Books ?

[Guest]

I'm just finishing the Crouch biography of the early life of Charlie Parker. I've done the usual jazz histories and biographies, any suggestions for my next read?

[BLUESNIK'S REVOX]

I'm just finishing the Crouch biography of the early life of Charlie Parker. I've done the usual jazz histories and biographies, any suggestions for my next read?

I've just raced through Robin Kelly's much praised "Theolonious Monk, life and times of an American original" and it is indeed very good, not just on Monk but on Elmo Hope, Ernie Henry etc. and the then NY jazz.scene/business/economy. Its now in paperback.

There are two recent biogs of Bud Powell that also look valuable, so those next. It would be a plus to find something that goes more honestly than the usual romantic cliches about pain and "the artist".

BN.

One other, which is fascinating, is "The jazz loft project 1957-65", photographs and text from Eugene Smith's loft on 6th Avenue where everyone hung out and where Monk etc sometimes worked. A rat infested dump with two pianos it may have been.

[Tom Audustus]

I just looked up The jazz loft project 1957-65 on Amazon and some really silly prices are quoted for both new and second hand. It does seem a really interesting book, but my life wouldn't be worth living if the good wife ever caught me even considering a book at those prices.

[Beef Oven!]

I just looked up The jazz loft project 1957-65 on Amazon and some really silly prices are quoted for both new and second hand. It does seem a really interesting book, but my life wouldn't be worth living if the good wife ever caught me even considering a book at those prices.

How will she know?

[Old Grumpy]

How will she know?

Perhaps she is on the FoR3 forum as well...

[Beef Oven!]

Perhaps she is on the FoR3 forum as well...

[BLUESNIK'S REVOX]

Bloody hell! My copy of The Jazz Loft was given to me a year or two back by a friend. She got it direct from the States. I'm sure (or really hope) it didn't cost her those kind of figures. Fascinating as a document, but as you say, there are limits, even for moody pictures of Theolonious et al rehearsing...

BN.

[Ian Thumwood]

Elijah Wald's "Escaping the delta" is one of the few music books I have read recently although I am an avid reader. (Currently Roman history is top of the pile along with William Boyd) This is a historical analysis of the blues and offers some intriguing insights in to both the origins and influences as well as smashing the lazy stereotypes. This can be bought for peanuts on Amazon.

Wondered if anyone else was disappointed with the new "Blue Note" book" which has great photography but zero critical analysis. Not a patch on the author's previous book about Verve which was more robust and far less hagiographical in it's tone.

Ralph Berton's "Remembering Bix" is fascinating on the 1920's scene but I think there have been a number of recent biographies about Ellington ("The Ellington Century" - too technical and fanciful) and Norman Granz (boring subject matter) of late which have really disappointed.