Book Reviews

Book Reviews by Thomas Cunniffe

Conversations with Charlie Haden (by Josef Woodard and Charlie Haden)

Charlie Haden was known for passionate music that encompassed several genres, and his fiery left-wing politics. Over the last two decades of his life, Haden was interviewed several times by writer Josef Woodard. Seventeen of these encounters have been collected in a new book, Conversations with Charlie Haden. Reviewer Thomas Cunniffe writes that the book is quite enlightening, but gets bogged down with numerous retellings of Haden’s life story.

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Book Reviews by Thomas Cunniffe

Good Things Come Slowly: A Life In and Out of Jazz (by Fred Hersch)

Like most autobiographies, “Good Things Happen Slowly” is a story of discovery and identity. However, as the subject is Fred Hersch, this book tells of the more-or-less simultaneous emergence of two distinct (and for some, incongruous) character traits, that of a gay man and of a jazz pianist. Thomas Cunniffe reviews this touching memoir, notable for its candor and understated tone.

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Book Reviews by Thomas Cunniffe

Freedom of Expression: Interviews with Women in Jazz (by Chris Becker)

When the sub-category of Women in Jazz first appeared in the 1970s, female jazz musicians were still a rarity. Today, women musicians represent a substantial part of the jazz scene, and the sub-category has started to lose its relevance. In this book review, Thomas Cunniffe notes that Freedom of Expression, a new collection of interviews with female jazz musicians, seems to be more about the struggles of self-marketing music and less about the unique qualities of jazz women.

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The Jazz Life of Dr. Billy Taylor (by Billy Taylor & Teresa L. Reed)

Until shortly before his death in December 2010, Dr. Billy Taylor maintained a busy schedule of concerts, lectures and other live appearances. Unfortunately, that meant that he had little time to write his memoirs. He did work with a ghostwriter, Teresa Reed, but even Reed admits that she did not have adequate time with Taylor. The resulting book, The Jazz Life of Dr. Billy Taylor has just been published, and Thomas Cunniffe offers his reactions to the volume.

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Book Reviews by Thomas Cunniffe

Jelly Roll, Bix and Hoagy (by Rick Kennedy)

In the early 1920s, future jazz giants like Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton and Bix Beiderbecke endured long train rides to record for a tiny company in rural Indiana. Rick Kennedy’s newly expanded and revised book Jelly Roll, Bix and Hoagy offers the history of Gennett Records with discussions of their jazz, country and blues recordings. Thomas Cunniffe provides his impressions in this month’s book review.

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Book Reviews by Thomas Cunniffe

How to Listen to Jazz (by Ted Gioia)

The title of Ted Gioia’s new book might strike many long-time jazz fans as too elementary for their needs. However, JHO book reviewer Thomas Cunniffe asserts that How to Listen to Jazz should be required reading for all jazz fans, because Gioia proves that the best way to revitalize our own passions for jazz is to share the music with others. Gioia recalls his early experiences with the music, and then applies his thirty years of experience as a critic and historian to clarify and amplify these events.

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Love Songs: The Hidden History (by Ted Gioia)

Ted Gioia is one of today’s finest music historians. Since he usually focuses on American music, it’s a little surprising that his latest book Love Songs is not limited to modern love songs, but is a comprehensive history of the subgenre going back to the 23rd century BC. Thomas Cunniffe’s review states the book contains many fascinating and controversial theories, but that the section on American music should have been expanded.

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Book Reviews by Thomas Cunniffe

Possibilities (by Herbie Hancock & Lisa Dickey)

Ask the average jazz musician who he would like to meet, and one likely answer would be Herbie Hancock. From all accounts, Hancock is a friendly warm person with few pretensions. We may not all get our chance to hang out with Herbie, but his autobiography Possibilities might be the next best thing. In a conversational tone, Hancock recalls his work with Miles Davis, his own groups, and offers a few surprising stories. Thomas Cunniffe offers his impressions of the autobiography in this month’s Book Review.

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Jazz in China (by Eugene Marlow)

According to its author, Eugene Marlowe, the first reaction he gets to his pioneering study, Jazz in China, is the question, Is there jazz in China? It has not been an easy road for jazz to flourish in this heavily Communist country, but it has two major periods, one before Mao’s reign, and one after. Thomas Cunniffe applauds Marlow’s original research and intrepid detective work in documenting this subject, but notes that a further trip to China was necessary to bring the book up-to-date.

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Book Reviews by Thomas Cunniffe

Celebrating Ralph J. Gleason

Ralph J. Gleason was a pioneer in music criticism. He published his first reviews in 1934, when he was a student at Columbia University, and by 1950, he was the first full-time jazz critic working for a major newspaper. Gleason’s interests extended beyond jazz into comedy, folk, rock and politics. Thomas Cunniffe reviews two new collections of Gleason’s work which cover the late journalist’s astounding range and perception.

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