This elegant volume is a portrait gallery of 50 eminent legends spanning jazz history, from Jelly Roll Morton, perhaps the inventor of the art form, to contemporary axman Joe Lovano, who contributes a foreword. Arguably America’s most profound cultural contribution, jazz has evolved for over a hundred years since its birth in the ethnic gumbo of New Orleans at the dawn of the 20th century. Like a mighty river, it has wended its way over time through geography, style, and mood, forming numerous tributaries along the way. In this reissue, each figure is featured in handsome vintage photographs and a pithy, revealing biography.
