Jazz Masters Of The 50's

Macmillan Jazz Masters Series

by Joe Goldberg

Joe Goldberg examines the lives and the music, the crucial events and dominant forces of a decade of great music and conflicting esthetics.

Genres: Music

246 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 1965

Reviews

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This isn't exactly the most up-to-date survey of jazz (published in 1965) and it's fairly brief, but it does a good job covering what I think was the most substantial and influential period in jazz.

There's a number of colorful anecdotes, and Goldberg doesn't glorify these artists, as if everything they released was pure genius throughout their lifetimes. Listening recommendations are selective and not overwhelming -- and although I'm already familiar with almost all of them, there's a few albums he spotlights that I'll give a re-listen.

I especially liked the sections on Charles Mingus, Thelonious Monk and Art Blakey. You're not gonna learn about some of the more obscure jazzmen of the era, but it's not a bad introduction.

This book is available to read for free on archive.org, for one hour at a time instead of two weeks, per their new lending policy -- because 🤪