Sam Irwin’s well-written and entertaining book would be a worthy part of any early jazz lover’s library. A native of Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, he has
You may already know a lot about Eubie Blake, especially if you are an aficionado of ragtime music. Even you are not an aficionado you
Snoozer Quinn: Fingerstyle Jazz Guitar Pioneer By Katy Hobgood Ray and Dan Sumner Out of the Past Music LLC, 2021 Anyone who ever heard Snoozer
We all know about Louis Armstrong’s mobster managers and the vicious knifing of vocalist Joe E. Lewis in 1927 in Chicago. We remember that Al
It may happen that there are musicians where you live who shine as brilliantly on their instruments as any who have achieved great fame in
Leonard Garment was a fascinating person, son of Brooklyn Jewish immigrants who played jazz saxophone early in his career, went to law school and then
Scott Yanow is pleased that many people assume that he lives in New York despite being a lifelong resident of the West Coast. It means
The New Orleans Jazz Museum, from January 30, 2020, through September 1, 2021, hosted a joint exhibition featuring the paintings of Noel Rockmore and his
This book by jazz journalist Scott Yanow is his 12th book. Since he is a multi-published jazz journalist, but his background is less well-known, this
From the fields of Louisiana in the early 1900s to the world of the Beatles, Rolling Stones, and Beach Boys, one musician stands out as
Though far beyond the publisher’s target age group of 4–8, I am thoroughly enchanted by this book about Scott Joplin. The drawings are playful, the
Chris Reid, of London, England, has compiled a discography of the vocal recordings of beloved banjoist and singer Clancy Hayes. Hayes notably performed with Bob
The year 2021 marks 110 years since the birth of jazz trumpeter Buck Clayton, best known for his role in the classic early Count Basie
It is fair to say that Spike Jones was in his own category. By late 1942 with the release of “Der Fuehrer’s Face,” Spike Jones
Louise Tobin, who is 102, is the only person still alive who recorded jazz before 1940. While that remarkable fact is never stated in Kevin
Though largely forgotten, today, Orlando Marsh was a highly-regarded pioneer in the development and use of electrical recording. Among other things—including contributions to sound-on-film technology—he
The monumental role of Eddie Durham (1906-1987) in the development of Swing has been hidden in the corners of Jazz history and mostly overlooked by
Marty Grosz has long been a triple “threat” on stage. A superior acoustic guitarist, he takes inventive chordal solos in the tradition of Carl Kress
Those fortunate enough to have attended any of the Bohém Ragtime Jazz Festivals, presented annually in Hungary, or viewed its videos on YouTube, know that
Before reading her memoirs, when I thought of Dottie Dodgion, it was of a swing-oriented drummer who occasionally sang. While that description is not off
Most books about the history of Hollywood costume fall roughly into two categories; either a profile of an individual designer, or a general history of
Jazz and the Jazz Age: Searching for Meaning in a Word is Daniel Hardie’s sixth book about early jazz in 20 years. His previous titles,
In the 1930s, Louis Armstrong was sittin’ on top of the world. Fronting big bands such as Carroll Dickerson’s Windy City outfit and Luis Russell’s
Lew Shaw is a multi-faceted writer, having a dual career as both sports and jazz writer who lives in Scottsdale, AZ. Our paths crossed when
