Yes, this is The Story of Jazz by the Men Who Made It, but add the ladies and the people who are making it right now and you have a fuller picture. This is recollection of the journey of jazz from New Orleans' Storyville to the San Francisco school. By interview and article or book, a dazzling roster of contributors talk out — about jazz, their fellow jazzmen and the progress. First there is New Orleans with a marvelous picture of the breakup of Storyville — but music carried on; then upriver via Fate Marable and others to Chicago — Mezz Mezzrow talks on "jam session", Hoagy Carmichael and others give Bix Beiderbecke's story unforgettably. On to Harlem — Duke Ellington and his band, the joybringing Fats Waller, as Count Basie and others remember him, Ethel Water's account of a set-to with Bessie Smith. Mary Lou Williams tells of her Kaycee, Kansas City, where Basie became Count on a radio spot, and heralded in the Era of Swing. The experimenters in bop speak up for themselves and recall their meetings at Minton's and playing at Fifty-Second Street. New ideas and sounds are put forth by Kenton, Herman, Gillespie; Dave Brubeck talks of jazz' relationship with Milhaud, Stravinsky and others. You'll want to meet these jazzmen in their music after reading this and to help you there is a list of long playing records selected by chapter groupings. There is a look at problems such as narcotics and race troubles on the road. A candid shot of the jazz world with the pull of its most magnetic names and personalities.
Pub Date: May 31, 1955
ISBN: 0486217264
Page Count: 468
Publisher: Rinehart
Review Posted Online: April 3, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1955
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s...
Music journalist and musician Wald (Talking 'Bout Your Mama: The Dozens, Snaps, and the Deep Roots of Rap, 2014, etc.) focuses on one evening in music history to explain the evolution of contemporary music, especially folk, blues, and rock.
The date of that evening is July 25, 1965, at the Newport Folk Festival, where there was an unbelievably unexpected occurrence: singer/songwriter Bob Dylan, already a living legend in his early 20s, overriding the acoustic music that made him famous in favor of electronically based music, causing reactions ranging from adoration to intense resentment among other musicians, DJs, and record buyers. Dylan has told his own stories (those stories vary because that’s Dylan’s character), and plenty of other music journalists have explored the Dylan phenomenon. What sets Wald's book apart is his laser focus on that one date. The detailed recounting of what did and did not occur on stage and in the audience that night contains contradictory evidence sorted skillfully by the author. He offers a wealth of context; in fact, his account of Dylan's stage appearance does not arrive until 250 pages in. The author cites dozens of sources, well-known and otherwise, but the key storylines, other than Dylan, involve acoustic folk music guru Pete Seeger and the rich history of the Newport festival, a history that had created expectations smashed by Dylan. Furthermore, the appearances on the pages by other musicians—e.g., Joan Baez, the Weaver, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Dave Van Ronk, and Gordon Lightfoot—give the book enough of an expansive feel. Wald's personal knowledge seems encyclopedic, and his endnotes show how he ranged far beyond personal knowledge to produce the book.
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s personal feelings about Dylan's music or persona.Pub Date: July 25, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-236668-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
