The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD: Seventh Edition (Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings) (Paperback)

The authors have exceptionally good, eclectic tastes; I detected no particular biases here. Other reviewers have complained a little about the relative emphasis on English and European performers. I found that this improved the coverage of jazz, and did not feel that American performers were slighted. Besides, these performers are excellent, perhaps underrated in America, and often record alongside musicians from many countries!

The authors clearly explain their rating system, and there is a valuable emphasis on the sound quality of the recordings. Excellent notes on personnel and dates of recording: This is important because publishers seem to constantly repackage their jazz CDs, sometimes the only way to know what you've got is to compare personnel and dates.

Another strength here is the biographies of the performers. There's lots of detail, and, as in the reviews, the authors don't refrain from fully critiqueing the records. Unfortuantely, this new edition does not have the small section on compilation CDs (i.e., Special limited-time gatherings of great musicians, such as the All-Star Metronome Band. Perhaps these are no longer in print, or they are now listed under the principle player(s), at any rate, I preferred the prior method of listing these separately.)

I think the reviews are fair and insightful. Of course, you'll disagree with some of them, but this is really an excellent guide to jazz musicians and their output. Their choice of musicians is thorough and appropriate (scant attention is paid to "light" jazz/pop artists such as Kenny G., etc., favoring instead performers ranging from Armstrong and Basie, bebop and big band, to contemporary musicians like Metheny and Krall. The only question is whether you should wait for the next edition. I recommend buying every edition (if you can), new mixes, box sets, and re-done CDs are, perhaps unfortunately because of the confusion, coming out all of the time. But between this and the last edition (despite my one reservation above), this will map better onto what's available. Very highly recommended for the serious fan, and for beginners who want to learn a LOT more!

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews   Was this review helpful to you?

Report this | Permalink Comment Comment

You have three primary choices for these "jazz guides": All Music Guide, MusicHound, and Penguin. AMG includes reviews of out-of-print CDs, and older LPs, which can be frustrating because you'll read glowing reviews of albums you won't be able to find. MusicHound is a compilation of reviews by different authors, so you can forget about any kind of consistency. Penguin is informative, contemporary, and consistent. It's your best choice.

This book features 1601 pages of CD reviews and artist biographies, not including the introduction and index. Whatever your level of knowledge, however long you've spent listening to jazz, you're sure to discover something new in this book. And that's a tremendous reward for Amazon's price.

On the other hand, as an update, this edition doesn't impress me. Significant artists like Mel Lewis and Carl Fontana still lack entries. Mick Goodrick, Christian McBride, and others have actually been removed. The artists suggest, in their introduction, that those noting omissions should get a life. Of course, no one's perfect. There are, however, both minor omissions and glaring omissions, and this edition still includes too many of the latter.

Jim McNeely, for example, is listed on page 1005, along with four of his CDs -- the most recent, from 1992. The authors ignore "The Power and the Glory" [Storyville, 2001] and "Play Bill Evans" [Stunt Records, 2002], which are forgivable omissions. I believe "In This Moment" [Stunt Records, 2003] was released too late to be included.

But also missing are McNeely's "Lickety Split" [New World Records, 1997], which was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1998; "Nice Work" [Dacapo Records, 2000], which was nominated for two Grammies in 2001; and "Group Therapy" [OmniTone, 2001], which was nominated for a Grammy in 2002. You'd think an artist nominated for four Grammies would receive a more complete listing in a book like this.

These are limited examples of a larger trend: this edition doesn't show enough improvement over its previous edition to be worth updating. If you don't own the Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD yet, then my criticisms are nitpicks. It's a great investment for a reasonable price, and you should buy it. If you already own an older edition, however, I can't recommend you buy this. Spend your money buying a new CD, instead. Let's hope that 2005 will bring a 7th edition that will amaze us all, anew.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews   Was this review helpful to you?

Report this | Permalink Comment Comment

The reviews are well written and very witty. The writers treat their subject seriously but not stodgily and, in some instances, their geographic distance allows them a measure of independence from US opinions of certain artists. Their treatment of two musicians in particular, Kenton and Brubeck, are unexpectedly fair, acknowledging their weakness, while pointing out what is interesting and valuable about their best music.

As to the attention given to European and avant-garde jazz: Thank God. American critics and fans alike seem to think that be-bop and hard bop are the only kinds of jazz worth considering. While one might quibble with some of Cook's and Morton's opinions-I tend to bypass most fusion albums-seasoned jazz collectors will be able to figure out what they're getting into from the accurate descriptions contained here. If you buy a Sam Rivers disc expecting something like Ben Webster, you can't say you weren't forewarned by these guys.

I do wonder why some readily available discs were not included. Gerry Mulligan's Pacific Jazz stuff is all still in print and isn't reviewed here (although it is included in previous editions).

My only complaint is that the small print, running across a fairly wide page, is a little tough for those of us who are bi-focaled. Otherwise, I hope to see this book in many editions to come.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews   Was this review helpful to you?

Report this | Permalink Comment Comment