By Bob Jacobson
Yes, this type of book's been done before, by Ben Sidran, Arthur Taylor
and others. But Reginald Carver and Lenny Bernstein's work has some
differences: as the subtitle indicates, the focus here is on "prominenet
and rising stars of the '90's"; the forty profiles and interviews are
brief (4-6 pages); Bernstein has provided not only photos, but
commentary on his interaction with each artist. Another refreshing twist -
Carver is not a critic, historian or musician. He's a huge fan of the
music who happens to be an attorney in Atlanta.
Carver asks brief,
down-to-earth, intelligent questions with a minimal agenda. Clearly he's
convinced that the '80's and '90's saw a resurgence in the popularity of
jazz, asking most of the artists why they think that happened. The few
who don't agree provide really interesting responses. So do those who
agree that there was increased interest in jazz. By the way, many of
the latter credit a controversial artist who was not interviewed.
Jazz
Profiles is divided by instrument, including vocals. Die-hard jazz
fans will no doubt have the same reaction they did to Ken Burns' Jazz
series on PBS. Where's so-and-so. How could he have left out Joe or Jane
Jazz? Hey, Carver had to pick forty artists out of hundreds of worthy
candidates. By and large I think he made good choices. It might
interest you to know that not all the lions and lionesses are twenty or
thirty-somethings (among the exceptions are Steve Turre, Bill Frisell, John
Scofield and Dee Dee Bridgewater).
The artists' passion,
articulateness and respect for their mentors are impressive. There's remarkably
little cynicism in their advice to young jazz aspirants. Jazz Profiles
is an enjoyable, enlightening, uplifting book for any reader, but an
especially good choice for those young musicians.
