Jazz Greats

Dubbed by Bernstein as 'the only original American art form', jazz is the epitome of spontaneous musicianship. Its development is traced here through the lives of nine great jazz-men: Buddy Bolden, Louis Armstrong, Sidney Bechet, Duke Ellington, Charles Mingus, Lester Young, Charlie Parker, John Coltrane and Miles Davis. The fascination of their story lies not only in an account of musical innovation, but in the rich social history to which their work bears witness.