Notes and Tones: Musician-to-Musician Interviews [Paperback]

Arthur Taylor (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 22, 1993

Notes and Tones is one of the most controversial, honest, and insightful books ever written about jazz. As a black musician himself, Arthur Taylor was able to ask his subjects hard questions about the role of black artists in a white society. Free to speak their minds, these musicians offer startling insights into their music, their lives, and the creative process itself. This expanded edition is supplemented with previously unpublished interviews with Dexter Gordon and Thelonious Monk, a new introduction by the author, and new photographs.Notes and Tones consists of twenty-nine no-holds-barred conversations which drummer Arthur Taylor held with the most influential jazz musicians of the ’60s and ’70s—including:

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Arthur Taylor has drummed with Coleman Hawkins, Bud Powell, Sonny Rollins, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk, and dozens of others. He has been called ”one of the great drummers to come out of the fertile Harlem bebop scene” (New York Times) and ”one of the best bandleaders living or dead” (Village Voice). His band, Taylor’s Wailers, has recorded several albums, and is based in New York City.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press; Exp Sub edition (August 22, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 030680526X
• ISBN-13: 978-0306805264
• Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.8 x 8.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #301,373 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A classic for the mind, body and spirit June 15, 2000

By john david astor

Format:Paperback

Arthur Taylor, a most creative source of a force in the drumming world, has created a moving, startling, and lovely group of interviews of some of the most influential artists in jazz (Black Classical) music. Giants like; Thelonious Monk, Erroll Garner, Elvin Jones, Nina Simone, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie and so many others paint images of pointedness, beauty, intellect and feeling. The reader really gets an insight into the personalities and lives of these wonderful people that are the lineage of the only true American art form. I really recomend the book to anyone, from the person who has had one passing thought about jazz artists to those who dedicate their life to the art form, or any artform. This is, as they say, the real deal. I am humbled by Mr. Taylor's wonderful work and, in my own way, feel love for each of the unique artists that he interviews. Thank You Arthur!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Priceless view into the lives and minds of these artists October 16, 2006

By Erin Thompson

Format:Paperback

Notes and Tones is distinct in its highly synergistic dialogue. The fact that Arthur Taylor was a serious [Black] jazz drummer, with a familiar professional and personal relationship with many of the interviewees, resulted in wide ranging discussions marked by unguarded sincerity. Certain themes are touched upon numerous times [the Black Power movement & the need for jazz musicians to unite and practice cooperative economics], which while perhaps dating the book, nevertheless provide a telling contrast to the current state of affairs in the music world in general, and the social concerns of the U.S. Black community specifically. This clearly was a labor of love, and the insights shared by these iconic figures consistently inspire me to make the most of my time and efforts in whatever I'm pursuing, every time I read from the book.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book January 3, 2001

By NewYorker

Format:Paperback

A genuinely fascinating collection of interviews with some of the most important jazz figures of the 1950s-60s. (It's worth the purchase price just for the goofy, entertaining exchange with Dexter Gordon which opens the book.) Not only do you get an unusually intimate sense of what some of these brilliant musicians were/are actually like in "real life," but the book is particularly interesting--and frank--about the subject of race, in the jazz world and beyond. If you love jazz, don't miss this book.