Herman Leonard’s Jazz Memories

There are those moments in life in which a consumer like myself just wishes he hadn’t blown his money on other goodies. One just stumbles across something which has been around for a while, hidden deep within the dark recesses of the Internet, in places one just didn’t think of looking before, only for it to jump out and slam into you like an 18-wheeler speeding down the highway. Boom.

Here’s how it happened: I was actually surfing around looking for something to slap up onto my living room wall and thought of Herman Leonard, the world-famous photographer who is primarilay known for his wonderful jazz portraits. I had been looking for his work before, mostly in poster shops and art galleries around the globe, but somehow (double-duh) I never thought of checking if the man had a website. Well, he does, and that’s where I found IT. All 495 dollars worth of IT. Continue Reading →

Take Five

It is not all too often that excellent biographies of jazz musicians are written. “Take Five: The Public and Private Lives of Paul Desmond”, published by Parkside Publications in February of 2005, is one of them.

Doug Ramsey, a knowledgeable jazz critic was a friend of Desmond’s for over 20 years up until Desmond’s passing in 1977. Of course the book is not only based on conversations with Desmond, but also countless other people from Desmond’s life, from grade school all the way up to Desmond’s somewhat lonely final years. Ramsey also found Desmond’s former wife, someone who had been a mystery to even most who knew Desmond. Continue Reading →

Jazz Life

Chances are you’ve heard of William Claxton before, even without being a die-hard jazz fan. He’s one of the most famous photographers and has captured on film the likes of Steve McQueen and Chet Baker and worked for for LIFE, Paris Match, and Vogue.

45 years ago, Claxton and German musicologist Joachim Berendt traveled the United States and upon completion of their journey collected their individual impressions in a now classic book, Jazz Life. Said book is a collector’s item today and until recently fetched outrageous prices for even torn and unruly looking copies. Continue Reading →