Dizzy: The Life and Times of John Birks Gillespie [Hardcover] Review

This is by far the most revealing (because best researched), most fascinating, and best written biography about Dizzy Gillespie and his times yet available. Uniquely informative musical explanations of Dizzy's contribitions to be-bop and his use of Afro-Cuban elements in jazz, propelling that music from the Swing Era into jazz of today and tomorrow. Also presents the social and historical context of Dizzy's story, from cotton picking in Cheraw,SC to world renown and jazz immortality. Only thing not explained, because it's unexplainable: how and why he was gifted with and then powerfully developed such prodigious talent -- the Mozart of jazz!

Click Here to see more reviews about: Dizzy: The Life and Times of John Birks Gillespie [Hardcover]

Product Description:

Dizzy Gillespie secured his place in the jazz pantheon as one of the most expressive and virtuosic improvisers in the history of music. More important is that he was one of its great innovators. As a primary creator of the bebop and Afro-Cuban revolutions, he twice changed the way improvisation was fundamentally done. And by combining electrifying musicianship, infectious warmth, and rare comedic skills, he achieved a worldwide popularity few jazz musicians have ever enjoyed.


This is the enthralling saga of Dizzy Gillespie -- a chronicle of the rise of a jazz genius from the lowest rung of the social order to the highest pinnacle of respect and ability that brings Harlem's golden after-hours era, the raucous 52nd Street scene, of the forties, the barrios of Havana and Rio, the White House, and the world's great concert halls to glorious life.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Buy cheap Dizzy: The Life and Times of John Birks Gillespie [Hardcover] now

The House That Trane Built: The Story of Impulse Records [Hardcover] Review

Ashley Kahn is carving out a serious niche for himself as a fans' chronicler of classic jazz CDs. I've found his works on "Kind of Blue" and "Love Supreme" helpful, and "House that TraneBuilt" expands the interviews and research he did for "Love Supreme" into a history that jazz fans will find insightful.

It's hard to move beyond Trane on Impulse. I've got most of his stuff for the label, and I'm hard pressed to think of albums that I listen to regularly outside of Trane from Impulse. Blues and the Abstract Truth comes to mind. Some Pharoah Sanders. I've been meaning to get Gil Evans Out of the Cool for awhile. But I haven't been collecting jazz much lately, and this book will inspire me to pick up some more stuff.

The story of this book is as much the producers of Impulse as it is 'Trane's work. I did not realize how Impulse differed from Blue Note in that it was born with the cash to make an immediate impact. Not only was it born with cash, but it was also born with an artist: Ray Charles, who hit with "One Mint Julep" on his album "Genius + Soul = Jazz". Creed Taylor, he of the more popular oriented CTI Records, shows a true heart for the music in his initial choices for impulse artists. Bob Thiele, however, is the costar of this book. Kahn goes through great pains to show how Thiele's opening up to Coltrane and avant-garde music helped give him the latitude and the courage to work with some of the more "out" artists like Archie Shepp and Albert Ayler.

For those readers who are new to jazz, a good way to decide whether you want to purchase the book would to be focus on the album sketches that are interspersed throughout the book. In the first two-thirds of the book, most of these are titles that jazz fans will recall with fondness. But there are some examples of albums that fell by the wayside like a Curtis Fuller orchestral session and some of the rock experiments that formed a small but significant part of Impulse's later years.

I dig this book. As a former musician, I'm always looking for background that helps to ground musicians in the history and tradition of the music. This book will help jazz fans understand how a jazz label can exist within a major conglomerate and still produce risk-taking music. One can only hope that somewhere someone can figure out to find similarly breathtaking music that can function as both commerce and art.

5 stars

--SD

Click Here to see more reviews about: The House That Trane Built: The Story of Impulse Records [Hardcover]



Buy cheap The House That Trane Built: The Story of Impulse Records [Hardcover] now Get 15% OFF

Bill Evans - Everything Happens to Me: A Musical Biography (Book) [Paperback] Review

I also prefer How My Heart Sings over this one -I'm a huge Evans fan and as a jazz musician, I was thrilled about finding a "musical biography". Well, just repeating the same old stories as all the other books on the subject and then throwing in comments about the recordings -some of them suspiciously harsh, even- does not make it any more musical than any other biography. Not only that, but the times he comments on the actual music, he is almost invariably mistaken and wrong; "Freddie Freeloader" in NOT in a minor key and "These Things Called Changes" is based on "What Is This Thing Called Love", not "All The Things You Are" as Shadwick suggests. If he ever really studied the Manne-Hole live recordings instead of undeservedly dismissing them, he would know that Evans was already using the very same changes. As a collector of everything about Mr.Evans, I had to get this but I would not recommend it to anyone. Two stars for the subject alone.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Bill Evans - Everything Happens to Me: A Musical Biography (Book) [Paperback]

Product Description:
A Grammy winner and pioneer of multi-track jazz recording, Bill Evans was the pianist on Miles DavisÕ classic Kind of Blue album and a key figure in the development of modern jazz piano. This new Backbeat book details his wide-ranging and absorbing career, from freelance work in the 1950s, through his groundbreaking trios and solo releases, to his relationships with various record labels, to the intense final phase before his death in 1980. Printed on top-quality stock, the book includes fantastic full-page photos throughout, and a special color section.

Buy cheap Bill Evans - Everything Happens to Me: A Musical Biography (Book) [Paperback] now Get 32% OFF

To Be, or Not . . . to Bop [Paperback] Review

Jazz has been a lifelong love of mine, and Dizzy is at the top of the heap! Have always loved his music, and in this book,he gives us a generous lesson on jazz from beginning to end.He lets us in onhow he got the name "Dizzy", as well as other interesting peeks into his life- always with humour and an upbeat attitude.From Page 1 onward, you can visualize Mr. G.,----body keeping timeto the beat in his head, those rubber cheeks expanded, his admirers ... male and female, musicians and non-musicians... listening and swaying and tapping with admiration and awe.

This book is a lesson in music.I used to wonder why the drummers from America sounded so different from the drummers in other countries, say the Caribbean. Why is itthat acertain soundsets Americanmusicapart from all the music elsewhere in the world.Well, Dizzy explains all of this in his down-to-earth and charming manner.Reading this book is almost like getting a degree in musicology....except it's a lot more fun. He sugarcoats nothing, and puts everything out there for you to see.

Well written, informative, great fun, and a lot of history too.To repeat myself, I loved it!

Click Here to see more reviews about: To Be, or Not . . . to Bop [Paperback]



Buy cheap To Be, or Not . . . to Bop [Paperback] now Get 32% OFF

Louis Armstrong, In His Own Words: Selected Writings [Paperback] Review

Of the 21 books I have collected which are either by or about Louis Armstrong, this is definitely the one I would choose if I was allowed to keep only one. Basically a collection of autobiographical pieces, interviews, letters and so on, it reveals more of Armstrong as a man than all the other books put together. It also proves that, just as Armstrong had his own unique voice as a musician, so he has virtually invented his own language when doing his "typing" as he modestly called it. Grammar and punctation have been used this way nowhere else. Particularly moving are Armstrong's lengthy reminiscences of his early life in New Orleans, Chicago and elsewhere. Yes, his childhood was severely deprived but he recalls it not just without self-pity but with a kind of joy - joy in his family, in the friends who helped him along the way and, of course, his discovery of his own innate talent for both playing and singing. The book is filled with affectionate pen-portraits, as well as sharp social comment and, at times, with indignation at the injustices of life, whether suffered by himself or others. Equally moving are the pieces written when his life was nearing its end yet still exuding that same extraordinary open-ness and generosity of spirit which are humbling to experience. If anyone wants to know what Louis was like, and if they can take a little time to tune in to his vivid and utterly unself-conscious style, this is the book they should read.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Louis Armstrong, In His Own Words: Selected Writings [Paperback]



Buy cheap Louis Armstrong, In His Own Words: Selected Writings [Paperback] now

Tonight At Noon: A Love Story [Paperback] Review

I purchased this book because I have loved the music of Charles Mingus since I first purchased Ah Um. What I expected was a breezily written collection of Mingus stories, colorful anecdotes involving gigs and musicians and glimpses of the magic of creation. And certainly there is some of that in this book - Mingus' diet foibles and paranoid fears and erratic public behaviors elicit laughter and disbelief in the reader. Mingus opinions are never tepid - Miles' voice gets lost in his later fusion era, and Coltrane became a musical preacher that never changed his sermon. Those who played completely free (Archie Shepp and Pharoah Sanders, for instance) were participating in a shuck and trying to trick both a white audience and themselves while neglecting the fact that any music has to come from an historical common place.
For a man as massive in stature and appetites as Mingus, his fragility is touching.He is demanding, mercurial, and larger than life; all qualities that get clearly demonstrated by the author. There is also some material that covers Sue's upbringing in an undemonstrative household that initially seems distracting but eventually becomes appropriate to the narrative. The tense switches from past to present on occasions, as though journal entries have been inserted.
However, the book is really, as advertised, a love story. Detailed at length is the Mingus household's battle with Lou Gehrig's disease, from the initial diagnosis to the increasingly desperate attempts to obtain a cure, to the heart attack that eventually takes Mingus' life. Underlying all the voodoo and the iguana blood cocktails and the wildly exploratory midnight rides through the Mexican countryside is a testament to the power of human love and kindness.

The reason I hoped this book would be a lightly written witness to Mingus is because I purchased it as something to read during the nights I am spending at the bedside of my dying father. Instead there is much that is grimly familiar here - after weeks of caregiving you find yourself not knowing what day it might be, idly speculating of ways to end a loved one's life that might look perfectly natural, wrestling with your own spiritual loneliness. Nevertheless, this is a great book for music fans in general, and Mingus fans in particular.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Tonight At Noon: A Love Story [Paperback]



Buy cheap Tonight At Noon: A Love Story [Paperback] now Get 15% OFF

Bill Evans: How My Heart Sings [Paperback] Review

As a jazz pianist who has studied Evans' music for nearly 40 years, it always struck me how Bill Evans could start out his career with such musical curiosity, adventure and brilliance, only to settle into a longperiod of simply going through the motions. And while Bill Evans goingthrough the motions is still a beautiful thing, now I know why. We all knewBill Evans was a junkie, but somehow dealing with it on an everyday basisin this book puts it all into perspective. Bill Evans started out straight,so straight that he didn't turn to drugs until he was already in thespotlight in Miles Davis' group (in contrast to someone like Stan Getz whowas into it from his earliest gigs). But unlike Davis and Getz, who hadlonger periods of sobriety to clean up their act and renew their approachto their craft, Bill Evans did not.
The result is a flash of light thatglows into the mid sixties, but then dies out in a sea of repetition,hemming in his style into a smaller and smaller box as he went along. Wesee the mind of an intelligent, educated man, drawing on his classicalinfluences to create a unique voice; we see perhaps his initial exposure todrugs producing a shimmering impressionistic sound that is foreverrecognizable, and then we see it all wear off into a self imposed lifesentence, cutting off his imagination, if not all of his feelings. BillEvans did not take care of himself, and for that we are all worse off. Thathe could die partially of malnutrition just underscores the very sadpoint.
One does see a curiously ascetic individual-drug abusenotwithstanding-who simply doesn't seem to care about much other than hisart (as he states in his video, The Universal Mind of Bill Evans). Someonealmost religiously wedded to this calling, who cares only about hisrelationship with his craft, and let the chips fall where they may. Thisdedication in jazz musicians, often with scant financial reward, is alwaysfascinating, and gives us all an understanding of what their commitmentmeans.
Pettinger does us all a great favor by chronicling his life, andhis knowledge of classical music is of great assistance as he traces Evans'influences among European composers. But his lack of knowledge of jazzalmost cancels that out, as he seems unable to interpret Evans' jazztechnique at all. The fact that he never states that Evans key innovationwas to introduce the interval of the second (major and minor) into the jazzharmonic repertory-devising a new system of voicing with a unique sound-isa major omission. He refers to this throughout as the "scrunch"sound. The "scrunch" is a minor second, folks.
To really tellthe story of Bill Evans, you need to understand the influence of drugs onthe artist's work; but here Pettinger has no clue. For instance, one can"hear" the heroin affecting his sound in the classic Sundayafternoon recordings: soft touch, liquid sound, fluid legato approach, evenup tempo numbers have a delicate swing. Toward the end of his life, we"hear" cocaine-hard driving, more rhythmic, more aggressive. Forsomeone like Evans, who it seems hardly ate at all, drugs had an importantphysical impact on his life, and certainly affected the direction of hisart. But this is a blind spot for the classically oriented Pettinger.
Healso seems unable to distinguish between truly important and pedestrianperformances; he's a bit too star struck for my taste. He also totallymisreads the Gary Peacock trio (Trio `64) which, while very different fromhis others, is his best after the classic trio with Scott LaFaro. I canattest to this from two tables away from the piano at the Village Vanguardback in 1964. Peacock, with his prodigious imagination, technique andsound, was giving Evans exactly the creative impetus he needed as Evansreeled from depression after Scott LaFaro's tragic death. Peacock, had henot gone for a "diet and meditation trip" could have pushed thepianist into a new creative mode. But that was not to be, and Evans settledinto comfortable repertory. Pettinger doesn't grasp thesignificance.
Other works that don't get their due: The Bill Evans andSymphony Orchestra album, easily the best I've ever heard of the genre. Butit's great not because Ogerman and Evans "do" the classics;rather it's great because they capture the feeling of these classics,something that serious musicians seldom do. And Evans is improvising on thechanges, the way the great masters once did, in a truly inspired fashion.In this book, it's just another album. Similarly, the Symbiosis album isglossed over. Another Ogerman work, this time covering challengingmodernistic terrain while still maintaining a high level of feeling,balancing Appolonian and Dionysian extremes brilliantly. The extended reedstatement in the second movement, with complex, long lines that flirt inand out of tonality; the following improvisation using the most complexseries of chords I've ever heard in a jazz piece, many with roots a minorsecond above or below the fundamental chord. It's breakthrough stuff, butonly gets a quick take from Pettinger.
We could have used some straighttalk about the trios. Evans almost lost it after LaFaro's death, and hisnext trio was an effort at survival. But you have to admit that ChuckIsraels left a lot to be desired in the early going, all the morenoticeable in contrast to LaFaro. On How My Heart Sings, he just doesn'tmake the changes. He grew considerably over the years, and got to be asolid compliment to Evans. But we do see after LaFaro and Peacock aconscious shift toward a more dependable type of music, and a moredependable bass player. Eddie Gomez, viewed against LaFaro or Peacock issimply dependable. Talented? Yes. But dependable¾not inspired.
So Evans,hobbled by drugs, chooses to work his craft, dependably, for the rest ofhis career. And indeed, he produces many great moments. But we can't helpbut wonder whether he spent the rest of his life mourning that first,wonderful trio. And who could blame him? But we wish he could have gottenover it, that he could have had the courage to take some risks. Perhaps hewould have found something that place again. We'll never know. But I'd liketo have known a bit more about what Evans' choice of partners, andrepertory meant.
I'm also not a great fan of books that attempt tocharacterize endless discography in layman's terms. After a while, we needto know more than the fact that a solo was "shimmering" or"beautiful". Trudging through the discography, however, we seeclumps of albums that Evans did just to support his habit, and the unevenresults become more clear, as does the sometimes endless repetition ofmaterial. He did find new ways to do all those tunes; but he did stretchhis repertory quite thin; and now we understand why.
For all hisproblems with drugs, we see relatively little of the first hand impact ofhis dependence. This is very unlike "Stan Getz: A Life in Jazz"which chronicles Getz' frequent personal and emotional problems. Theseproblems do illuminate the artist's approach to his craft, andunfortunately they are mostly missing here.
In the end, Bill Evans is theguiding light of modern jazz piano, whose legacy extends to practicallyeveryone who has played from 1960 on. But his output and life were quiteuneven; a more realistic appraisal would have been helpful withoutdetracting a bit from his legendary contributions.
But with itsshortcomings, the book is still an essential read for anyone interested inEvans, jazz piano, or modern jazz history. There ain't nothin' else on thesubject as of yet, but hopefully with this, there will eventually bemore.
Finally, books like this bring us to the influence of drugs onjazz-the music and musicians. We'd like to say now that jazz is free of thetyranny of drugs, but where does that leave us? We have a major star thatis a Harvard MBA, we have commercial success at Lincoln Center, but whereis the inspiration? Where is the innovation? Certainly an acceptableinterval has passed since Miles, Bill Evans and John Coltrane were on thescene, but the torch has not been passed. Jazz, if free from the tyranny ofdrugs, needs to move to the next level-innovation and inspiration withoutdrugs. Having mastered career and made inroads in the market, maybe now wecan step back and focus on the music again,. the way masters like BillEvans, Miles and Coltrane did. When we get there, we'll look back at thesefallen idols and thank them for their inspiration, and for the bitterlessons that they taught us.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Bill Evans: How My Heart Sings [Paperback]



Buy cheap Bill Evans: How My Heart Sings [Paperback] now Get 32% OFF

The Great Jazz Pianists: Speaking Of Their Lives And Music (Da Capo Paperback) [Paperback] Review

For jazz pianists this is a valuable resource. Lyons, a classically-trained pianist, asks somewhat consistent questions to each of the pianists presented but is also a skilled interviewer and knows how to go off on a tangent when appropriate. He also manages, for the most part, to avoid the (to me anyways) boring questions about the artists' current touring schedules, newest records, etc.
I wouldn't classify all of the pianists in this book as being representative of the "greats"; Billy Taylor and Marion McPartland, while certainly brilliant and important in their own ways, would probably not make the short list of great pianists for most pianists and jazz fans. Also, since this book's publication, many great pianists have emerged on the jazz landscape that are arguably equally deserving of the title "great". However, most of the list is truly stellar, including Herbie, Chick, Keith, McCoy, Bill, Oscar, Horace Silver, Teddy Wilson, and many other extremely influential pianists.
The interviews with Mary Lou Williams and Cecil Taylor are particularly entertaining to read because they are extremely opinionated. In fact, many of the great pianists, you will notice, are very opinionated, and perhaps this is part of what makes them great.

Click Here to see more reviews about: The Great Jazz Pianists: Speaking Of Their Lives And Music (Da Capo Paperback) [Paperback]

Product Description:
This 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.

Buy cheap The Great Jazz Pianists: Speaking Of Their Lives And Music (Da Capo Paperback) [Paperback] now

88: The Giants of Jazz Piano [Hardcover] Review

A bonus 11-track cd comes with this portrait of eighty-eight pioneers and players of jazz piano, from Jelly Roll Morton to Benny Green. Here are insights on lives, techniques, and changing perspectives on jazz piano styles and artistry, enhanced by the author's personal experience as a jazz pianist and his original interviews with many of the players. Avid fans of the genre will find The Giants Of Jazz Piano positively absorbing.

Click Here to see more reviews about: 88: The Giants of Jazz Piano [Hardcover]

Product Description:
This handsome, insightful hardcover volume delves deep into the music of 88 visionaries who have made an indelible mark on the world of jazz through their mastery of the pianoÃ-s 88 keys. This engaging collection describes the intriguing personality and performance characteristics of each pianist. Seven major figures are covered in depth: Jelly Roll Morton, Earl Hines, Art Tatum, Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, Keith Jarrett and Cecil Taylor. Other featured artists include: James P. Johnson, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Nat "King" Cole, Oscar Peterson, Les McCann, Herbie Hancock, Dave Brubeck, Billy Taylor, McCoy Tyner, Chick Corea and 70 others, in styles ranging from stride to swing, bebop to post-bop, funk to avant garde, and more. Includes a bonus CD with 11 great jazz tracks, 100 photos, and a foreword by Keith Jarrett.
"Like great solos, these essays have grace, wit, and a sense of personal involvement ... Immensely valuable stuff!"
- Dick Hyman

Buy cheap 88: The Giants of Jazz Piano [Hardcover] now