The Show Won’t Go On by Jeff Abraham and Burt Kearns
When it is said that a performer “died on stage,” it is usually a metaphor for a poor show or performance. However, there’s apparently real
When it is said that a performer “died on stage,” it is usually a metaphor for a poor show or performance. However, there’s apparently real
On mentioning Johnny Guarnieri (1917-1985) to a doctoral student who was writing a dissertation on a jazz topic, I was only moderately surprised when the
There was a sign in our hospital medical library which read: Any book is new until you’ve read it. Certainly this can apply to Doug
Johnny Guarnieri (1917-85) was one of the great stride and swing pianists, a natural who when he was 15 had not only heard of James
The researchers Lynn Abbott and Doug Seroff have made a monumental contribution to scholarship on the history of American popular music. In three large, thoroughly
The title of this article is a bit of a misnomer. If you want to read about Louis Armstrong there are several long and worthwhile
As if the origins of Jazz weren’t already mired in countless controversial theories and myth (founded and unfounded, scholarly or otherwise), along comes Vic Hobson’s,
First released in hardcover back in 2012, we are using the occasion of a paperback edition to bring attention to John McCusker’s exciting biography of Edward “Kid”
Ed Berlin is the premiere modern researcher of Scott Joplin and the early days of ragtime. In 1980 he published Ragtime: A Musical and Cultural
Volume I of this two-part series followed the African roots of jazz across the Atlantic. (Read our review here.) It covered the knowable history with linguistic
Back in 2001, Gary Giddins completed his definitive biography on the first 37 years of Bing Crosby: A Pocketful Of Dreams – The Early Years,
1917 is remembered by many as the year jazz exploded on the scene and changed American music forever. In his new book about that
“the general public really only gets to see the ‘overnight’ part of a success story” This is a story that starts in a way very
For those who aren’t previously acquainted with this writer, Marc Myers is a trained historian who writes about jazz for the Wall Street Journal and
Buildings of New Orleans is part of The Society of Architectural Historians Buildings of the United States series. Begun in 1976 it is a slowly growing
There are two large beautiful coffee table books about New Orleans street culture in recent circulation. I reviewed Freedom’s Dance: Social Aid and Pleasure Clubs in
As a flexible swing-oriented pianist who became a famous lyricist and composer of insightful and often humorous songs, many of which he sang, Dave Frishberg
A banjo is an instrument that produces a sound formed by strings over skin. That is the defining feature of the array of African predecessors,
In 2016, David Gilbert released his book Product of Our Souls: Ragtime, Race, and the Manhattan Musical Marketplace. This June, Archeophone Records released a companion
Jeru’s Journey is the first definitive biography of Gerry Mulligan. Most jazz fans likely know him as an outstanding baritone saxophone player but he was
Despite being a “white, privileged kid growing up on the west side of L.A “ Max Brooks, through a series of chance encounters, nurtured a
If you’ve ever attended a John Pizzarelli concert, you know you get a lot of conversation and banter along with some swinging tunes and vocals.
If you feel drawn to New Orleans street culture you have probably already seen a few of Eric Waters photographs. Taken at the intersection of
Since 1995, the Fillius Jazz Archive at Hamilton College has gathered oral histories from over three hundred jazz men and women—as well as from their