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DownBeat: The Great Jazz Interviews - A 75th Anniversary Anthology

By Florence Wetzel
October 25, 2010
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DownBeat: The Great Jazz Interviews: A 75th Anniversary Anthology

Frank Alkyer and Ed Enright, Editors

Softcover; 352 pages

ISBN: 9781423463849

Hal Leonard

2009

In a 1988 interview, trombonist

J.J. Johnson

trombone
1924 - 2001

" data-original-title="" title="">J.J. Johnson declared: "Jazz is restless. It won't stay put and it never will." There's no better proof than this remarkable anthology from DownBeat magazine, which contains 124 interviews or artist-written articles covering seven decades of jazz history.

The interviews are full of delicious insights into jazz and jazz musicians. Open any page, and you're bound to find something inspiring and intelligent. In a 1949 interview, the alto sax master

Charlie Parker

saxophone, alto
1920 - 1955

" data-original-title="" title="">Charlie Parker stated: "They teach you there's a boundary line to music, but, man, there's no boundary line to art." In 1966, cornetist

Rex Stewart

trumpet
1907 - 1967

" data-original-title="" title="">Rex Stewart asserted that pianist

Art Tatum

piano
1909 - 1956

" data-original-title="" title="">Art Tatum's ear was so precise, he "could tell the key of any sound, including a flushing toilet." Talking about piano great

Fats Waller

piano
1904 - 1943

" data-original-title="" title="">Fats Waller, saxophonist

Ben Webster

saxophone, tenor
1909 - 1973

" data-original-title="" title="">Ben Webster observed, "All that fun but never a wrong note." In 1958, saxophonist

John Coltrane

saxophone
1926 - 1967

" data-original-title="" title="">John Coltrane said: "When I first heard Bird, I wanted to be identified with him...to be consumed by him. But underneath I really wanted to be myself." And sometimes the book is just plain fun, as when it quotes the always charming

Louis Armstrong

trumpet and vocals
1901 - 1971

" data-original-title="" title="">Louis Armstrong: "I am so happy, at the age of 50, still blowing my little Satchmo trumpet, still enjoying the fine things in life, still love everybody, and everybody still loves me."

As the book unfolds, it's fascinating to witness how jazz styles develop, cause controversy, gain acceptance, and then become a barrier for the next generation to break through. No matter the decade, there's a constant redefinition of what jazz is, not just by critics but by the musicians themselves, whether it's clarinetist

Benny Goodman

clarinet
1909 - 1986

" data-original-title="" title="">Benny Goodman in 1954 lamenting jazz's decline as America's popular music, pianist

Herbie Hancock

piano
b.1940

" data-original-title="" title="">Herbie Hancock stating in 1971 that "Jazz is not dead," or the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra on tour playing

Duke Ellington

piano
1899 - 1974

" data-original-title="" title="">Duke Ellington's music in the year 2000, on a mission to revive a traditional art form. It's an education in impermanence, as well as in what endures.

One of the themes throughout the book is how to negotiate artistic endeavor and commercial success. There are many sides to the struggle, whether it's clarinetist

Artie Shaw

clarinet
1910 - 2004

" data-original-title="" title="">Artie Shaw's ongoing love/hate relationship with the business, trumpeter

Freddie Hubbard

trumpet
1938 - 2008

" data-original-title="" title="">Freddie Hubbard boldly declaring in 1981, "I wanna live good," or the

Art Ensemble Of Chicago

band / ensemble / orchestra

" data-original-title="" title="">Art Ensemble Of Chicago struggling in the 1970s to feed their families and keep their music alive without compromise. And then there's

Quincy Jones

arranger
1933 - 2024

" data-original-title="" title="">Quincy Jones, for whom there is no issue. As Jones said in 1985: "The whole menu. Why not, man?" Artists of all stripes can learn a great deal by seeing how some of the great artists of our time have dealt with—and still deal with—this issue.

The book also provides an education on the art of conducting an interview. Is it preferable for the interviewer to insert themselves, or to step back and let the other speak? How do you handle a recalcitrant interview subject, and how do you keep things fresh with a musician or group who has already done a dozen interviews that week? Lee Underwood's 1980 interview with trumpeter

Maynard Ferguson

trumpet
1928 - 2006

" data-original-title="" title="">Maynard Ferguson is particularly entertaining. Ferguson cheerfully avoids Underwood's pointed questions, leading the interviewer and the reader on a merry chase. And Art Lange's 1984 interview with pianist

Keith Jarrett

piano
b.1945

" data-original-title="" title="">Keith Jarrett is a model of discipline. Lange easily keeps up with Jarrett's formidable knowledge of classical music, and provides an example of how an interviewer can encourage their subject's ideas. As the book unfolds, it's sheer pleasure to experience the artistry of top-notch journalists such as Nat Hentoff, Studs Terkel, Ira Gitler, Leonard Feather—the list goes on and on.

The clich�� "No jazz library would be complete without this book" is no clich�� here; short of owning every single issue of DownBeat, this book represents the most concise way to gain access to the magazine's gold. Each interview has its bright points and is a world unto itself, but the cumulative effect is a celebration. This book is another reminder of the rich history of jazz—full of great talents, intelligence and personalities, people who have brought tremendous beauty into the world, and continue to do so.

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