2nd Edition, Edited by Michael Erlewine with Vladimir Bogdanov, Chris Woodstra, and Scott Yanow
Miller Freeman Books, 1996
ISBN 0-87930-407-3
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All-Music Guide to Jazz
Reviewed by Peter Luce
Other Reference Material
One of the reasons I like the All-Music Guide is that the Editors have gone an additional step and included considerable supplemental reference material which increases the book’s value. This material includes the following sections
| Jazz Styles | Brief and clear definitions of major jazz styles with mention of the style’s major innovators. Know what Cool Jazz is? How about Mainstream or Modern Mainstream? |
| Terms | This is an excellent reference of jazz terms which non-musician jazz fans often see, but sometimes do not really know the meaning of. Take the term "chorus," for example or "jam session," "counterpoint," or "modal." Want to know what "original" means or "riff?" These terms are here along with many more. |
| Music Maps | Music Maps appear throughout the book. There are Music Maps for each instrument and in the Brief History of Jazz (see next section) there is a map showing Jazz Innovators and maps showing "significant players" within each of the major jazz styles. The instrument maps graphically display lists of musicians within specific jazz styles. The Tenor Saxophone Music Map, for example, lists musicians within categories such as the Swing Era, 1940’s Los Angeles Bop, Cool School, the 1950s and Soul Jazz to Crossover. It is worth noting that the Editors did not select a common set of categories for the Maps that would have forced some artificial distinctions. Rather they selected categories relevant to the specific instrument. These maps, by the way make it very easy for jazz newbies to start learning about jazz history. |
| Brief History of Jazz | Speaking of learning about jazz history, wow, this is a great summary! A Jazz Innovators Music Map follows an appropriately terse but comprehensive overview of jazz history from its early roots at the end of the 19th century right up through the 90s. This section also contains a time line of important events within each jazz style and Music Maps that list the most significant players for each style. |
| 150 Recommended Books | Each annotated entry contains the book title, author, publisher, date of publication, number of pages and number of photos (if any) and a short overview. |
| Venues | I have never seen this information in a record guide before. Short histories are provided on the origin, significance and current status of jazz locations such as 52nd Street and LA’s Central Avenue and jazz clubs such as Birdland, Cafe Bohemia, the Five Spot and the Plugged Nickel. For some reason the Half Note is missing. Maybe it will appear in the 3rd Edition. |
| 50 Recommended Jazz Videos | Want to add to or start your own personal jazz film collection? Don’t miss Jazz on a Summer’s Day (1958 Newport Jazz Festival), Straight No Chaser (a remarkable 2 hr documentary on Thelonious Monk) or The Sound of Jazz ("...the greatest of all jazz films."). |
| Jazz Recordings: A Beginners Guide | 300+ Recommended CDs for listeners beginning to collect jazz. (Not to mention us old guys who still don’t have all these wonderful recordings!) |
| Producers | This chapter is another unique feature that makes the AMG such a first class reference. There have been some exceptional producers in jazz who have put their personal stamp on a body of recordings and have had almost as much to do with the sound of a specific record label as have the musicians. I am thinking of such examples as Richard Bock (Pacific Jazz), Manfred Eicher (ECM), Nesuhi Ertegun (Atlantic), Norman Granz (Clef, Norgran, Verve, Pablo) and Alfred Lion (Blue Note). There are many others. |
| Labels | Look here for information on well known and not so well known jazz labels...Aladdin, Bethlehem, Blue Note, Candid, Dial, EmArcy, Savoy and 59 others! |
| Other | You will also find a reference on jazz magazines, a list of mail order sources and a complete artists' index. |
AMG: The Web Site
The source of the biographical and discographical information in the All-Music Guide to Jazz is a database that can be accessed directly from their Web site. The Web site contains additional data whose inclusion could not be accommodated in the printed edition. Go to the Web site for personnel listings, tune listings, reviews completed after the Guide went to press and, for some musicians, a listing of recordings on which they were sidemen under the leadership of another musician.
In closing ... 
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