The Essential Jazz Recordings

Following the same format as the acclaimed first volume, this selection of the best 250 modern jazz records and CDs places each in its musical context and reviews it in depth. Additionally, full details of personnel, recording dates, and locations are given. Indexes of album titles, track titles, and musicians are included.

The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings is firmly established as the world's leading guide to recorded jazz, a mine of fascinating information and a source of insightful - often wittily trenchant - criticism. This is something rather different: Brian Morton (who taught American history at UEA) has picked out the 1000 best recordings that all jazz fans should have and shows how they tell the history of the music and with it the history of the twentieth century. He has completely revised his and Richard Cook's entries and reassessed each artist's entry for this book. The result is an endlessly browsable companion that will prove required reading for aficionados and jazz novices alike. 'It's the kind of book that you'll yank off the shelf to look up a quick fact and still be reading two hours later' Fortune 'Part jazz history, part jazz Karma Sutra with Cook and Morton as the knowledgeable, urbane, wise and witty guides ... This is one of the great books of recorded jazz; the other guides don't come close' Irish Times

Covers more than eighteen thousand recordings and more than 1,700 musicians from across the jazz spectrum and includes a history of the different types of jazz, the evolution of jazz instruments, and essays on styles.

A guide to the all-time must-have jazz recordings by a maven of the genre. Possibly the twentieth century’s greatest musical innovation, jazz is now more popular than it has been for the past fifty years. But with the plethora of new recordings and the phenomenon in jazz of the same standards being recorded seemingly by almost every artist and band or trio, it’s very hard to know where to start or to improve a CD collection. The Essential Jazz Recordings provides a trustworthy, concise guide, heavily skewed to Porter’s personal favourites and showcasing Canadian talent where it’s merited. With background information on the music, the artist, and the recording, Porter explains the unique merits of each recording, from Louis Armstrong to Wynton Marsalis, Billie Holiday to Diana Krall. With this guide, dedicated jazz aficionados can ensure a complete collection and novices can expand their knowledge. Both will hugely enjoy the musical riches in The Essential Jazz Recordings.

The first and only history of jazz based on actual available recordings as well as a listeners' guide to building a jazz record collection.

A dictionary arrangement of over 1,600 entries on terms and performers.