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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Difficult Subject Handled Expertly,
By
This review is from: The Complete Idiot's Guide to Jazz (Paperback)
The task is an enormous one: How to explain jazz to someone who has little or no understanding of the musical genre. Just what is jazz? Maybe it really is a question that can only be answered by the famous Louis Armstrong quote, "If you've gotta ask, you'll never know."But give Axelrod credit. He gives the subject expert treatment. Whether you know absolutely nothing about jazz (or any music, for that matter), or whether you have a degree in music, you'll learn plenty in this well-formatted book. The author wisely gives readers a general overview of what constitutes jazz, what some of the major trends were, and a who's who of famous musicians. Axelrod does NOT immediately launch into a chronological history of jazz and that's a plus. Jazz does not have cut-and-dried periods. It's style changes intertwine and sometimes reemerge after years (and decades) of inactivity. After the first few chapters when Axelrod DOES get into more of a chronological look at jazz, it makes more sense. The foundation he has built can withstand a look at the various subgenres at that point. This makes for a much clearer reading and understanding of jazz. Axelrod gives brief bios of the major players and band leaders. If you want to know more, he tells you where you can continue your search. Also very helpful is a listing of 25 "must have" recordings for the beginner, and an expanded list for those ready to branch out. Also provided are glossaries of musicians and jazz terms. Some critics have knocked the book for not providing a sampler CD. Let me point out that the outstanding Ken Burns 5 CD boxed set covering the history of jazz barely scratches the surface. A "sampler" CD just won't do. A great book for the beginning, intermediate, or veteran jazz fan. approx. 300 pages
10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Better than the Dummies Book,
By Jairzinho (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Complete Idiot's Guide to Jazz (Paperback)
This is a good overview of jazz history told more or less chronologically with overviews of the major players. Although it would have been nice to have a CD with samples of the music like the Dummies book, this is the better book of the two.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Don't be an idiot anymore!,
By
This review is from: The Complete Idiot's Guide to Jazz (Paperback)
A must-have for anyone who never understood jazz, containing: 1) basic musical concepts; 2) jazz history; 3) major schools (styles), musicians and albums; 4) who's who in jazz; 5) essential jazz albums list; 6) complete idiot's reference card (styles and albums checklist).Read it and you will learn about all the different jazz styles and get tips to find the music that better suits your taste and build a jazz collection. P.S.: Despite the author's affirmation on page 225, Carmen Miranda was not actually brazilian. She was born in Portugal and moved to Brazil very young.
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