Congratulations on a much needed book on the Big Band era,
especially from the viewpoint of the 'side man'. Having been one
for about eight years before becoming a 'leader' I can really
appreciate your approach. A bandleader is no better than the men
behind him and I have had some great ones, including of course Drew
Page."" - Freddy Martin Having lived behind the scenes during the
Big Band era of the thirties and forties, Page invites us to share
that era with him. An instrumentalist or sideman, in many touring
bands, he recounts friendships with now-famous as well as unknown
musicians who made American dance music. Like them, Drew Page loved
his music and the road. He did not want to stay in one place and
one job for thirty years, repeating one year or experience thirty
times. He wanted to see things, to observe people and places. After
a lifetime of traveling and music, ""every town began to seem like
home."" Page's life was touched with humor, disappointment,
triumph, and some tragedy. "" Perhaps it's the variety of my
experiences, none seeming to relate to the others, that has given
my life its discontinuity."" Certainly, discontinuity characterized
his daily life, but continuity- his music- characterized its
essence. Brought together by their art, the traveling bandmembers
were apt to encounter each other any place, any time, and so they
avoided goodbyes. ""I'll be seeing you.' That's the way I left
Harry James and the boys in the band,"" recalls Page. In this
well-illustrated autobiography, he tells us what it was like to
travel in the days before paved roads, and how the Great
Depression, the death of vaudeville, and World War II affected the
music business. He gives us anecdotes about the famous musicians he
worked with- Harry James, Red Nichols, Freddy Martin among others-
and he talks about his fellow sidemen. His narrative unrolls like a
scroll inscribed with the names of those who made American dance
music and jazz famous. Every music lover, nostalgia seeker, and
student of American culture will want to own this book.
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