSTRONG STORY" (1954); 10. EARLY YEARS WITH LUCILLE (CA. 1970); 15. LETTER TO L/CPL. VILLEC (1967)

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Book SynopsisSwing is back in style, and with it a renewed interest in the Big Band Era. And few players dominated that era more than Harry James, whose soaring trumpet solos and romantic hit tunes influenced popular music for a generation. Now, Peter J. Levinson, who knew Harry James personally, has written a revealing biography of this jazz icon, based on nearly 200 interviews with musicians and friends. Harry James led a truly colorful life, and in Trumpet Blues Levinson captures it all. Beginning with James''s childhood in a traveling circus, we follow the young trumpeter''s meteoric rise in the 1930s and witness his electrifying performances with the Benny Goodman Orchestra. We see how James formed his own band in 1939, an incubator for many pop music stars of the 1940s and ''50s, including Frank Sinatra, Connie Haines, Dick Haymes, Helen Forrest, and Kitty Kallen. Combined with James''s superb musicianship, peerless trumpet technique and talented sidemen, this stellar group dominated the warTrade Reviewexcellent biography ... Music biographies really don't come any better than this superb book. * Andrew Vine, Yorkshire Post *Table of ContentsPreface ; Acknowledgments ; Everette and Maybelle ; Louise and Ben ; The Kingdom of Swing ; Ciribiribin ; You Made Me Love You ; Trees, The Legs, and The Lip ; Hollywood Royalty ; The In-Between Years ; Back to Basie ; I Don't Want to Walk Without You ; Notes ; Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisAlthough he died in a tragic car accident at twenty-five, Clifford Brown is widely considered one of the most important figures in the history of jazz, a trumpet player who ranks with Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie, and Miles Davis, and a leading influence on contemporary jazz musicians. Now, in Clifford Brown: The Life and Art of the Legendary Jazz Trumpeter, Nick Catalano gives us the first major biography of this musical giant. Based on extensive interviews with Clifford Brown''s family, friends, and fellow jazz musicians, here is a fascinating portrait of a remarkable musician. Catalano depicts Brown''s early life, showing how he developed a facility and dazzling technique that few jazz players have ever equaled. We read of his meteoric rise in Philadelphia, where he played with many of the leading jazz players of the 1950s, including Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker; his tour of Europe with Lionel Hampton, which made him famous; and his formation of the Brown-Roach Quintet witTrade ReviewNick Catalano has done a superb job. This is a first-rate biography that is wonderfully readable. * Yorkshire Post *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ; Introduction ; 1. The Brown Family of Wilmington ; 2. Boysie Lowery and Howard High ; 3. On to Philadelphia ; 4. The Brink of Disaster ; 5. Rhythm 'n' Blues ; 6. The Month of June ; 7. European High Jinks ; 8. New York and Home ; 9. California Surprise ; 10. Brown and Roach, Inc. ; 11. Back to the East ; 12. Into 1956 ; Epilogue ; Notes ; Selected and Annotated Discography ; Index

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Book SynopsisThe Grateful Dead are one of the most fascinating rock bands and cultural phenomena of the twentieth century. This book collects the most important and illuminating writings by and about the band, its members, and its fans (known as Deadheads), providing a rich account of the Dead and their importance in rock music and popular culture.Trade ReviewGrateful Dead literature is approaching Beatles-lit in volume, and this gathering about the band and its fans attests to how vast and dedicated the nation of the Deadheads is ... A must for Dead-heavy collections, the book is also a nice addition to any popular culture collection. * Booklist *

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Book SynopsisGamble, Huff, and Bell were the pre-eminent soul music producers of the 1970s. This book tells the story of their meteoric rise, their years of unstoppable success, and their demise from payola, competition, a tough economy, and the inevitability of changing popular tastes.Trade Review"The definitive account of Philadelphia Soul. John Jackson's five years of research have resulted in a fascinating study of the hit sound that left lasting impressions on both the recording industry and American culture. A House on Fire is a wonderful human drama set in the tumultuous world of pop music, and John Jackson expertly captures the full breadth of this rollicking story." --Gerald Posner, author of Motown: Music, Money, Sex, and Power

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Book SynopsisIn 'Different Drummers', Michael Kater explores the underground history of jazz in Hitler's Germany using archival records and assembled interviews. He offers a frightening and fascinating look at life and popular culture during the Third Reich, showing that for the Nazis, jazz was an especially threatening form of expression.Trade Review"In this admirable and well-researched study, Michael Kater explores the ambiguous relationship that jazz had to the National Socialist state and society, and in the process problematizes the liberating qualities that jazz supposedly possesses. Even more significantly, the manner of the new cultural hsitory, Kater uses his study to illuminate and investigage a number of social, political and cultural issues that engage the interests of specialists in the period."--German Studies Review"Outstanding....a fine mix of archival research with the collection of oral and written testimonies. It is virtually encyclopedic in its effort to convey the life stories of so many contributors to German jazz; to evaluate the sound of particular musicians; to analyze the audience--generally urban, young, middle-class--and the business; to identify the personal connections and the main locales."--American Historical Review"Most people would assume that jazz was completely stamped out at home by the fascist government in the 1930s. Michael Kater's remarkable book paints a very different picture and deals in great detail with a little-known chapter in jazz history....There is not a jazz fan, no matter how knowledgeable, who will fail to learn a great deal by reading this important book."--Scott Yanow, Jazziz"Kater's superbly researched story is fascinating and horrifying, yet in a sense rewarding, since it shows the lengths to which young Germans would go to keep the faith with a music that was their common link."--The Los Angeles Times"Richly rewarding, challenging, provocative, and eminently insightful."--The Jazz Report"Meticulous scholarship and...astute use of oral testimony."--London Times Higher Education Supplement

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Book SynopsisA biography of Hoagy Carmichael, composer of classic American songs such as "Georgia on My Mind", "Rockin' Chair", "Skylark", "Lazybones", and "Star Dust". The book follows Carmichael from his roaring-20s Indiana youth to Hollywood legend.Trade Review"Meticulous, admiring, perceptive and informative.... A first-rate job of showing that Carmichael's mind was deeper and tougher than first impressions might suggest." --Jonathan Yardley, The Washington Post"A thorough, superb and evocative biography."--Tom Nolan, San Francisco Chronicle"Musically knowledgeable and truly dedicated to his subject, Sudhalter writes for a general audience with passion, enthusiasm, and a fine understanding of the subtleties of the songwriter's craft."--Baltimore Sun"An engaging bio."--US News & World Report"An apt and able bio of a singular talent."--Kirkus Reviews"Hailed by critics as the definitive look at the Hoosier songwriter."--Indianapolis Star"Highly readable and thoroughly researched."--William F. Gavin, The Washington Times"Sudhalter is a dedicated researcher who has to admit that his hero sometimes made a few things up, tricked cold facts into a wry story and generally saw himself in a smoky light akin to that of movies."--David Thomson, Los Angeles Times Book Review"Sudhalter's entertaining yet straightforward style propels the narrative forward, and the musical examples are a plus. The exhaustive research, including interviews with Carmichael's relatives and colleagues, makes this essential for all popular music, American culture, or Indiana collections."--Library Journal (starred review)"Richard Sudhalter's new book is undoubtedly the most well-researched biography of Hoagy Carmichael available. Anyone interested in this fine American composer should get hold of a copy immediately." --Artie Shaw"Sudhalter writes with the voice of a novelist, the eye of a historian, and the heart of the superb jazz musician he is known to be. Stardust Melody sets a new standard of literary excellence for all celebrity biographies to come." --Max Morath"Richard Sudhalter has written an elegant, carefully etched portrait of Hoagy Carmichael, his life and music, with so much history and wealth of detail in every anecdote that each one comes alive for the reader. No one but a jazz musician could have shown such insight as Sudhalter does, revealing the many secrets of the man and his music and making Hoagy's songs glow forever in the mind and heart." --Marian McPartland"With the instinct and insights of a discerning musician, Dick Sudhalter is a sensitive researcher, he's hip to how songwriters think, and he knows how to write about history and make it sing. Even Hoagy Carmichael, salty and critical as they come, would have probably pumped the author's hand and said, 'You got it, buddy.'" --Dave Frishberg

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Trade ReviewA wide-ranging presentation of rock's fundamental elements compiled lovingly by a committed scholar with deep knowledge of the repertory. * Journal of the Society for American Music *One to find space for in the curriculum, since it provides the basis for systematic work on popular music before and after its stated period. * Music Analysis *Table of ContentsTEXT'S FIGURES, TABLES, AND PHOTOGRAPHS; RESOURCES IN POP-ROCK MUSIC OF THE 1950S-'60S

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Book SynopsisMichael Dregni expertly traces the development of Gypsy Jazz not through straight musical history, but instead in a fascinating travelogue and detective story, following its birth with Django and its subsequent legacy, including all of the famous guitarists who have followed in Django's footsteps-Biréli Lagrène, Boulou Ferré, Dorado Schmitt, and others.Trade Review...illuminating as a study, historical and sociological, of Romany culture, not least in its account of life under Nazi occupation. * John Mole Times Literary Supplement *...superb... * Garth Cartwright Froots *He writes well, but most of all he brings to his subject a boundless enthusiasm * Merrell Noden, Mojo *Superb book * Merrell Noden, Mojo *Table of ContentsPrologue Music in the Shadows; The Imperfect History of Gypsy Jazz/ Chapter 1 The Guitar with a Human Voice;In Search of Django Reinhardt/ Chapter 2 The Boy With the Banjo; Into a Zigzag Paradise; Chapter 3 Bals Musette; Music from the Dark Side of the City of Light; Chapter 4Jazz Modernistique; Revisiting the Babylon of Gypsy Jazz/ Chapter 5 Songs of One Thousand and One Nights; Django Reinhardt, Schnuckenack Reinhardt, and Gypsy Jazz Under the Nazis; Chapter 6 Gypsy Bebop; From Dizzy and Bird to Django and the Gibson Generation; Chapter 7 Les Guitares à Moustache; Revolutionary Jazz Guitars for a Jazz Revolution/ Chapter 8 Crossroads; On the Road to Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer/ Chapter 9 Dynasty;Les Frères Ferret and their Musical Clan/Chapter 10La Dernière Valse des Niglos; Saints and Sinners of the Malha Clan/ Chapter 11 Au Son des Guitares; On the Trail of Patotte Bousquet/ Chapter 12 The Unsung Master of the Gypsy Waltz; Tracing the Legacy of Tchan Tchou/ Chapter 13 The Lost; The Secret History of Lousson Baumgartner and the Other Family/ Chapter 14 Minstrel; Bamboula Ferret and the Travels of a Romany Troubadour/ Chapter 15 Resurrection; The New Elegance of Biréli Lagrène, Stochelo Rosenberg, Angelo Debarre, and Ninine Garcia/ Chapter 16 The Music Thieves; Into America with Danny Fender, Johnny Guitar, John Adomono, and Julio Bella/ Chapter 17 Gypsy Jazz Rap; Syntax and the Search for Le Meilleur Chemin/Chapter 18 The Most Dangerous Guitar Lesson; Jamming with David Reinhardt/ Epilogue/Latcho Drom The Long Road/ Recommended Listening/ Notes/ Recommended Reading/ Bibliography /Acknowledgments/Index

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Trade ReviewPriestley's dedication to setting the record straight is commendable. No doubt, his study presents the most reliable account of Parker's life. * Anna Harwell Celenza, Notes *The best overall book on Parker since Gary Giddins's photo-driven 'Celebrating Bird' of 1987.... Its 60-page discography is the most comprehensive Parker compendium yet published.... Priestley has listened to and listed everything, including all the rare, noncommercial material that's come to light in the last 20 years.... Priestley places them, for the first time, in the context of Parker's career. In so doing, he contributes significant pieces to the larger puzzle depicting Parker's role in the creation of modern jazz. Indeed, Mr. Priestley offers excellent analysis of the technical aspects of Parker's playing, explaining in detail what made his music so remarkable. * Will Friedwald, The New York Sun *Easily enjoyed in a single sitting, with your favorite Parker record.... Well served by the breadth of Priestley's musical knowledge and his tenacious desire for accuracy. * New York Times Book Review *Priestley's revised and updated biography...offers valuable insights to Bird's career, mainly because it is seen through the prism of his music.... This volume makes a valuable contribution to jazz literature.... A useful addition to the Parker library. * Down Beat *Even if you've read other books on Parker, you'll gain some fresh perspective from this one. And if you've never read a book on Parker, you'd be well-advised to make this the first. Though Priestley is clearly a fan, he writes about the good in a clear-headed way and writes about the bad unflinchingly. * Kansas City Star *Brian Priestley has not just chased but captured the elusive Bird, illuminating the turbulent life and marvelous music with human and musical insight. * Dan Morgenstern, Director, Rutgers Institute of Jazz Studies, and author of Living with Jazz *Brian Priestley is one of the most accomplished jazz historians, critics, and biographers, and Chasin' the Bird is an indispensable gem * an ideal introduction to a major figure in 20th century music and an inventive interpretation of Parker's life and art that will also engage veteran jazz lovers. The comprehensive discography is a major bonus, making this a handbook every Bird chaser will relish.Gary Giddins, author of Visions of Jazz and Weather Bird *

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Book SynopsisThrough a diverse collection of essays and interviews featuring leading Black media personalities, musicians and scholars, this volume presents the "insiders' view" - Black perspectives on Coltrane's powerful and lasting legacy viewed in contemporary times within the context of Black strivings for freedom.Trade ReviewColtrane's significance in the black community goes far beyond the notes he played. He stands for integrity, humility, spirituality, and more. For me, this book is a chance to read what my esteemed friends and colleagues have to say about this twentieth-century icon. For everyone, it's an opportunity to learn about Coltrane - the man and his music - from some new points of view. * Dr. Lewis Porter, Rutgers University-Newark *If John Coltrane was 'invited' into the community of jazz musicians to be a custodian, innovator, and disseminator of Black American culture, Brown himself has invited a first-rate group of Black American contributors-scholars, musicians, media personalities, and educators-to provide an insightful and provocative view of the continuing relevance of Coltrane's music to the development of Black American spirituality, liberation, and non-Western ways of music-making. * Reebee Garofalo, University of Massachusetts, Boston *The collection reads like a lively townhouse meeting in which the impassioned citizens of 'Tranes-ville' stake out their intellectual territories, each arguing for the importance of Coltrane's music and the deep sense of spirituality we sense in his singular brand of cultural nationalism. Come to the meeting and be inspired as well by this musician's exacting execution and uncompromising truth. * Guthrie P. Ramsey, Jr., author of Race Music: Black Cultures from Bebop to Hip-Hop *John Coltrane and Black America's Quest for Freedom is a thorough investigation of John Coltrane's music via the artist, and the artist via his culture, not in an effort to solidify notions of black identity or enshrine a cultural legacy, but rather to show that the Black American experience itself is complex, improvised, defiant, and irreducible. * BlackGrooves.org *An insightful collection. * wirenh.com *Table of ContentsFOREWORD BY T.J. ANDERSON; PREFACE BY LEONARD BROWN

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Book SynopsisPlease Please Me offers an insider's view of the British pop-music recording industry during the seminal period of 1956 to 1968, based on personal recollections, contemporary accounts, and all relevant data that situate this scene in the economic, political, and social context of postwar Britain.Trade Reviewa geniune and important contribution to the cannon of 1960s musical literature... the book offers a highly readable and clearly conveyed account of how the pop industry worked in its most fertile and experimental decade. * Paul Martin, Journal of Contemporary British History *this meaty paperback is an academic, but throughly engrossing stugy of the UK recording industry in the 60s... His text blends facts, personal recollections and period flavour, with enlightening first-hand quotes woven throughout its pages helping to capture the special atmosphere. * Russell Newmark, The Beat magazine *Table of ContentsPreface, Acknowledgements / Introduction / 1. The Velvet Glove: The Art of Production / 2. A Question of Balance: Engineering Art / 3. Mediating Change: Setting Musical Directions / 4. The Write Stuff: Songwriters / 5. Red-Light Fever: Musicians / 6. Please Please Me / 7. London Recording Studios / Discography / Bibliography

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Table of ContentsIntroduction ; Antonin Dvorak Comes to America ; American and Negro Music ; Dvorak's Symphony From the New World ; The Chicago World's Columbian Exposition from 1893 ; The National Conservatory of Music in America ; Paul Laurence Dunbar, Clorindy, and "The Talented Truth" ; James Reese Europe ; George Gershwin and African American Music ; Leonard Bernstein ; Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue ; The Clef Club Concert ; Will Marion Cook ; George Antheil's Ballet Mecanique ; Bernstein's Mass ; Duke Ellington ; Ellington's Queenie Pie ; Ellington's Black, Brown, and Beige ; Afterword ; Notes ; Selected Discography ; Selected Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisFor jazz historians, Louis Armstrong''s Hot Five and Hot Seven recordings mark the first revolution in the history of a music riven by upheaval. Yet few traces of this revolution can be found in the historical record of the late 1920s, when the records were made. Even black newspapers covered Armstrong as just one name among many, and descriptions of his playing, while laudatory, bear little resemblance to those of today. For this reason, the perspective of Armstrong''s first listeners is usually regarded as inadequate, as if they had missed the true significance of his music. This attitude overlooks the possibility that those early listeners might have heard something valuable on its own terms, something we ourselves have lost. If we could somehow recapture their perspective-without abandoning our own-how might it change our understanding of these seminal recordings? In Louis Armstrong''s Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings, Harker selects seven exceptional records to study at length: CTrade ReviewHarker has spent more than a decade immersed in Armstrong's work and it shows. He has absorbed the music, the period, and commentary about it to do something for scholarship that he claims Armstrong did for the music: consolidate what is known and weave it into something that sounds new and fresh. * Jeffrey Magee, author of The Uncrowned King of Swing: Fletcher Henderson and Big Band Jazz *For anyone who wants to learn more about Louis Armstrong's great solos from the 1920s, this book is the place to begin. And for those who already know and are weary of reading the same tired cliches repeated year after year, this book will be a joy to read, fresh and stimulating. Harker brings first-rate historical research to music that truly deserves it. * Thomas Brothers, Professor of Music, Duke University *Brian Harker's book will provide Armstrong aficionados with a deeper appreciation of Armstrong's genius, but also will provide Armstrong neophytes with an engaging introduction to these jazz masterworks. * Michael Cogswell, Director, Louis Armstrong House Museum *Harker bravely and capably combines musicology (attentive readings of Louis's playing on six famous sides recorded between 1926 and 1928) and cultural history (how were these performances influenced, shaped, and perceived)...Since the book costs what a CD would--and it is more rewarding than many--I commend it to you. Brian Harker is clearly a Big Butter and Egg Man of music. * Michael Steinman, Jazz Lives *Provides a deeper appreciation and understanding of Armstrong's genius...This book makes a significant contribution to the Armstrong literature...Essential. All readers. * Choice *Table of Contents1. Acknowledgments

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Book SynopsisIn Benny Goodman's famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert, Catherine Tackley provides the first in depth, scholarly study of this seminal concert and recording. Through discussions of the cultural context, the performance itself, and its reception and response, Tackley shows why Goodman's 1938 concert remains one of the most significant events in American music history.Trade ReviewTackley is an especially goof researcher and it is unlikely one will find any related subject matter not covered thoroughly here. * Bob Porter, IAJRC Journal *Tackley's book attempts to do more than just relate the details of the concert; instead, she seeks to place the event among larger contexts, from the use of recordings as a basis for canonisation to embodiment of the musical past ... All will be inspired to obtain the recordings, not only of the concert itself, but also of the multitude of rich sonic evidence that Tackley cites from Goodman as well as his swing ear compatriots * Sarah Caissie Provost, Popular Music Journal *It is the evidently joyous combination of enthusiasm, scholarly discipline and musical expertise that makes this contribution to the Oxford Studies in Recorded Jazz intriguing for the analyst, particularly companionable for those of us who have grown up with this landmark recording (not released until 1950) and an entertaining narrative for the general reader interested in the place of jazz in American culture. * John Mole, Times Literary Supplement *a thoroughly researched, scholarly work ... For students of jazz history and those interested in the Goodman swing era, this will be a welcome arrival. * Sally Evans-Darby, Jazz Journal *the meat of the volume is the central track-by-track breakdown of the music programme ... Tackley writes compellingly. * Brian Priestley, Jazzwise *Only the fourth book in the "Oxford Studies in Recorded Jazz" series, Tackley's work joins the previous three entries as a distinguished contribution to the literature ... there should be a broad audience for this volume ... Highly recommended. All readers. * K. R. Dietrich, Choice *Table of ContentsAcknowledgements ; Preface ; Part 1 - Context ; Precedents ; Promotion ; Program ; Part 2 - Performance ; The Orchestra ; Twenty Years of Jazz ; Jam Session ; Trio/Quartet ; Conclusion ; Part 3 - Representation ; Repercussions ; Recording ; Reception ; Recreation ; Appendix 1 - Carnegie Hall Program ; Appendix 2 - Members of the Orchestra ; Notes ; References ; Discography

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Book SynopsisRock 'N' Film presents a cultural history of films about US and British rock music during the period when biracial popular music was fundamental to progressive social movements on both sides of the Atlantic.Trade ReviewCovering rock n roll filmmaking in its entirety, this accomplished volume is readily accessible and written (as James himself notes) without the jargon that often mars film studies Illustrated with a host of frame blowups, this informed, sharp, inviting, and absolutely authoritative book will be the source to beat on the subject of rock n roll movies for quite some time Summing Up: Essential. All readers. * G. A. Foster, CHOICE *Table of ContentsTable of Contents ; 1. Introduction: Rock 'n' Film ; 2. Absolute Beginnings: Blackboard Jungle ; 3. Jukebox Musicals ; 4. Dirty Stars: Jayne Mansfield and Kenneth Anger ; 5. Rock 'n' Roll Noir: Elvis Before the Army ; 6. Sunshine Elvis: The Devil in Disguise ; (inc Morphology of the Elvis Movie) ; 7. Back in the UK: The English Elvises ; 8. Beatles I: Richard Lester and A Hard Day's Night ; 9. Beatles II: Next Morning ; 10. Bringing It All Back Home: Toward the Folk Documentary ; 11. D. A. Pennebaker: Documentary from Folk to Folk Rock and Rock ; 12. Utopia and Its Discontents: Woodstock ; 13. The Rolling Stones I: The Greatest Rock 'n' Film Band in the World ; 14. Mick Jagger, Demon Brother ; 15. The Rolling Stones II: The U.S. Tours, From Concert Film to Film Concert: ; 16. Back To Black ... : Soul ; 17... And White: Country ; 18. Retrospection and Reflexivity: Rock 'n' Film Suicide ; Index

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Book SynopsisThelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall is an historical, cultural, and analytical study of the album by the same name. Recorded in 1957, but lost until 2005, it is a particularly interesting lens through which to view jazz both as a historical tradition and as a contemporary cultural form.Trade Review"Solis's arguments are compelling and wide ranging, covering the specifics of this concert and recording but reiterating essential points for jazz studies research pertaining to the musical work, issues of authenticity and reproduction, nostalgia and reissued recordings, and academic institutionalization, among others, that make the book applicable and engaging beyond just the scope of its primary object of study."--Twentieth-Century MusicTable of ContentsIntroduction ; Chapter 1: Monk With Coltrane ; Chapter 2: The Morningside Community Center Benefit and the Jazz ; Concert as an Institution to 1957 ; Chapter 3: "Monk's Mood" and "Crepuscule with Nellie" ; Chapter 4: "Evidence" and "Nutty" ; Chapter 5: "Bye-Ya" and "Sweet and Lovely" ; Chapter 6: "Blue Monk" and "Epistrophy" ; Chapter 7: The Recording in Its Time ; References

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Book SynopsisMichael Dregni expertly traces the development of Gypsy Jazz not through straight musical history, but instead in a fascinating travelogue and detective story, following its birth with Django and its subsequent legacy, including all of the famous guitarists who have followed in Django's footsteps-Biréli Lagrène, Boulou Ferré, Dorado Schmitt, and others.Trade ReviewDregni's passion for Django Reinhardt and the enduring overlap of gypsy music and jazz leads to a picaresque journey from the US, across modern Europe and back again. The music itself is the wandering hero as Dregni gracefully weaves together historical research, personal insights, and conversations with colorful, music-making characters. Generous, musical storytelling at its best! * Ashley Kahn, author of A Love Supreme: The Story of John Coltrane's Signature Album, and other jazz titles *Dregni writes as Django played: lyrical, inventive, engaging and often undeniably brilliant. With Gypsy Jazz he shines light upon the 'holes in history' that have so long obscured this most celebrated yet mysterious arena of Romany music. An astonishing text. * Garth Cartwright, author of Princes Amongst Men: Journeys With Gypsy Musicians *In this fascinating picaresque adventure into European gipsy culture, Michael Dregni not only discovers much hitherto undocumented information about the background to the great manouche guitarist Django Reinhardt, but also about his musical and social forbears, contemporaries and heirs. Dregni's sparky prose and fervent enthusiasm enliven his search, which always comes back to the music itself, in which he finds, alongside the influence of American jazz, a timeless romani wistfulness, the lingering melancholy of an itinerant people. * Alyn Shipton, Jazz critic of The Times, London, and author of A New History of Jazz *Table of ContentsPrologue ; Chapter 1: The Guitar with a Human Voice; In Search of Django Reinhardt ; Chapter 2: The Boy With the Banjo; Into a Zigzag Paradise ; Chapter 3: Bals Musette; Music from the Dark Side of the City of Light ; Chapter 4: Jazz Modernistique; Revisiting the Babylon of Gypsy Jazz ; Chapter 5: Songs of One Thousand and One Nights; Django Reinhardt, Schnuckenack Reinhardt, and Gypsy Jazz Under the Nazis ; Chapter 6: Gypsy Bebop; From Dizzy and Bird to Django and the Gibson Generation ; Chapter 7: Les Guitares a Moustache; Revolutionary Jazz Guitars for a Jazz Revolution ; Chapter 8: Crossroads; On the Road to Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer ; Chapter 9: Dynasty;Les Freres Ferret and their Musical Clan ; Chapter 10: La Derniere Valse des Niglos; Saints and Sinners of the Malha Clan ; Chapter 11: Au Son des Guitares; On the Trail of Patotte Bousquet ; Chapter 12: The Unsung Master of the Gypsy Waltz; Tracing the Legacy of Tchan Tchou ; Chapter 13: The Lost; The Secret History of Lousson Baumgartner and the "Other" Family ; Chapter 14: Minstrel; Bamboula Ferret and the Travels of a Romany Troubadour ; Chapter 15: Resurrection; The New Elegance of Bireli Lagrene, Stochelo Rosenberg, Angelo Debarre, and Ninine Garcia ; Chapter 16: The Music Thieves; Into America with Danny Fender, Johnny Guitar, John Adomono, and Julio Bella Chapter 17: Gypsy Jazz Rap; Syntax and the Search for "Le Meilleur Chemin" ; Chapter 18: The Most Dangerous Guitar Lesson; Jamming with David Reinhardt ; Epilogue: Latcho Drom - The Long Road ; Recommended Listening ; Notes ; Recommended Reading ; Bibliography ; Acknowledgments ; Index

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Trade ReviewThe story of Rodgers' enormous influence, bursting with names of stars, stalwarts, and one-hit wonders, and featuring discographical endnotes for most chapters, is the immensely piquant and satisfying meat of one of the most intelligent, fascinating, and cogent pop-music histories ever. * BookList (Starred Review) *Table of ContentsTable of Contents ; Introduction: Meeting Jimmie Rodgers HalfWay ; 1. The Man Who Walked Into Southern Show Business ; 2. Close to the Ground: The Singing Brakeman ; 3. America's Blue Yodeler No. 1: This White Guy Sings Blues, Too ; 4. America's Blue Yodeler No. 2: Instigator of Blue Yodelmania ; 5. International Multimedia Star ; 6. Doomed Singer-Songwriter with Guitar ; 7. Aftermath: The Late, Great Jimmie Rodgers ; 8. South by Southwest: An Easterner in a Cowboy Hat ; 9. Back East: The Hillbilly Echo, 1933-1947 ; 10. Some Sort of Folksinger? ; 11. The Father of Country Music ; 12. Rough and Rowdy Ways: To the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ; 13. Sentiments in Context: The Return of Vaudeville Jimmie ; 14. High-Powered Mamas: Women & the Music of Jimmie ; 15. Down the Old Road to Home ; Acknowledgments ; Notes ; Bibliography ; Credits ; Index

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Book SynopsisThe first book to explore the contribution made by the military to British music history, Music & the British Military in the Long Nineteenth Century shows that military bands reached far beyond the official ceremonial duties they are often primarily associated with and had a significant impact on wider spheres of musical and cultural life.Trade ReviewThe meticulous and exhaustive research, enormous depth of experience, and exemplary clarity infomring Herbert and Barlow's account turn the British aristocracy and even royalty from philistines into diachronic patrons of music...This book is a magnificent achievement. * CHOMBEC News, Univeristy of Bristol *Table of ContentsAcknowledgements ; Historical preface ; Introduction ; Chapter 1 Trumpets, drums and fifes ; Chapter 2 Bands of musick ; Chapter 3 Soldiers and musicians ; Chapter 4 Musical identities and infrastructures 1770-1857 ; Chapter 5 Military music in the British provinces 1770-1840 ; Chapter 6 Recruitment, training and the Kneller Hall project ; Chapter 7 Amateurs, brass bands and the 1859 Rifle Volunteers ; Chapter 8 Concerted performances and instrumentation ; Chapter 9 Military culture, the music profession and the question of status ; Chapter 10 Ritual, performance style and musical patriotism ; Chapter 11 The empire and other foreign fields ; Appendix 1 Regulations, standing orders and circular memoranda, etc., addressing ; music ; Appendix 2 Printed (Harmonie) repertoire for bands of music, c.1800, an indicative ; list ; Appendix 3 The Duke of Cumberland's Band Archive ; Appendix 4 Indicative list of band instrumentations in the late eighteenth and ; nineteenth centuries ; Appendix 5 The objects of the Military School of Music ; Bibliography

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Book SynopsisDig argues that in hip culture it is sound itself, and the faculty of hearing, that is the privileged part of the sensory experience. Through a string of lucid and illuminating examples, author Phil Ford shows why and how music became a central facet of hipness and the counterculture.Trade ReviewWhat Dig offers to scholars of U.S. music is its indispensable modeling of a nimble, oblique, and resonant approach to cultural critique. Fords work reminds us of the galvanizing interchange that always tacitly binds music to ideas: it reads the intellectual discourse of an era as something with the properties of music, something mobile, volatile, and alive. For this reason alone, Fords Dig promises to become a canonical entry in the field of early twenty-first century musicology. * Dale Chapman, Journal of the Society for American Music *[Ford's] conclusions on the Beats, popular music in American culture and the ever-continuing onrush of (blindfold consuming) square culture, nemesis of those who âdigâ things, are unquestionably worth reading. * Dr. A. Ebert, Jive Talk *Table of ContentsTable of Contents ; Introduction: Dig ; Chapter 1: Koan (What Is Hip?) ; 1. What is Hip? ; 2. The Suzuki Rhythm Boys ; 3. The Devil's Staircase ; 4. The Black Spot ; Chapter 2: Somewhere/Nowhere ; 1. Precambrian ; 2. Game Ideology ; 3. 1948: Smart Goes Crazy ; 4. Miles and Monk ; 5. Somewhere/Nowhere ; Chapter 3: Sound Become Holy (The Beats) ; 1. Sound Become Holy ; 2. The Sadness of It All ; 3. Digging What They Dig ; 4. Astounding and Prophetic ; 5. Stenciled off the Real ; Chapter 4: Hip Sensibility in an Age of Mass Counterculture ; 1. Right On, Mr. Horowitz ; 2. The Square ; 3. Asymmetrical Consciousness ; 4. Elitism ; 5. Mass Culture Critique ; 6. The Decline of Midcentury Modernism and the Birth of Postmodernism ; 7. Sound Museum ; Chapter 5: Mailer's Sound ; 1. The Sound is the Thing, Man ; 2. Abstraction ; 3. Whiteness ; 4. Mailer's Sound ; 5. Enantiodromia ; Chapter 6: "Let's Say That We're New, Every Minute" (John Benson Brooks) ; 1. Off-Minor ; 2. Music of the Isms ; 3. DJology ; 4. Cipher ; 5. Magical Hermeneutics ; 6. Technologies of Experience ; 7. Practice

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Book SynopsisThis book shows how le hip hop reflects a republic of culture rather than a culture industry; a minority identity politics that takes shape as a movement poetics or figural language; and the public valorization of dance as a technique, meriting unemployment compensation and understood as a high-tech knowledge practice.Trade ReviewFelicia McCarren has succeeded brilliantly in taking dance out of its disciplinary confines, showing how vital a consideration of hip-hop is to any attempt to understand the dynamics of race and identity in contemporary France; the progress of the globalization of culture; the transformational power of moving bodes; and the mutually constitutive relation between bodies and technologies. McCarren makes it impossible for semiotics or cultural theory to remain indifferent to dance. * Carrie Noland, author of Agency and Embodiment: Performing Gestures/Producing Culture *The strengths of McCarren's research lay both in the cross-disciplinary structural analysis of national ideology and state funding of the arts (and research on the arts) insofar as they relate to particular communities and individuals in complex national, social, and cultural situations. Likewise, McCarren's introduction to works that might not be widely known to scholars bring new perspectives on French concert dance and the ways in which dance might be read as part of debates on national and global politics. * H-France Review *...Offers an original perspective on contemporary hip-hop theatre. * Dance Review Journal *Table of ContentsContents ; Introduction: "French?": Circulation, Immigration and Assimilation ; Part I: Politics and poetics ; Chapter 1: Hop Hop Citizens: politics, culture and performance ; Chapter 2: Hip Hop Dance "speaks" French: droit de citer ; Chapter 3: Hip Hop as post-colonial representation: Farid Berki's Invisible Armada and Exodust ; Part II: Technology and techniques ; Chapter 4: Dancing In and Out of the Box: Frank II Louise's Drop It!(2000) and Compagnie Choream's Epsilon (1999) ; Chapter 5: Breaking history: Helene Cixous' L'histoire terrible mais inachevee de Norodom Sihanouk, Roi du Cambodge and Yiphun Chiem's Apsara (2007) ; Chapter 6: Techniques: French urban dance in intellectual context ; Conclusion

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Book SynopsisThis book reconceives the history and reception of Rhapsody in Blue, freeing it from established narratives and frequently encountered anecdotes. By approaching the Rhapsody as an "arrangement," it shifts emphasis away from a centralized text and from the sole agency of George Gershwin, providing a dynamic and multifaceted reappraisal of this emblematic piece.Trade ReviewA fascinating exploration of the 'active and, at times, surprising life' of an American musical icon. Saturated in original archival research and musical insights, the book offers a vivid, unique account of the Rhapsody as a 'variable idea and not a fixed text'-a savvy approach that opens up fresh ways of hearing and understanding the piece. * Jeffrey Magee, Associate Professor of Music and Theater at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign *Addressing fascinating but little-noticed source material, Arranging Gershwin advances an original thesis that promises to change the way we think about Rhapsody in Blue in particular and the whole question of classical/nonclassical hybridity in general. Moreover, Banagale accomplishes his goal with an accessible, engaging style that draws in the general reader as well as the specialist. * Larry Hamberlin, Middlebury College, author oTin Pan Opera: Operatic Novelty Songs in the Ragtime Era *Table of ContentsCredits ; Acknowledgements ; About the Companion Website ; Introduction: Arranging an Icon ; 1. Complex Compositional Origins: Ferde Grofe and Rhapsody in Blue ; 2. Living Legends: George Gershwin and Rhapsody in Blue ; 3. From Camp to Carnegie Hall: Leonard Bernstein and Rhapsody in Blue ; 4. Rearranging Concert Jazz: Duke Ellington and Rhapsody in Blue ; 5. "It Ain't Necessarily So": Larry Adler and Rhapsody in Blue ; 6. Selling Success: Visual Media and Rhapsody in Blue ; Epilogue: Arranging at Multiple Levels ; Notes ; Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisJazz emerged during the political and social upheaval of world war, communist revolution, Red Scares, and the Black Migration. The tumult bred disagreements about the cultural significance of jazz that concerned both its African American roots and its international appeal. The questions about what was new or even radical about the music initiated debates that writers recapitulated for decades. Jazz Internationalism offers a bold reconsideration of jazz''s influence in Afro-modernist literature. Ranging from the New Negro Renaissance through the social movements of the 1960s, John Lowney articulates nothing less than a new history of Afro-modernist jazz writing. Jazz added immeasurably to the vocabulary for discussing radical internationalism and black modernism in leftist African American literature. Lowney examines how Claude McKay, Ann Petry, Langston Hughes, and many other writers employed jazz as both a critical social discourse and mode of artistic expression to exploreTrade Review"Recommended."--Choice "Lowney is at his best when he turns his attention to the specific forms of jazz and its literatures. He is a careful close reader with an expert eye for minute technical correspondence between literary and musical forms." --African American Review"Jazz Internationalism is thought provoking. . . certain to stimulate the intellectual interests of a wide array of scholars of black radicalism, Afro-modernism, and jazz." --The Journal of African American History"Indispensable to African American literary and cultural studies, jazz studies, and internationalist leftist studies. Its discussion of how jazz is called forth as a form of utopianism as well as social and political criticism in radical African American writing marks an important step in the contemporary critical reconsideration of how conventionally discrete areas of history and culture may be seen in intersectional terms."--Gary Edward Holcomb, author of Claude McKay, Code Name Sasha: Queer Black Marxism and the Harlem Renaissance

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Book SynopsisThis analysis of Duke Ellington's works draws on observations by Ellington himself and by members of his orchestra to show how blues, ragtime and Tin Pan Alley influenced Ellington and how he integrated black folk music practices with elements of European art music.Table of ContentsAn introduction to Ellingtonia. Part 1: Ellington's approach to composition; the Ellington effect; the influence of the blues; the influence of ragtime; the influence of tin pan alley. Part 2: the music of the mature period, 1939-1941; Ko Ko; Mr J.B. Blues; concerto for Cootie; junior hop; subtle slough; some conclusions and comparisons. Appendices: a chronology of Duke Ellington; Ellington's principal sideman; a selective discography; Ellington's copyrighted works; evidence of the blues in classic piano ragtime notes.

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Book SynopsisThe fifties, though a quiescent period in many ways, was one of the most fervent decades in jazz history. The landmarks of modern jazz were firmly planted and, it could be argued, nearly all directions the music has taken since then can be charted back to recordings, groups, or individuals from this era. In this series of profiles, Joe Goldberg examines the lives and the music, the crucial events and dominant forces of a decade of great music and conflicting esthetics: Miles Davis''s recording of Kind of Blue Gerry Mulligan''s pianoless quartet Cecil Taylor''s percussive keyboard experiments John Coltrane''s and Sonny Rollins''s marathon saxophone solos MJQ''s blending of classical structure and jazz improvisation Ornette Coleman''s Free Jazz. From Mingus to Monk to Blakey, it was an age of giants. Perhaps never before or since in jazz history have so many wildly idiosyncratic jazz innovators been contemporaries. Joe Goldberg was there and what his ears heard has become here a lastin

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Book SynopsisThis comprehensive survey of jazz piano, beginning with a brief history of the instrument within the jazz tradition and concluding with interviews that present twenty-seven pianists in their own words, is both wonderfully anecdotal and a serious piece of jazz history. Lyons has assembled a giant concert of piano voices,Bill Evans, Herbie Hancock, Teddy Wilson, Oscar Peterson, Keith Jarrett, Randy Weston, Cecil Taylor, Horace Silver, Dave Brubeck, Sun Ra, McCoy Tyner, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Chick Corea, and many others. The pianists are candid, intense, and always opinionated. Yet their responses are infused with a keen appreciation for fellow musicians, their contemporaries, and those who came before,Walter, Tatum, Ellington. For pianists everywhere, whatever their individual style, this book will speak to and for you as it expresses the thoughts of its many great artists.

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Book SynopsisWhen originally published in 1974, Ekkehard Jost''s Free Jazz was the first examination of the new music of such innovators as Sun Ra, Ornette Coleman, and the Art Ensemble of Chicago. Jost studied the music (not the lives) of a selection of musicians,black jazz artists who pioneered a new form of African American music,to arrive at the most in-depth look so far at the phenomenon of free jazz. Free jazz is not absolutely free, as Jost is at pains to point out. As each convention of the old music was abrogated, new conventions arose, whether they were rhythmic, melodic, tonal, or compositional, Coltrane''s move into modal music was governed by different principles than Coleman''s melodic excursions Sun Ra''s attention to texture and rhythm created an entirely different big bang sound then had Mingus''s attention to form.In Free Jazz, Jost paints a group of ten style portraits,musical images of the styles and techniques of John Coltrane, Charles Mingus, Ornette Coleman, Cecil Taylor,

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Book SynopsisTo this day, wherever great rock music is being made, there is the shadow of Bob Dylan, said Bruce Springsteen at the induction of Dylan into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988. Or to quote John Rockwell, Anyone who didn''t live through the sixties simply cannot realize how important his albums seemed then they defined a community. Dylan is a musical, literary, political, and religious icon whose lyrics and mystique have spawned countless articles and books. The Dylan Companion is a generous helping of the best, most pungent, and most insightful commentary on Dylan from all phases of his career right up to the present: personal recollections and professional assessments from the likes of Ken Kesey, Greil Marcus, Joan Baez, Andrew Motion, Lester Bangs, Kurt Loder, Allen Ginsberg, Pauline Kael, Geoff Dyer, Simon Winchester, and Robert Christgau,over fifty pieces celebrating the sixty-year-old performer who somehow manages to stay forever young.

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Book SynopsisNewsday has said that Nick Tosches casts brilliant black light. The San Diego Reader has said that Tosches''s best sentences uncoil like rattlesnakes and strike with a venom that spreads poison through all the little Sunday-school ideas you''ve held dear. And Rolling Stone has said that Tosches can write like a wild rockabilly raveup. He can be elegant as a slow blues. The Nick Tosches Reader is the author''s own selection of his best work over the past thirty years, including fiction, poetry, interviews, rock writing, investigative journalism, and criticism. First published in major magazines, obscure underground periodicals, and his own best-selling books, many of these selections deal with rock''n'' roll and cultural icons,but there are also pieces on everything from William Faulkner to organized crime to heavyweight boxing, including the Vanity Fair feature that gave rise to Tosches''s major new book on Sonny Liston, published by Little, Brown. Here is a unique and darklyTrade ReviewNew York Times Book Review, 7/15/10 "If you want to learn about the power and dangers of rock 'n' roll, check out Mary Gaitskill's incomparable novel Veronica or Marianne Faithfull's cackling memoir or The Nick Tosches Reader."

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Book SynopsisSwing has never gone out of style. It was the music the Greatest Generation danced to--and went to war to. And no musician evokes the Big Band era more strikingly than Tommy Dorsey, whose soaring trombone play and hit tunes influenced popular music for a generation. Tommy Dorsey (1905-1956) led a rich and complex life. Beginning with his childhood in the coal mining towns of Pennsylvania, we follow the young trombonist''s journey to fame and fortune during the Jazz Age. Tommy, with his brother Jimmy, created one of the most popular bands of the era and played with such giants as Bing Crosby and Glenn Miller. They also launched the career of a skinny young singer named Frank Sinatra. But Tommy''s volcanic personality eventually split the band and Tommy went off on his own. Drawing on exhaustive new research and scores of interviews with the musicians who knew him best, Levinson delves into Dorsey''s famously eccentric lifestyle and his oversize appetite for drink, women, and perfection. The first biography on Dorsey in more than thirty years, Tommy Dorsey is a dazzling portrait of the Big Band''s brightest star--his tumultuous life, his turbulent times, and the unforgettable music that made him a legend.Trade Review"This is the best biography of a big-band leader I have read in years... The picture it paints of Dorsey the person is not always pretty...but it rings true...He covers the full arc of Dorsey's career in a way that previous books about him have not." Crescendo and Jazz Magazine"

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Book SynopsisJane''s Addiction''s 1988 breakthrough album, Nothing''s Shocking , had a seismic impact. With a bracing combination of metal, punk, and psychedelia, coupled with lead singer Perry Farrell''s banshee-ina- wind-tunnel vocals, Jane''s Addiction helped put alternative music on the map. The band helped pave the way for the mainstream success of bands like Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and Nirvana. Along the way, Jane''s Addiction released another classic album, Ritual de lo Habitual (with the hit Been Caught Stealing), founded the Lollapalooza festival, and openly celebrated a bacchanalian lifestyle that blurred all lines of gender and sexuality. Drawn from original interviews with the band, their friends, and their musical colleagues, Whores takes readers through Farrell''s early sonic experiments with Psi-Com and the formative days of Jane''s Addiction to their drug-addled break-up and controversial reunion with 2003''s Strays . Along the way it provides a candid, often disturbing glimpsTrade Review"At each other's throats before they'd written a single song, Jane's Addiction's history was a drug-sick, sex-fuelled soap opera fleshed out by artist, gangsters, hucksters and prostitutes. Mullen draws jaw-dropping tales from all in their messy orbit while keeping their inspirational music front and centre. Horrifying, but utterly compelling". Q Magazine - 4 star review "Whores is different. Yes, there's overdoses, orgies, Hell's Angels, transsexual sex, heroin and on-stage punchups here, but all the chaos and bacchanalia is balanced with a little reflection. NME"

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Book SynopsisLaura Nyro was a pioneering singer-songwriter of the 1960s and 1970s whose songs were covered by the Fifth Dimension, Blood, Sweat and Tears, and Three Dog Night. This biography uncovers details of her life including her romance with Jackson Browne and her relationship with painter Maria Desiderio.

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