Which jazz book are you reading right now?

[sidewinder]

21 minutes ago, BillF said:

B G

And there’s me thinking it stood for Bernie Grundman !

[GA Russell]

I've just finished Ben Yagoda's The B Side.  Very informative for me.

For small examples, I did not know that the first artist to record an album of only one composer's work was Lee Wiley.  And the first album to use the term "Greatest Hits" in its title was Johnny Mathis' Johnny's Greatest Hits in 1958.

https://www.hamiltonbook.com/the-b-side-the-death-of-tin-pan-alley-and-the-rebirth-of-the-great-american-song-hardbound

[sidewinder]

Found 3 new copies from this series for a few pounds last week for some Summer reading.

Even Alan at Jazz House Records seems to get mentioned in the stories !

Edited May 2, 2023 by sidewinder

[Big Beat Steve]

A question to those inclined to read music-tinged fiction works like "High Fidelity":

I picked up a copy of "Telegraph Avenue" by Michael Chabon today at a "bring-and-take" book exchange place as it piqued my interest (I've read and rather enjoyed "High Fidelity"). Any of you familiar with this one? Any comments? Opinions? (Not that this would keep me from reading - I'm just curious ... )

Intriguing to see anyway that one of the main characters in that book goes under the name of "Nat Jaffe". I wonder how many ("casual" or "general") readers knew that there was indeed a jazz musician by that very name in the 40s?

Edited May 2, 2023 by Big Beat Steve

[jlhoots]

23 minutes ago, Big Beat Steve said:

A question to those inclined to read music-tinged fiction works like "High Fidelity":

I picked up a copy of "Telegraph Avenue" by Michael Chabon today at a "bring-and-take" book exchange place as it piqued my interest (I've read and rather enjoyed "High Fidelity"). Any of you familiar with this one? Any comments? Opinions? (Not that this would keep me from reading - I'm just curious ... )

Intriguing to see anyway that one of the main characters in that book goes under the name of "Nat Jaffe". I wonder how many ("casual" or "general") readers knew that there was indeed a jazz musician by that very name in the 40s?

Very good book.

[T.D.]

49 minutes ago, Big Beat Steve said:

A question to those inclined to read music-tinged fiction works like "High Fidelity":

I picked up a copy of "Telegraph Avenue" by Michael Chabon today at a "bring-and-take" book exchange place as it piqued my interest (I've read and rather enjoyed "High Fidelity"). Any of you familiar with this one? Any comments? Opinions? (Not that this would keep me from reading - I'm just curious ... )

Intriguing to see anyway that one of the main characters in that book goes under the name of "Nat Jaffe". I wonder how many ("casual" or "general") readers knew that there was indeed a jazz musician by that very name in the 40s?

Good book and worth reading.

Although after Wonder Boys and Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, the first two Chabon novels I read and thought outstanding, I never enjoyed any of his other works as much, and no longer consider his releases "must reads".

That said, I read Telegraph Avenue as soon as it was published.

[Dub Modal]

I'm just digging into @AllenLowe's work Letter to Esperanza: Or: The Goyim Will Not Replace Me: Looking for Tenure in All the Wrong Places; Writings on life, music, race, and culture

I'm digging it so far, but I share Allen's skepticism of Spalding's SAL project, which I developed after reading and listening to that album (and 12 Little Spells); although my skepticism is from a distance rather than Allen's direct experience. Looking forward to reading the rest...

[jlhoots]

3 hours ago, T.D. said:

Good book and worth reading.

Although after Wonder Boys and Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, the first two Chabon novels I read and thought outstanding, I never enjoyed any of his other works as much, and no longer consider his releases "must reads".

That said, I read Telegraph Avenue as soon as it was published.

Kavalier & Clay is an all time favorite.

[Gheorghe]

I have this one and from the same author one about Hank Mobley.

Maybe my expectations were too great, but it´s a bit "dusty" written, it´s only facts that I already know. 

So it´s not much more than a chronology thru his recordings. 

I have read better bio´s like the one about Paul Chambers for example, or about Lee Morgan. 

[sidewinder]

8 hours ago, Gheorghe said:

I have this one and from the same author one about Hank Mobley.

Maybe my expectations were too great, but it´s a bit "dusty" written, it´s only facts that I already know. 

So it´s not much more than a chronology thru his recordings. 

I have read better bio´s like the one about Paul Chambers for example, or about Lee Morgan. 

I was underwhelmed by this one too. Also by the Mobley. Didn’t tell me much that I didn’t already know.

[gmonahan]

I managed to get hold of this one for not too crazy a price, though reading it without all the pages falling apart is tough. Wish I could get hold of his second one, but it's even harder to find!

 

[ghost of miles]

Just finished:

Just starting:

… and still perusing with great pleasure:

[sidewinder]

Talking of Mr Ra, I’ve just ordered a copy of this one - based on the content of a blog, chronologically ordered and smartened up. A print on demand item.

Also noticed that ex-Ra trumpeter Ahmed Abdullah has an autobiography coming out soon. Looks interesting.

[gmonahan]

[BillF]

7 hours ago, gmonahan said:

👍

[Gheorghe]

On 5/4/2023 at 7:24 PM, gmonahan said:

I managed to get hold of this one for not too crazy a price, though reading it without all the pages falling apart is tough. Wish I could get hold of his second one, but it's even harder to find!

 

Too bad I didn´t buy this when it came out. I hate reading when all pages fall apart. 

I think about two books I would have liked to read. One of them is this one, and the other is the book Teddy Reig wrote about his time as a "Jazz Hustler". 

[sidewinder]

On 5/17/2023 at 12:52 PM, sidewinder said:

Talking of Mr Ra, I’ve just ordered a copy of this one - based on the content of a blog, chronologically ordered and smartened up. A print on demand item.

Also noticed that ex-Ra trumpeter Ahmed Abdullah has an autobiography coming out soon. Looks interesting.

The ‘Sun Ra Sundays’ book has arrived. Excellent - full of interesting commentary, covering both better known stuff and total obscurities. It has got me delving back into my Ra collection so has done its job. Recommended !

[gmonahan]

On 5/18/2023 at 11:18 PM, Gheorghe said:

Too bad I didn´t buy this when it came out. I hate reading when all pages fall apart. 

I think about two books I would have liked to read. One of them is this one, and the other is the book Teddy Reig wrote about his time as a "Jazz Hustler". 

You really aren't missing that much with the Babs Gonzales book. I'd call it a fun read, but how much of it can be believed is difficult to assess. Since it was self published back in the 60s, it is hard to find and expensive to buy if you do find it (though its original price was 95 cents!). I got it from an ebay seller who was, I'm pretty sure, a member of this Board, though I don't know whether s/he still is!

As for the Reig book, that one is worth finding. I got if from my local library. I see that it's for sale on Amazon and Ebay, but for too much money (in my view)!

[Dub Modal]

On 5/16/2023 at 2:04 PM, ghost of miles said:

Just finished:

Just starting:

… and still perusing with great pleasure:

How was the Chilton book on Hawkins? Saw it at the store recently and thought about going back for it but haven't yet. 

[BillF]

1 hour ago, Dub Modal said:

How was the Chilton book on Hawkins? Saw it at the store recently and thought about going back for it but haven't yet. 

It's a long time since i read it, but I recall thinking that as a British jazz trumpeter Chilton was too  remote from his subject to do Hawkins justice. I read a library copy which suits me, as I didn't think it deserved a place on my shelf.

[Dub Modal]

35 minutes ago, BillF said:

It's a long time since i read it, but I recall thinking that as a British jazz trumpeter Chilton was too  remote from his subject to do Hawkins justice. I read a library copy which suits me, as I didn't think it deserved a place on my shelf.

Ok, that's a good review. Thanks!

[Big Beat Steve]

16 hours ago, gmonahan said:

As for the Reig book, that one is worth finding. I got if from my local library. I see that it's for sale on Amazon and Ebay, but for too much money (in my view)!

It IS worth finding. I offered myself a copy for last Christmas (when a copy came up at the lower end of the "too much money" price span ). But like others mentioned before, it is relatively slim, so I guess everyone's eternal regret is that Teddy Reig died before his memory could have been "milked" in much greater detail.

[gmonahan]

9 hours ago, Big Beat Steve said:

It IS worth finding. I offered myself a copy for last Christmas (when a copy came up at the lower end of the "too much money" price span ). But like others mentioned before, it is relatively slim, so I guess everyone's eternal regret is that Teddy Reig died before his memory could have been "milked" in much greater detail.

Agreed, though what was there was a lot of fun!

[ghost of miles]

On 5/23/2023 at 2:41 PM, Dub Modal said:

How was the Chilton book on Hawkins? Saw it at the store recently and thought about going back for it but haven't yet. 

It was serviceable. Not sure what other books on Hawk are out there, though iirc he features in Scott DeVeaux’s The Birth of Bebop.  Loren Schoenberg’s booklet for the Mosaic Hawkins is an excellent read and is actually what sparked my interest in getting around to reading Chilton’s bio. 

[JSngry]

Books, eh...but Dan Morgenstern did a series of liner notes that ended up saying the world about who/what Coleman Hawkins really was.