Jazz trombonist Jack Teagarden once referred to Ruby Braff as the "Ivy League's Louis Armstrong." That legacy of great trumpet performance and recording is brought to readers in Thomas Hustad's Born to Play: The Ruby Braff Discography and Directory of Performances. Braff's uncompromising standards, musical taste, and creative imagination informed his consummate artistry in creating music beautifully played. He achieved swiftly what few musicians accomplish in a lifetime by developing a unique and immediately recognizable style. For a reminder of that we need but play any of the more than 150 released recordings on which he appears. These records span a total of 54 years, from 1949 to 2002, a feat almost unmatched in jazz recording. This was five years longer than even Louis Armstrong. Although prepared in discographical style, capturing information about both commercial recordings and previously undocumented performances, Born to Play serves as a biography of the artist, detailing the path he paved as a performer and featuring personal recollections of his musical career with commentary from other figures. Images over the course of his half century of playing fill out this comprehensive survey of Braff's performing and recording career. This bio-discography of the man who jazz drumming legend Buddy Rich declared "one of my favorite trumpeters" and singing giant Tony Bennett described as "my great friend who now holds the reigning position of the best cornet player in the world" is sure to be of interest to jazz fans and scholars alike.

The Annual Review of Jazz Studies is dedicated to scholarly research on jazz and its related musical forms. It recognizes the growing awareness of jazz as a cultural phenomenon. All volumes include numerous musical examples, a book review section, a portfolio of jazz photographs, and bibliographic surveys. This volume contains a particularly broad range of articles, both technical and non-technical, which should appeal to both the jazz fan and the scholar. ARJS 10 introduces a new feature: "Jazz Fiction: A Bibliography from Nonjazz Journals," which identifies many important jazz publications that might otherwise elude researchers. Researchers will find "Using e-commerce Music Sites for Discographical Research" a useful survey of Internet resources. The Louis Armstrong Centennial is heralded by a warm reminiscence by Dan Morgenstern and a gallery of rare photos from the files of the Institute of Jazz Studies. Musicological treatments include articles on McCoy Tyner, Bill Evans, Charlie Parker, and Jimmy Smith. Several articles examine Thelonious Monk's unique body of work from different perspectives. In addition, there are reviews of three recent works about this singular figure. Other book reviews cover such important contributions as Scott DeVeaux's The Birth of Bebop and Ingrid Monson's Saying Something: Jazz Improvisation and Interaction. " The 'Stardust' File" traces the evolution of one of the music's most enduring standards. Finally, "Busted" tells the full story of Gene Krupa's arrest in 1943.

The Annual Review of Jazz Studies (ARJS) is a journal providing a forum for the ever expanding range and depth of jazz scholarship, from technical analyses to oral history to cultural interpretation. Addressed to specialists and fans alike, all volumes include feature articles, book reviews, and unpublished photographs. This 14th issue contains four intriguing articles that to some degree contravene accepted precepts of jazz orthodoxy. John Howland traces the connection between Duke Ellington's extended works and the 'symphonic jazz' model of the 1920s as exemplified by Paul Whiteman and his chief arranger, Ferde GrofZ. Horace J. Maxile Jr. takes an unfashionably broad perspective of Charles Mingus's 'Ecclusiastics, ' applying recent developments in cultural theory as well as the formal tools of traditional music theory. Brian Priestley's exploration of the ties between Charlie Parker and popular music challenges the canonical depiction of Parker as a lone revolutionary genius, instead underscoring the saxophonist's ties to the popular music of his time. Finally, John Wriggle presents an extensive examination of the life and work of arranger Chappie Willet, an unsung hero of the Swing Era. The book reviews cover a cross-section of the burgeoning jazz literature, and Vincent Pelote has again compiled a list of books received at the Institute of Jazz Studies.

Features King Oliver, Gunther Schuller, Fats Waller, and black college bands.

Features Thelonious Monk, McCoy Tyner, Count Basie, and John Coltrane.

Features Lester Young, early black recording, Earl Hines, jazz and bop harmony.

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Set against the drama of the Great Depression, the conflict of American race relations, and the inquisitions of the House Un-American Activities Committee, Cafe Society tells the personal history of Barney Josephson, proprietor of the legendary interracial New York City night clubs Cafe Society Downtown and Cafe Society Uptown and their successor, The Cookery. Famously known as "the wrong place for the Right people," Cafe Society featured the cream of jazz and blues performers--among whom were Billie Holiday, boogie-woogie pianists, Big Joe Turner, Lester Young, Buck Clayton, Big Sid Catlett, and Mary Lou Williams--as well as comedy stars Imogene Coca, Zero Mostel, and Jack Gilford, and also gospel and folk singers. A trailblazer in many ways, Josephson welcomed black and white artists alike to perform for mixed audiences in a venue whose walls were festooned with artistic and satiric murals lampooning what was then called "high society." Featuring scores of photographs that illustrate the vibrant cast of characters in Josephson's life, this exceptional book speaks richly about Cafe Society's revolutionary innovations and creativity, inspired by the vision of one remarkable man.

An Unsung Cat explores the life and music of jazz saxophonist, Warne Marsh. Safford Chamberlain follows the artist from his start in youth bands like the Hollywood Canteen Kids and The Teen-Agers through his studies under Lennie Tristano, his brilliant playing of the 1950s, his disappearance from public view in the 1960s, his re-emergence in the 1970s, and his belated recognition in the 1980s as one of the finest tenor players of the post-World War II era. Through interviews with the Marsh family and friends, Chamberlain offers an inside view of Marsh's private life, including his struggles with drug abuse. Detailed analysis of outstanding performances complements the personal story, while an extensively researched discography and photographs reveal the public and private face of this unique performer. In addition to the book, Scarecrow is pleased to offer a companion compact disc, released by Storyville Records. The tracks on the CD provide a representative sampling of Marsh's best work, while providing a historical overview of his development, from the beginning track, 'Apple Honey, ' which is a private, low-fidelity tape from an NBC radio broadcast in 1945 of the Hoagy Carmichael Show, to the final track, 'Sweet and Lovely, ' captured months before his death in 1987.