Awards

• Winner of Certificate of Merit in Historical Research in Recorded Jazz, 2014 ARSC Awards for Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research.

Overview

Legendary jazz ambassador Dr. Billy Taylor’s autobiography spans more than six decades, from the heyday of jazz on 52nd Street in 1940s New York City to CBS Sunday Morning. Taylor fought not only for the recognition of jazz music as “America’s classical music” but also for the recognition of black musicians as key contributors to the American music repertoire. Peppered with anecdotes recalling encounters with other jazz legends such as Jelly Roll Morton, Duke Ellington, Art Tatum, Count Basie, Billie Holiday, and many others, The Jazz Life of Dr. Billy Taylor is not only the life story of a jazz musician and spokesman but also a commentary on racism and jazz as a social force.

Full Product Details

9780253009098

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Reviews

<p> As a highly-esteemed jazz pianist, educator, and media figure who helped popularize the concept of jazz as America's classical music, Billy Taylor's contributions to jazz were significant, and his story intersects with some of the music's most fascinating figures and historical chapters. As a jazz education pioneer and well-liked spokesperson for the music, Mr. Taylor is a civil rights figure in his own way, and this gives his book a value that transcends the normal boundaries of music biography. --David Brent Johnson, Jazz Director, WFIU--David Brent Johnson, Jazz Director, WFIU

<p> In this excellent collaboration with author Teresa Reed, Dr. Billy Taylor, one of the most beloved and iconic figures in the jazz world, tells his extraordinary life story in his own words with characteristic humility, warmth, and eloquence. Across nearly ninety years, he played many roles, including performer, recording artist, composer, bandleader, author, educator, civil rights activist, broadcaster, and tireless advocate for jazz, which he called America's Classical Music. This is a book of major importance not only to the jazz field but also to the study of the African American social and cultural experience in the 20th and early 21st centuries. It is a must read--I couldn't put it down! --Dr. David N. Baker, Chair, Jazz Studies, Indiana University Jacobs School of Music; National Endowment for the Arts American Jazz Master--Dr. David N. Baker, Chair, Jazz Studies, Indiana University Jacobs School of Music; National Endowment for the Arts American Jazz Master

Author Information

Dr. Billy Taylor (1921–2010) served as the Duke Ellington Fellow at Yale University, Artistic Advisor for Jazz to the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and Board Member on the National Council for the Arts. A lifelong spokesperson for jazz, he hosted radio shows in New York, on National Public Radio, and became the jazz correspondent on CBS Sunday Morning. With over 23 honorary doctoral degrees, Dr. Billy Taylor is also the recipient of two Peabody Awards, an Emmy, a Grammy and a host of prestigious and highly coveted prizes, such as the National Medal of Arts, the Tiffany Award, a Lifetime Achievement Award from Downbeat Magazine, and election to the Hall of Fame for the International Association for Jazz Education. Teresa L. Reed is Director of the School of Music at the University of Tulsa where she teaches music theory and African-American music.

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