Jazz 101: A Complete Guide to Learning and Loving Jazz

Jazz 101: A Complete Guide to Learning and Loving Jazz by John Szwed (2000) It’s easy to criticize this by its title alone—and I thought I might—but I found the book, as a whole, both informative and enjoyable. You’re not really “learning” jazz—but getting an overview, a foundation to proceed from. And as far a “loving” goes, that’s between you and the music. The “101” part is apt, though—meaning, an introductory course, an overview—meant to be the foundation for further leaning and experience. I’ve been listening to Jazz for half a century, but I have my favorites—and there’s lots and lots, volumes, of music I know nothing about. The history of Jazz is so vast and varied that no person could know it all or have heard everything. Even if you had an unlimited budget for music, you wouldn’t have the time. The nice thing about this book is that it gives you recommendations, so you can at least narrow down the vast and varied music out there. For me, I liked hearing about the music from the artists I know about—which added to my love for it. Then based on that, hearing about other artists I’m not familiar with, so that I might continue exploring in those directions.

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