Customer Reviews

The Big Band Almanac (Da Capo Paperback)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The low-key, down home alternative to George Simon's often-lauded "Big Bands," this has a charming, almost DIY, quality to it. The graphic layout is pretty funky, but there are more and better photographs than in Simon's book. Also the writing is less jaded and more breathless, conveying the author's continued enthusiasm for his favorite artists of year gone by. Most significantly, Walker puts all the artists on an equal footing, listing them from A to Z, whereas Simon makes a big distinction between "major" artists, and lesser or non-swing musicians, shunting them to separate sections in the back of the book. Both books are informative, but I have more of a soft spot in my heart for this one -- I'd recommend it first!

If you are interested in the big band era this is the book to read. It lists all of the band leaders and most of their sidemen and vocalists. There are many good photos.

I purchased an autograph book and it had a lot of Big Band people. I purchased the Big Band Almanac and it helped me identify most of the people and gave me information about what all they sang, played or conducted. I recommend this as a great Big Band Reference.

I've been a long time collector of Big Band Era music. I've done a Big Band Era DJ show on a college radio station for over 30 years. This is a must have book for all those that want the basic info on the name bands of the era. While it doesn't give as much in depth information on the era as the George T Simon "The Big Bands", it covers the period in a more easy to follow manor. It covers the bands in alphabetical order, so you can zoom right in on any band you wish. Each bands listing starts with information of - Bands first year - Previous band affiliations - Sidemen with band - Vocalists with band - Theme song - Record affiliations - Sponsored Radio or TV shows - Songs written. It then tells a short story of the band. Lots of great pictures and information. If I could only buy one book about the Big Band Era, this would be the book. For greater in depth information about the bands and the era, George T Simon's "The Big Bands" would be the next book to buy. For those looking for lists of 40's Big Band Era recordings, Joel Whitburn's "Pop Hits 1940-1954 is the book to buy. I have many Big Band Era books and I treasure all of them but if you want to know about the Big Bands, this is the book to start your collection.

I bought this hoping to get listings of hits by each artists, but I was disappointed.

The book does seem to contain a lot of info, and I've referred to it a few times as I've developed my music inventory.