Paul de Barros: Chronicling Marian McPartland's Life in Jazz

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Today, the Spotlight shines On award-winning jazz critic and author Paul de Barros.

Throughout his storied career, Paul was editor and critic at the Seattle Times and has written for Downbeat and Earshot Jazz, amongst other outlets. He is also the author of Jackson Street After Dark: The Roots of Jazz in Seattle (Sasquatch Books, 1993), but today, he joins us to talk about the updated edition of his book Shall We Play That One Together? The Life and Art of Jazz Piano Legend Marian McPartland (University of South Carolina Press, 2024), which contains a new preface detailing the challenges of writing a biography about an often headstrong, living subject. The preface alone is worth the price of admission.

From 1978 to 2011 (33 years for those counting at home), Marian McPartland hosted the weekly national radio program Piano Jazz, wherein she helped popularize jazz and jazz musicians through interviews and in-studio performances. Pick a name, almost any name—they were on Piano Jazz.

Marian passed away in 2013 at the age of 95. She lived a fascinating life as a complex, able woman in the difficult world of professional music.

Paul's book is a special document of a special person and her unique times.

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