From Birdland to Broadway: Scenes from a Jazz Life

New
Paperback
1994
$18.20

New York in the 1950s. On the stage at Birdland is the midget master of ceremonies, 3'9 Pee Wee Marquette, dressed in a zoot suit and loud tie, smoking a huge cigar and screeching mispronounced introductions into the microphone. Pee Wee is just one of the many characters that have made Bill Crow's forty years in jazz seem like an instant. In the same key as his acclaimed Jazz Anecdotes, this collection of revealing, hilarious, and sometimes moving stories runs the full gamut of New York's nightspots, introducing us along the way to the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Goodman, Stan Getz, Judy Holliday, Yul Brynner, and Simon and Garfunkel.

Synopsis

New York in the 1950s. On the stage at Birdland is the midget master of ceremonies, 3'9 Pee Wee Marquette, dressed in a zoot suit and loud tie, smoking a huge cigar and screeching mispronounced introductions into the microphone. Pee Wee is just one of the many characters that have made Bill Crow's forty years in jazz seem like an instant. In the same key as his acclaimed Jazz Anecdotes, this collection of revealing, hilarious, and sometimes moving stories runs the full gamut of New York's nightspots, introducing us along the way to the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Goodman, Stan Getz, Judy Holliday, Yul Brynner, and Simon and Garfunkel.

$18.20

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Quantity

10 in stock

More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 288
Edition: Reprint
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 29 Sep 1994
ISBN 10: 0195085507
ISBN 13: 9780195085501

Media Reviews

`Oxford University Press is to be congratulated on recognising the historical value of these memories of a man who has been there' Jazz Times, April 1993
`Crow's lively style perfectly illuminates his insider's view of the jazz scene of the '50s and '60s' Russ Neff, The Patriot-News
`From Birdland to Broadway is a book that is difficult to put down, in both senses of the term.' Macon Telegraph
`From Birdland to Broadway is autobiographical, and the writing flows smoothly.' Times Literary Supplement
`there are some interesting yarns and insights ... Bogside fare at best.' Brian Glasser, Q
`The book bristles with insider's tales about musicians he has met in 40 years of gigging around. Bill Crow's book keeps you smiling from the first page to the last ... eminently readable book ... Here is a fine bassist dipping into a deep well of reminiscence and showing that he can write as well as he can play.' Reginald Brace, Yorkshire Post
`the best and possibly the only book I have read about the life of a jobbing jazz musician ... one feels that if he had been a star he could never have written a book as fascinating as this one, which digs deep into the jazz life' Peter Hepple, Stage & Television Today
In From Birdland to Broadway, Crow shares insightful anecdotes from his long career and writes in a style that's as relaxed, friendly, and straight ahead as a Mulligan baritone sax solo....He never skimps on the humorous asides and telling details. What's more, he renders most of the technical stuff, such as flugelhornist Clark Terry's method of rotary breathing, understandable to even the most unrhythmic or tonedeaf reader. Bop lives in Crow's colorful account. -Cleveland Plain Dealer
Providing some fascinating social history, [Crow] has written a book of intimate and entertaining vignettes about some modern jazz masters. -Library Journal
'he has plenty to tell and his book sparkles with humour ... It is often deeply moving too.' Chris Searle, Morning Star
'Whether as bystander or musician, Crow was often in the right place at the right time and recalls many priceless incidents. His book is entertaining and readable - don't miss it.' Peter Vacher, Jazz Magazine

Author Bio

Bill Crow is an accomplished jazz musician and writer. He is the author of Jazz Anecdotes, which was voted Best Jazz Book of 1991 in a Jazz Times readers' poll.