The Guide to Classic Recorded Jazz

Here is a brilliant and deeply informed overview of jazz history, one which gives a rich sense of who the major figures were and how they fit in with one another while showing the reader what to listen for and which recordings are indispensable for a full experience of the music. No other book fuses a singular examination of the key recordings with a presentation of the entire sweep of the music's classic period to provide the listener with such a useful and spirited companion.

About the Author:
Tom Piazza writes about jazz and other American music for the New York Times, Atlantic Monthly, Playboy, New Republic, and Village Voice. He is a former professional jazz pianist and a graduate of Williams College and the Iowa Writers' Workshop; his short fiction has appeared in a number of literary magazines.