Conversations in jazz The Ralph J. Gleason interviews

Ralph J. Gleason

Book - 2016

During his nearly forty years as a music journalist, Ralph J. Gleason recorded many in-depth interviews with some of the greatest jazz musicians of all time. These informal sessions, conducted mostly in Gleason's Berkeley, California, home, have never been transcribed and published in full until now. This remarkable volume, a must-read for any jazz fan, serious musician, or musicologist, reveals fascinating, little-known details about these gifted artists, their lives, their personas, and, of course, their music. Bill Evans discusses his battle with severe depression, while John Coltrane talks about McCoy Tyner's integral role in shaping the sound of the Coltrane quartet, praising the pianist enthusiastically. Included also are in...terviews with Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins, Quincy Jones, Jon Hendricks, and the immortal Duke Ellington, plus seven more of the most notable names in twentieth-century jazz.

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Subjects
Genres
Interviews
Published
New Haven : Yale University Press [2016]
Language
English
Main Author
Ralph J. Gleason (author)
Physical Description
xv, 276 pages ; 25 cm
ISBN
9780300214529
  • Foreword / by Ted Gioia
  • John Coltrane
  • Quincy Jones
  • Dizzy Gillespie
  • John Lewis
  • Milt Jackson
  • Percy Heath
  • Connie Kay
  • Sonny Rollins
  • "Philly" Joe Jones
  • Bill Evans
  • Horace Silver
  • Duke Ellington
  • Les McCann
  • Jon Hendricks.
Review by Booklist Review

Never published in book form before, this collection brings together interviews with jazz giants conducted by the late Gleason, once considered the dean of jazz journalists. As such, though brief, they are often valuable. Compiled by Gleason's son, the interviews reveal, for example, John Coltrane's big-band ambitions, Dizzy Gillespie's views on other trumpeters and on his presidential campaign (and The John Birks Society), Philly Joe Jones' particularly articulate take on the art of jazz drumming, and Sonny Rollins' thoughts on a sax man playing alongside brass instruments. Interestingly, there is not a single mention of drugs here, reflecting that, in the 1950s and 1960s, drug use among musicians was still the elephant on the bandstand. Source notes would have been useful, as many of the topical references have lost their context, but for fans of jazz from the mid-twentieth century, these interviews will prove fascinating.--Levine, Mark Copyright 2016 Booklist

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review

This title collects 14 unpublished interviews of jazz luminaries conducted between 1959 and 1961 by music journalist Gleason (1917-75), providing contextual material for his writings. Several cast new light on their subjects, such as revelatory discussions with pianist Les McCann, the often-neglected hard-bop drummer Philly Jo Jones, bassist Percy Heath of the Modern Jazz Quartet (MJQ), bebop pioneer and trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, and pianist Bill Evans. Exchanges with vibes player Milt -Jackson, saxophone giant Sonny Rollins, Duke Ellington, and members of the MJQ--pianist John Lewis and drummer Connie Kay-offer fascinating tidbits of new information. Dialogs with saxophonist John Coltrane, hard-bop pianist Horace Silver, singer Jon Hendricks and band leader, composer, and producer Quincy Jones provide valuable background into jazz culture. VERDICT Music fans and some general readers will welcome this treasure trove of previously unavailable interviews by a premier journalist who unfailingly asked perceptive and probing questions.-David P. Szatmary, emeritus, Univ. of Washington, Seattle © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.