Scarecrow Press
Pages: 496
•
Trim: 5½ x 8
978-0-8108-4247-2 • Paperback • December 2001 • $89.00 • (£68.00)
978-1-4616-7328-6 • eBook • December 2001 • $84.50 • (£65.00)
Joshua Berrett and Louis G. Bourgois, III have combined their specialized backgrounds in musicological studies to create an unprecedented collaboration. Berrett, previously published in the areas of both classical music and jazz, is a musicologist interested in style analysis and cultural history. Bourgois, a professional trombonist, documented Johnson's early style and compiled a discography in his doctoral dissertation.
Chapter 1 Figures
Chapter 2 Foreword
Chapter 3 Preface
Chapter 4 Chapter 1: Early Years in Indianapolis, 1924-42
Chapter 5 Chapter 2: From Central Avenue to 52nd Street
Chapter 6 Chapter 3: In the Inner Circle of Boppers
Chapter 7 Chapter 4: Once that record started happening...
Chapter 8 Chapter 5: Vindicated and in the Vanguard
Chapter 9 Chapter 6: A Shift in Focus
Chapter 10 Chapter 7: The Hollywood Years, 1970-1987
Chapter 11 Chapter 8: Why Indianapolis—Why Not Indianapolis?
Chapter 12 Appendix: On Peeking into J.J.'s Studio
Chapter 13 Epilogue
Chapter 14 Bibliography
Chapter 15 Filmography
Chapter 16 Catalog of Compositions
Chapter 17 Discography
Chapter 18 Index
Chapter 19 Index of Discography Titles
Chapter 20 About the Authors
...a welcome addition to jazz biography...offers important personal and musical insights into the life and career of a seminal innovator whose contributions to improvisation were critical to the development of the jazz trombone.
— All Music Guide To Jazz
...the first substantial biography and extended study of his musical development....This book will appeal to a variety of readers. Well documented and coherently presented, it is a work the historian can trust, with a wealth of material that establishes a cultural context for the events it describes...there are enough fascinating anecdotes and colorful interviews to make a good read for both the Johnson fan and the general jazz enthusiast. The many analyses provide a useful starting point for understanding Johnson's complex musical contribution...it will be the logical starting point for future studies of this creative American musician.
— Notes: Quarterly Journal of the Music Library Association
This book will certainly stand as the definitive Johnson study for a long time....recommended for jazz collections of all types.
— Choice Reviews
..this is more than a standard biography. The authors, both musicologists, have produced a very informative and often inspirational book...as thorough a coverage of a subject as one could ask.
— Rapport
No detail seems to have been left out...It is almost like looking inside the man himself.
— The IAJRC Journal
...fills a major gap in jazz studies...offers a provocative and comprehensive account of the makings of a jazz legend.
— Record-Review
This book offers an illustration of Johnson's technical and stylistic development, as well as a thorough catalogue of his compositions, film scores, and scores.
— Reference and Research Book News
...well written and fascinating study of jazz legend J.J. Johnson. Recommended.
— Big Bands International