Rhythm-a-ning: Jazz Tradition And Innovation

by Gary Giddins

In a companion to his collections Riding on a Blue Note and Faces in the Crowd , Gary Giddins has assembled a mosaic of pieces that provide an essential guide to the jazz world. Moving with ease from sweeping surveys of jazz history to precise, vivid assessments of individual performers including Thelonius Monk, the Marsalis brothers, Ornette Coleman, and David Murray, Giddins demonstrates once again why he is lauded as "the best jazz critic now at work" ( Newsweek ).

Genres: Music, Jazz, Nonfiction

320 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1985

Reviews

[Greg Akins · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reads like a collection of articles. Each article is good. There isn't a great continuity throughout the book.

[Djordje · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit too crammed and in some places dated. Still, the writing is typically enthusiastic and energizing, with a couple of really interesting ideas dispersed throughout the book. Giddins's knowledge of jazz is, of course, encyclopedic, frightening almost.
An almost perfect cover adds to this neat little volume on great music.