Customer Reviews

Three Wishes: An Intimate Look at Jazz Greats

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Slightly larger than a trade size book. Soft but substantial cover,305 pages plus index. For those of you who enjoy jazz this is something that should be on your library shelf. As the title infers,a lot of the leading musicians of the day(beginning in 1961 through 1967 in New York) were asked what their three wishes were. The answers are very enlightening and always entertaining. An example is this from Les Spann:"That the people of the world understand each other. That I could look forward to consistent growth of perception till I die. That I could eat chicken as often as I want". Another is this from the bassist John Ore:"To be able to play well. To be all over the world,in good health. To have a time-machine". And this from Stan Getz:"Justice. Truth. Beauty".

The wishes from these musicians give an insight into their lives and their aspirations and outlooks. The photographs,which are very atmospheric, are what really set this book apart from other books about this period. The author,who has quite a few compositions named in her honor, has a unique vantage point and uses it well. They aren't formally composed shots but rather pictures taken very informally. There is a short biography of the author by her grandaughter and an introduction by Gary Giddins. For the jazz lover this book is a cut above because of the rapport between the author and her subjects.

This is, of course, a collection of photographs from the jazz past. Though the images are not dated, it seems that most were taken in the 1950's-70's. There have been a number of books featuring pictures of jazz artists by professional photographers such as William Claxton and Herman Leonard. What I like about these are they are not glamour shots but for the most part they seem to be just candid poses that have not been published previously. The three wishes part of the book seemed to get responses ranging from modest hopes for better mastery of their instruments and more creativity to financial success. Of course most know that Bird died at the Baroness de Koenigswarter's Stanhope apartment. She has had many songs named in her honor such as Nica's Dream and Nica's Tempo. Some of the pictures included are of Pepper Adams, Cannonball, Art Blakey, Roy Brooks, Donald Byrd, Paul Chambers, Sonny Clark, Klook, Trane, Junior Cook, A.T., Walter Davis, Jr., Diz, K.D.,Joe Farrell, Johnny Griffin, Slide Hampton, Bill Hardman, Barry Harris, Hawk, Elmo Hope, Philly Joe Jones, Wynton Kelly, Mingus, Blue Mitchell, Hank Mobley, Lee Morgan, Miles, Monk, Oscar Pettiford, Bud Powell, Freddie Redd, Max Roach,Sonny Rollins, Charlie Rouse, Horace Silver, Sonny Stitt, Clark Terry, Lucky Thompson, Bobby Timmons, Wilbur Ware. The preceeding is truly a list of greats and there are many I didn't mention. Go for it.

Nica is a well known name to anyone with a mild interest in jazz, especially modern jazz. Her name features in classic tunes: Nica's Dream, Nica's Tempo, Pannonica and countless others. This book offers some of the most incredible candid photography of those that helped define modern jazz (Thelonious Monk, Barry Harris, Tommy Flannagan, Sonny Clark, Charlie Rouse, Sonny Rollins, Miles Davis, Coleman Hawkins, John Coltrane, and many more.), and simultaneously lets us into their minds through Nica's asking them for their "3 Wishes". These lists are incredible for their depth, insight and candor from each musician who contributed. A wonderful book told through the eyes of a great patron and friend of the greatest jazz has produced.

I borrowed this book from the library and knew I would have to get a copy for myself. So many of these great artists were not given the accolades they richly deserved during their often too brief lifetimes. This book offers both rare photos of them in private moments and very honest feelings from these artists about their wishes. Sometimes I listen to a specific artist and read the comments from them while their music plays. Many of the wishes are so thoughtful, some are playful and others make you want to cry--much like the amazing music they all created. Beautiful.

Enjoyed the book-- brought back lovely memories of Nica, and the wonderful sessions at her home in Weehawkin, N.J. Her kindness and hospitality were shared by all who knew her. I am quoted in the book, and for the record, I play trumpet (not sax)
saul fischer (Sol Fisch)

There's really nothing like grainy black and white photos to document the amazing jazz life we all missed as a result of being born too late. Nica, the Peggy Guggenheim of jazz music, simply took pictures of the world around her for those fruitful years at the Cathouse. The simplicity of musicians' comments bares deep into their heartfelt needs and more often than not, matches their recordings and musical statements. Also a great way to show young children the truest pictures of that era.

This book is a great insight into the Artistic and "Down to Earth" Human side of these Great Jazz Artists. The late Pannonica de Koenigswarter had an affinty for jazz (especially Thelonious Monk)and for capturing the "True Essence" and sometimes "Spirituality" of each of the artists she interviewed and photographed for this book. It's an amazing book if not just for the candid polaroid's she takes of each musician. I would highly recommend this and also watching the DVD Straight no Chaser the kife documentary of Thelonious "Sphere" Monk, which shows a lot of footage of The Baroness and Monk's interactions and how she truly was a patron and a "Friend of Jazz and it's many wonderful Artists" of this time period. definitely worth the purchase! Thank you to her "niece" (?) who writes the intro. . . who was very instrumental in getting this book published.

In 2008, a fascinating document of jazz history was revealed to the public: Three Wishes: An Intimate Look at Jazz Greats, a collection of photographs of jazz musicians in New York taken by The Jazz Baroness, Pannonic de Koenigswarter (or Nica). In the 1960s, She 300 jazz musicians (the noteworthy, such as John Coltrane, and many others less known) what their three wishes were. The answers range from the profound to the pedestrian to the puckish to the prurient.

Two sets of answers stand out to me:

Saxophonist, Ornette Coleman:

1. Eternal life.
2. Love.
3. Happiness.

Pianist, Mary Lou Williams:

1. To love God more.
2. To do His will.
3. That he should save souls through me.

Think on these things.

Nica also photographed the jazz folk she loved and supported, using her inexpensive camera, giving the photos a raw, granular, and "you-are-there" quality. This unique book is a testimony to yearning, lament, and hope: a unique window into the jazz world of a generation ago.

This is a wonderful piece of jazz history done in a very personal fashion. For anyone who appreciates the founding fathers of jazz, this book is a must - no brainer!!

For four decades, the "jazz baroness" Pannonica (Nica) de Koenigswarter was a patron to many greatest musicians in jazz, most notably composer and pianist Thelonius Monk. Over a period of years, she asked many of her musical friends, for "their three wishes in life." The text of this delightful book is the responses by 300 of them. If you don't know much about Nica, there's a nice forward by jazz historian Gary Giddins, and a short essay by her granddaughter Nadine de Koenigswarter.

But that's not all -- Nica was an amateur photographer, and often shot photos of her friends. The result, published here and the best reason to buy the book, are wonderfully intimate and relaxed glimpses of many of the most important musicians alive during the fifties, sixties, and seventies.

I LOVE this book, and thanks to the photos, I'll return to it from time to time. I also enjoyed Nica's Dream, a full length biography by David Kastin.