Home » Jazz Articles » Book Review » Monterey Jazz Festival: Forty Legendary Years

Monterey Jazz Festival: Forty Legendary Years

By Joel Roberts
December 4, 1997
View read count

Monterey Jazz Festival: 40 Legendary Years
William Minor and Bill Wishner
176 pages
ISBN: 0-883318-40-8
Angel City Press
1997

The opening night of the first Monterey Jazz Festival in 1958 featured performances by

Gerry Mulligan

saxophone, baritone
1927 - 1996

" data-original-title="" title="">Gerry Mulligan,

Max Roach

drums
1925 - 2007

" data-original-title="" title="">Max Roach,

Dave Brubeck

piano
1920 - 2012

" data-original-title="" title="">Dave Brubeck,

Cal Tjader

vibraphone
1925 - 1982

" data-original-title="" title="">Cal Tjader, the

Modern Jazz Quartet

band / ensemble / orchestra
b.1952

" data-original-title="" title="">Modern Jazz Quartet,

Harry James

trumpet
1916 - 1983

" data-original-title="" title="">Harry James, and, just nine months before her death,

Billie Holiday

vocals
1915 - 1959

" data-original-title="" title="">Billie Holiday. The evening's highlight, however, came when

Dizzy Gillespie

trumpet
1917 - 1993

" data-original-title="" title="">Dizzy Gillespie, acting as the program's emcee, welcomed his hero, and occasional rival,

Joshua Redman

saxophone
b.1969

" data-original-title="" title="">Joshua Redman and

Benny Green

piano
b.1963

" data-original-title="" title="">Benny Green, get their starts.

In addition to providing a chronicle of the festival itself, Monterey Jazz also offers a more general overview of the last four decades in jazz. The heart of the book is the 165 rare duotone photos of festival performers, who include most of the major figures in recent jazz history: Mingus, Monk, Miles, Billie Holiday, Dave Brubeck, Duke, Gerry Mulligan,

Bill Evans

piano
1929 - 1980

" data-original-title="" title="">Bill Evans,

Count Basie

piano
1904 - 1984

" data-original-title="" title="">Count Basie,

Sonny Rollins

saxophone
b.1930

" data-original-title="" title="">Sonny Rollins, and many others.

There are dozens of performance photos, plus many wonderful candid shots of musicians hanging out backstage or relaxing on the festival grounds. We catch a glimpse, for example, of an unassuming (for once) Miles Davis sitting in the audience watching bluesman Buddy Guy's band in 1969. We also see Dizzy and Monk laughing uproariously together in the early '60s. As at so many of his stops around the jazz world, Dizzy was a particularly popular figure at Monterey. He appeared at the festival numerous times, acted as its artistic director, and even launched his (alas aborted) "Dizzy for President" campaign at the 1964 fest. He later withdrew his candidacy, saying that while he was "very qualified...I don't have the time."

The book also includes a foreword by that increasingly ubiquitous jazz commentator, Clint Eastwood, a festival attendee since the early days. Eastwood warmly recalls his many visits to Monterey, his filming of scenes for "Play Misty for Me," featuring

Cannonball Adderley

saxophone
1928 - 1975

" data-original-title="" title="">Cannonball Adderley, at the 1970 fest, and the debut of his son, bassist Kyle Eastwood, at the 1994 fest.

All in all, a very attractive book that would make a fine holiday gift for the jazz lover on your list.

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Playin' Hooky
< Previous

Listen
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.