Review: Terkel’s “Giants of Jazz”
Some quickly dashed-off thoughts about Studs Terkel’s Giants of Jazz, which I finished last night and just reviewed on Goodreads.
This is the first book of Terkel’s I’ve read, as well as his first book. It’s a model of clear and effective writing and a loving and reverent portrayal of 13 great jazz musicians. (I admit I skipped the chapter about Woody Herman, since I’ve never listened to much of his stuff.) The writing level would probably suit a middle-schooler just fine, but that’s no insult. In fact, the simplicity of the writing and the relative absence of complicated musicology … Continue Reading