Customer Reviews

Bill Evans - Everything Happens to Me: A Musical Biography (Book)

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

 

 

I also prefer How My Heart Sings over this one -I'm a huge Evans fan and as a jazz musician, I was thrilled about finding a "musical biography". Well, just repeating the same old stories as all the other books on the subject and then throwing in comments about the recordings -some of them suspiciously harsh, even- does not make it any more musical than any other biography. Not only that, but the times he comments on the actual music, he is almost invariably mistaken and wrong; "Freddie Freeloader" in NOT in a minor key and "These Things Called Changes" is based on "What Is This Thing Called Love", not "All The Things You Are" as Shadwick suggests. If he ever really studied the Manne-Hole live recordings instead of undeservedly dismissing them, he would know that Evans was already using the very same changes. As a collector of everything about Mr.Evans, I had to get this but I would not recommend it to anyone. Two stars for the subject alone.

I hate to be negative, but:
*This book adds nothing to the body of knowledge about BE and contains a number of factual errors, not the least of which is a
misspelling of Nenette's last name pre-Evans. How checkable is that? Some tunes (and--I think--keys; I'll have to check) are mis-identified as part of the attempt at musical analysis. Such glaring and very checkable errors tend to make me wonder about the quality of the rest of the content.
According to the author, this book was prepared at the same time as Pettinger's was. Given that, it doesn't surprise that this book is unfulfilling and unrevealing after Pettinger (which still leaves us wondering about BE the person).
If your budget is limited, get Pettinger's book and Hanns Petrik's (if you can read German). I'll keep this book since I am somewhat of a "completist," but I'd sell it used if the subject were anyone else.
Meanwhile, we should all hope that Gene Lees decides to write the definitive book on BE. I had some brief correspondence with him many years ago (not that I'm close to him--we simply share a mutual musical associate and friend) on this and other topics. As BE fans, our hope should be that the passage of time has softened or removed some of the factors that were leading him not to do it.

I'm only writing this to bump up the book's rating a bit and to offer a more positive opinion that the reader might take into consideration. You might assume from some of the reviews here that this is the worst jazz bio ever written, and it's definitely not the case. Shadwick is a fine writer, and his understanding of Evans' work is not in doubt. Sure, there are liner note excerpts quoted in the text, but find me a jazz book that doesn't call on liner essays, among other references. For the most part, Shadwick concentrates on the actual recordings themselves, and in this way, it truly is a "musical biography," tracing Evans' developments over the years as they are heard on record. At best, Shadwick's subjective descriptions/criticisms can offer even the hardened Evans fan (like me) insights into the music, and for the newcomer, it's a handy guide to what he/she can expect to hear. Not only are most of Evans' records examined, but most of the key tracks are discussed in descriptive detail, making for a fairly comprehensive overview.

The negativity of some of the preceding reviews here is so uncalled for as to be suspicious to me, as if some of these reviewers are just shilling for the "other" Evans bio, How My Heart Sings, and trying to keep sales of this one down. I've read some garbage jazz books before, and this isn't one of them. It isn't one of the best either, but the author does not deserve to be trashed for this labor of love. (Better written, I must add, than some more popular jazz bios, which I won't bother to mention.)

I find Pettingers book borders on the sycophantic at times. Although it is a great book he's a real 'fan' and in fairness he makes no denial of the fact. That spoils the book for me a bit. This Shadwick book is more focused on the music and how it evolves in a more useful way, which helped me to understand how Evans slots into the history of Jazz piano. As a Jazz pianist myself I think this is a great book and I've learned loads from it.

If you are a devoted Bill Evans fan who has read his CD/LP booklet and liner notes over and over, you have already read at least half of this book. If you've also read Pettinger's "How My Heart Sings," you have already read roughly up to two thirds of the book without reading it. It is annoying to read all those quotes thinking that you have already read them somewhere else before. The author, who must have accumulated lots of questions in the course of his research, should have conducted his own interviews at least with Bill's two celebrated producers Orrin Keepnews and Helen Keane, who were both living when the author was writing the book. The book, however, contains some new and valuable (to me, at least) information, such as three Bill's master pieces, including Waltz for Debby, were deleted from 1973 Tokyo Concert CD, which boasts unusually high sound quality. The background information behind "Turn Out The Stars" boxed set and the technical but insightful comparative analysis between the original trio and the last trio are helpful. I beg Sony Records to issue "The Complete Tokyo Sessions" and Warner Brothers to put out Harvard Session with John Lewis. The book indicates that there remain, at least, several high quality recordings that are left unpublished. Though not discussed in the book, there is also a Tokyo version of Marian McPartland interview, which was recorded in high fidelity stereo with FM Tokyo.

I honestly don't know what the other people who rated this book are talking about. It's tremendous, as beautifully designed and informative as anything I've ever read on Evans. If there are minor discography errors here and there - few books this all-encompassing are letter-perfect - it hardly means the work is a travesty. On the contrary, it's absolutely brimming with useful information, both personal and technical, and the photos are great. A joy from beginning to end, regardless of what some obsessives (or the apparently cheesed-off Bill Evans estate) would like you to think.

I can't understand the hostility of the other reviews. This is a physically beautiful book with many excellent photgraphs. The text is very rich in detail and the author is taking pains to be accurate. It treats Evans career in sections, and takes each one equally seriously. While the prose is sometimes a little dense, and it's focused more on the music than on the narrative of Evans' life, the comments were pointed, observant, and accurate. Shadwick clearly understands and respects Evans, but it isn't a puff piece--he's perfectly willing to note a less than stellar session, or point out stagnant pahses in Evans' career. He does a great job situating Evans' career in the larger context of the jazz world as it was changing in each era. He notes the tragic role drugs played in Evan's life, and gives a feel for this without any sensationalizing or glamorizing.

I would highly recommend this book for Evans fans. It treats him with serious critical sensitivity, and in a package suited to the beauty of the man's art

Like most other reviewers, I love Bill Evans' records and I hear a certain magic in his playing. The trouble with this book--other than the microscopic text and exceedingly wide columns--is its utterly dry and monotonous narration.

The book is fairly interesting--whether accurate or not, I couldn't say--in its account of Evans' quiet ascent from obscurity to the jazz pantheon he eventually came to occupy. Unfortunately, once we've learned how Evans reached the top, book becomes excruciating in its colorless, repetitive and tedious descriptions of Evans' subseqent recording sessions, tours, and record label changes.

Worst of all--and least excusable--is the fact that, somewhere along the way, author Shadwick seems to become disenchanted with the artistry of Bill Evans. If we're to believe Shadwick's account, the last 20 years of Evans' career were almost entirely uninspired and devoid of the creativity and innovation for which he's known and loved.

Whether he intends to or not, the end result is that Shadwick is essentially demystifying Evan's artistic legacy--and that's not a book I care to read.

If you want an excellent biography on Bill Evans, pick up a copy of "How My Heart Sings". This book pales in comparison, but it is not without its merits. It has excellent photographs and is well-organized. The analysis of the music is rather subjective and unclear. The writing style is dry and does not flow well. Others have found several factual errors. If you're interested in good pictures and a rough overview of Evans, "Everything Happens to Me" is worth picking up.

I have always loved Bill Evans. His delicate touch, elegant voicings and bright little improvisational surprises are just wonderful. I may have every recording available by the man and I never tire of listening - especially the solo material. I can't say this of any other musician. There's something magical there.

So I was very excited to learn of a new biography.

But save your money. I've been trying to read it for a month and I just cannot read it. I really can't explain why, except the writing is just bad. The story is lost. The observations about the music are either too esoteric or just meaningless to the average reader. It's the kind of writing I see with a lot of critics and it just isn't interesting.

One final note. Although the book is published with very high quality and there are a few interesting photographs and a fair discography, the print is so small and the margins so wide it's almost as though the book designer said to him/her self "how difficult can I make this to read?" Anyone over the age of puberty will need a magnifying glass and a ruler to follow the text.

I was very disappointed.